I could not find an MFA program in Interaction Design in my area (Portland, Oregon) so I modified an existing program to suit my needs( PNCA MFA in Visual Studies).
I enrolled in an open-framework, forward thinking school that gave me the freedom I needed to pursue my interests. It has been very hard and very rewarding. When I began the school year, (i just finished my first) I had to explain to everyone what it was I was studying and why and how it affected everyone. It took a while, but not THAT long. I still have to spend a lot of time evangelizing but that has taught me how to talk to people about Interaction Design. And yes, of course there are gaps in my education. But I am constantly working on projects and getting feedback from my community so my skill set is improving dramatically. I searched the local IxDA, Dorkbot, CHIFOO, ACM community for a mentor and found someone whom I adore and will be friends with for life, and the school arranged for this person to be paid to meet and teach me. The coursework we set out for my first year was extensive and at the end of the year I wrote up an entire project based course from the document. Now I can modify that into a syllabus to help teach other students - like me - that are just entering the field. Now that I have taken the first steps to teaching my school about what needs to be taught they are ecstatic about the future of the field and eager to get a formalized program in place and recruit more students like me to come to the school. I am still trying to grow a professional community in Portland, Oregon and I think it will be a while still before something formalizes with the school around an actual IxD program- maybe a couple of years? Shorter if more people help push and help teach to be honest. They are willing to pay and willing to provide space.... My point here is that this can be approached from many directions and that many progressive schools are eager to teach what students WANT to learn they just often don't know WHAT that is. We can help them by pushing them in certain directions-now PNCA may not be as wonderful, romantic or established as Carnegie Mellon (sigh. dreamy.) or SVA but it is 6 blocks from where I live and it is a fantastic school. By encouraging our local schools, teaching them what needs to be taught, we de-monopolizes our education needs and make the education more affordable (time, geography and money). -paige On Thu, Jun 12, 2008 at 7:56 PM, Jack Leon Moffett <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > On Jun 12, 2008, at 10:41 PM, erpdesigner wrote: > > I'd love to see a reputable university come up with a killer online MFA or >> MS degree in interaction design, preferably something like Carnegie Mellon, >> NYU or Stanford and something that's part time. There's other programs >> online for computer engineering---why not interaction design? >> > > > > I realize the convenience that would afford. However, I don't believe a > good design program could be done as a solely online course. It's been > debated on the list in the past, but the studio experience is an important > part of design education. An online course would also curtail the ability to > do group projects, which I feel are necessary. > > An online program would be fine for getting a degree, but not for getting > the experience that degree should represent. > > Jack > > > Jack L. Moffett > Interaction Designer > inmedius > 412.459.0310 x219 > http://www.inmedius.com > > > If I'd have asked my customers what they wanted, > they would have told me "A faster horse." > - Henry Ford > > ________________________________________________________________ > Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! > To post to this list ....... [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe > List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines > List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help > -- Paige Saez User Experience Design Information Architecture 971.227.4384 Art.Media.Love. paigesaez.org makerlab.com red76.com ________________________________________________________________ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ....... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help
