What kind of Bachelor's degree should I pursue in Canada? What essentials should I consider?

Student Forum
#1

Dear friends,

I have the intention of stepping into the realm of UX Design. UX as in the kind of design which involves more thinking and focuses on the user rather than the pixels. I’m thinking about going for a bachelors in HCI but I do not want to end up learning a lot of theoretical things which sounds great on paper but does not work in the real world. I also do not want encounter scenarios involving physical objects as in serious product design. I definitely do not want get into traditional graphic design(esp. print design). I’m much more interested in “User Centric Design” but I was wondering if I could occasionally dabble into the digital visuals occasionally if I go for HCI. I also do not want to get deep into interaction design which focuses heavily on web design since stuff like Click Funnels, Typeform… are already occupying that space.

In conclusion, I want to specifically pursue UX design involving apps, VR/AR and anything else involving the digital medium. Since I guess the institution matters a lot too I was wondering if fellow Canadians over here would suggest a few of them.

By the way, the essentials, I was wondering should I consider a Mac… I personally love PCs, I’m into gaming and I don’t like Macs other than the form factor and appearance. Would I undergo any kind institutional bias or something if I refuse to use a Mac in the University/College.

When it comes to career goals I’m much more concerned about whom and where I am going to be working for rather than what kind of job I do. Love to know your suggestions regarding this matter too. Let me know if I am missing something I should not be.

Best Regards! :wink:

#2

Rather than us mentioning a specific kind of degree, it’s probably far better if you identify a couple dozen programs that, on the surface sound right, then dig deeper into them to find whether or not they match up with what you’re wanting to do.

Also keep in mind that you can’t really specialize until you get the general basics down. Specialize too soon, make up your mind too quickly, or focus on too narrow of a subject and you’ll find huge gaps in your knowledge after you graduate.

I graduated from a university that made every student wait until after their freshman year of general design studies before choosing an area emphasis. The assumption being that most beginning students don’t really know enough about what they intend to study to make those kinds of commitments. You seem to be very specific regarding what you want, so my suggestion is to pursue those goals with an open mind that provides you with alternatives before committing to something prematurely — your goals could easily shift a bit as you learn more.

As for Macs vs Windows machines, there’s another recent thread on the forum about that. My opinion is that one probably works about as good as the other and that it’s a matter of personal preference. However, some software is only available for one platform or the other, and some schools and work places have definite ideas regarding the need to keep all their hardware and software compatible.