Study human-computer interaction (HCI) for designing user-friendly interfaces. Learn about usability, user experience, and interaction design.
The language used throughout the course, in both instruction and assessments.
University of California San Diego
Skills you'll gain: Design Research, Interaction Design, User Experience Design, Statistical Analysis, Usability, Ideation, User Research, Graphic and Visual Design, User Interface (UI) Design, Experimentation, Prototyping, Human Centered Design, Usability Testing, Human Computer Interaction, A/B Testing, Human Factors, Collaborative Software, Telecommuting, R Programming, Storyboarding
Intermediate · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months
University of California San Diego
Skills you'll gain: Interaction Design, Usability, Human Centered Design, Mockups, Storyboarding, User Experience Design, Design Thinking, Prototyping, User Interface (UI) Design, User Research, Interviewing Skills
Mixed · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

Skills you'll gain: Persona (User Experience), User Interface (UI), Prompt Engineering, Interaction Design, Usability, User Experience Design, Human Computer Interaction, Usability Testing, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, AI Personalization, User Research, Prototyping, Natural Language Processing
Intermediate · Course · 1 - 3 Months

Skills you'll gain: Responsive Web Design, Storyboarding, Wireframing, User Experience Design, UI/UX Research, Usability Testing, Information Architecture, Presentations, User Experience, User Research, Figma (Design Software), Design Reviews, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, User Story, Data Ethics, User Centered Design, Usability, Mockups, Interviewing Skills, Professional Development
Build toward a degree
Beginner · Professional Certificate · 3 - 6 Months

Arizona State University
Skills you'll gain: Usability, Usability Testing, Problem Solving, Human Factors, Interaction Design, User Experience Design, Human Centered Design, Critical Thinking and Problem Solving, Human Factors Engineering, Creativity, User Interface (UI), User Research, Decision Making, Display Devices, Human Computer Interaction, Human Learning, Data Collection, Human Machine Interfaces, Accident Prevention, Control Systems
Intermediate · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months

Duke University
Skills you'll gain: Responsible AI, Data Ethics, Human Computer Interaction, User Experience Design, Human Centered Design, Human Factors, Personally Identifiable Information, Information Privacy, Artificial Intelligence, Design Thinking, Machine Learning, Human Learning, Law, Regulation, and Compliance, Automation
Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

California Institute of the Arts
Skills you'll gain: Information Architecture, Wireframing, User Interface and User Experience (UI/UX) Design, Persona (User Experience), Mockups, User Experience Design, Responsive Web Design, UI/UX Strategy, Web Design, Adobe XD, User Interface (UI) Design, User Experience, User Centered Design, Interaction Design, Prototyping, Graphic and Visual Design, Web Language, HTML and CSS, Design Elements And Principles, User Research
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months

IBM
Skills you'll gain: Prompt Engineering, Prompt Patterns, Software Development Life Cycle, Large Language Modeling, Software Architecture, Computer Vision, LangChain, Responsive Web Design, Restful API, LLM Application, Generative AI, Flask (Web Framework), Responsible AI, IBM Cloud, Data Import/Export, Python Programming, Engineering Software, Workflow Management, Machine Learning, Data Science
Build toward a degree
Beginner · Professional Certificate · 3 - 6 Months

University of Michigan
Skills you'll gain: Web Scraping, Data Processing, Data Store, Relational Databases, Data Visualization, JSON, Database Design, SQL, Network Protocols, Databases, Web Services, Restful API, Data Structures, Data Modeling, Programming Principles, Application Programming Interface (API), Data Cleansing, Data Analysis, Python Programming, Computer Programming
Build toward a degree
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months

Skills you'll gain: Computer Networking, Network Troubleshooting, TCP/IP, Network Architecture, Network Protocols, OSI Models, Network Routing, Network Infrastructure, Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), Virtual Private Networks (VPN), Network Security, Wireless Networks, Network Model, Data Integrity
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

University of Colorado Boulder
Skills you'll gain: Computer Vision, Image Analysis, Computer Graphics, Multimodal Prompts, Visualization (Computer Graphics), Applied Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML), Generative Model Architectures, Data Ethics, Generative AI, Deep Learning, Unsupervised Learning, Data Processing, Linear Algebra, Microsoft Excel, Data Transformation, Feature Engineering, Data Manipulation
Build toward a degree
Intermediate · Specialization · 1 - 3 Months

Georgia Institute of Technology
Skills you'll gain: User Experience Design, Prototyping, User Centered Design, Usability, Requirements Analysis, UI/UX Research, Interaction Design, User Interface (UI) Design, Usability Testing, User Research
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months
Human-computer Interaction (HCI) studies the relationship between computer technology and people. HCI is a multidisciplinary approach to observing how to best design computers and other forms of information technology for our everyday user needs and enjoyment. It borrows methodologies and techniques from Computer Science, Human-factors Engineering, and Cognitive Science to make our interaction with technology as beneficial as possible.
HCI is important to learn because it’s designed to close the gap between user and device to maximize efficiency, with some even using it to improve the happiness and satisfaction of users. This is applied through user-interface design, accessibility (e.g. screen readers), keyboards, and other tools that help us use technology more easily and effectively.
HCI skills are slated to become more in-demand through 2026, with job growth rates cited at 9.3 percent. Because there will continue to be new human needs to address as more computers and computer systems evolve, learners can expect to benefit from these projections. Not only are these opportunities found in the tech sector, but ScienceDirect reveals that human-computer interactive systems are much-needed the manufacturing industry.
HCI Engineers make a median of $104,269 in the U.S., with skills that are useful in other roles such as UX Designer, Digital Copywriter, UX Researcher, Product Designer, UX Writer, Usability Analyst, Research Associate, and a wide variety of others.
HCI courses offered through Coursera equip learners with knowledge in generating and prototyping design ideas; leveraging feedback from stakeholders; understanding principles of design and design-thinking strategies; and more.
Lessons on HCI are taught by instructors from major universities, including University of California at San Diego. Learners can enjoy exploring HCI with instructors specializing in HCI, Computer Science, Cognitive Science, Engineering, and other disciplines. Course content on HCI is delivered via hands-on projects, video lectures, readings, quizzes, and other types of assignments.
The skills or experience you may already need to have before studying human-computer interaction (also known as HCI) may include a basic knowledge of computer science, cognitive science and human behavior, and human factors engineering, which can include ergonomic design for user comfort. Some of the skills you may need to have before learning human-computer interaction may include the understanding of graphic and visual design. Specific skills you may need to have can include storyboarding, A/B testing, and rapid and paper prototyping. You also may want to have solid problem-solving skills, which you can use to improve and create innovative services and products.
The kind of people who are best suited for roles in human-computer interaction have a passion for this broad multidisciplinary field that includes computer and information technology design and the interaction between human users and computers. The kind of people who may do well in roles in the human-computer interaction field will understand that there's a way to design technologies, websites, and apps to bring joy, satisfaction, and efficiency to human users instead of frustration.
Learning human-computer interaction may be right for you if you want to work in the areas of user-centered design (UCD), user interface (UI) design, and user experience design (UXD). Learning human-computer interaction may also be right for you if you plan to work on the academic or scientific research parts of these fields. If you want to take your product management experience to the next level and learn the business, technical, design, and leadership skills necessary for product management roles at top technology companies, this may be your next step. You may also want to learn human-computer interaction if you need to create innovative products by further understanding user needs, rapidly generating prototypes, evaluating design concepts, and going through ideation and refinement to ensure a great user experience at every step of product interaction.
Online Human Computer Interaction courses offer a convenient and flexible way to enhance your knowledge or learn new Human Computer Interaction skills. Choose from a wide range of Human Computer Interaction courses offered by top universities and industry leaders tailored to various skill levels.
When looking to enhance your workforce's skills in Human Computer Interaction, it's crucial to select a course that aligns with their current abilities and learning objectives. Our Skills Dashboard is an invaluable tool for identifying skill gaps and choosing the most appropriate course for effective upskilling. For a comprehensive understanding of how our courses can benefit your employees, explore the enterprise solutions we offer. Discover more about our tailored programs at Coursera for Business here.