The project focuses on conducting user research through conceptual design and modeling to create a defined brand identity and messaging for the new major, Technology & Information Design, being offered at iSchool. It targets technical students with interests in design and social skills, and seeks to market itself as an interdisciplinary major.
We created a sample set of brand guidelines and recommendations on how to market the Technology and Information Design major to students. This includes advertising, branding materials and website wire-frame mockups that could be used from the get-go, and be expanded upon later on as the department sees fit.
Technology and Information Design (InfoDesign) is specifically for students that are interested or beginning to discover their interests in the intersection of design, information, and technology. In offering Information Design, UMD/iSchool will be able to increase and or retain the graduation and retention rate of those students. In addition, it will fulfill and advance Maryland’s initiative as the most innovative state in the nation. This program being offered at the undergraduate level is the first of its kind in the state of Maryland and will join the ranks of other pioneer colleges and universities.
There currently are programs being offered at other US universities which are of similar nature in terms of curriculum to Technology and Information Design, but are offered as graduate programs. In addition, there are similar programs at the University of Maryland such as Immersive Media Design and Information Science (InfoSci) offered at the iSchool as well.
Thus, the challenge is "how can we provide distinct identity to InfoDesign from other similar sounding programs, either by name or curriculum, currently being offered at UMD."
Due to the novel nature of the degree - which is usually offered as a graduate-level degree at other institutions - we deemed it essential to begin by establishing a deep understanding of what motivates students to choose one undergraduate course over another, as well as the role effective communication design can play to attract prospective students to this new program. Thus, we planned to gain qualitative insights into our stakeholders’ habits, needs, motivations and pain-points using an in-the-wild study and interviews. The ultimate aim behind using both of these research methods together was to reveal the gaps in people’s current understanding of what the program entails, and understand how these gaps can be accounted for with a new identity design.
We ended up with two different affinity diagrams, one created using the notes from interviews and social media posts labeled as ‘general affinity’ and the other one from the in-the-wild study labeled as “perception affinity”.
