Usability Engineering Course | IIT Guwahati | Prof. Debayan Dhar | HCI Design
Course Details
| Exam Registration | 98 |
|---|---|
| Course Status | Ongoing |
| Course Type | Elective |
| Language | English |
| Duration | 12 weeks |
| Categories | Design Engineering |
| Credit Points | 3 |
| Level | Undergraduate/Postgraduate |
| Start Date | 19 Jan 2026 |
| End Date | 10 Apr 2026 |
| Enrollment Ends | 02 Feb 2026 |
| Exam Registration Ends | 20 Feb 2026 |
| Exam Date | 26 Apr 2026 IST |
| NCrF Level | 4.5 — 8.0 |
Master the Art of User-Centered Design: A Deep Dive into Usability Engineering
In today's hyper-competitive digital landscape, the success of any product—be it a mobile app, a software platform, or a smart device—hinges on one critical factor: usability. A product that fails to resonate with users, no matter how technologically advanced, is destined to struggle. This is where the systematic discipline of Usability Engineering becomes not just valuable, but essential for survival and growth.
Why Usability Engineering is Your Key to Competitive Advantage
The rapid proliferation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has fueled a startup boom, flooding the market with innovative products. However, in this era of globalization, competition is fierce. Startups and established companies alike face a common challenge: attracting and retaining a loyal user base. The bridge between a good idea and a successful product is built on human factors.
Usability Engineering is the framework that systematically engineers these human factors into products. It moves beyond guesswork, focusing on the qualitative and quantitative aspects of effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction with which specified users achieve their goals. This course is your blueprint for mastering that framework.
Course Overview: Building Products Users Love
This detailed, foundational course is meticulously designed to transform your approach to product creation. Over 12 intensive weeks, you will learn to dissect and integrate the psycho-social and cognitive parameters of users into your design process.
Instructor Profile: The course is led by Prof. (Dr.) Debayan Dhar, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Design at IIT Guwahati and head of the Usability Engineering and HCI Lab. A specialist in Usability Engineering and HCI Design, Prof. Dhar's research spans Psychological Studies in Design, Creativity & Innovation, AI/ML in Design, and Social Cognition, ensuring you learn from a leader at the intersection of technology and human behavior.
Who Should Enroll?
This course is uniquely crafted to be inclusive and highly applicable.
- Intended Audience: Open to all undergraduate and postgraduate students and learners from any academic background—Engineering, Design, Computer Science, Psychology, or Management.
- Industry Support: The skills taught are in high demand across all software industries, robotics firms, industrial design studios, and MSMEs (Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises) looking to build user-friendly products.
Your 12-Week Learning Journey
| Week | Topic | Focus Area |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Introduction to Usability Engineering | Foundational principles and importance. |
| Week 2 | Usability in Software Development | Integrating usability into the SDLC. |
| Week 3 | User Centered Design Processes | Core methodologies for putting users first. |
| Weeks 4-6 | Requirement Analysis I, II, III | Deep dive into user research, personas, and task analysis. |
| Week 7 | Cognitive Issues | Understanding memory, perception, and mental models. |
| Week 8 | Competitive Analysis & Design Briefing | Benchmarking and defining project scope. |
| Weeks 9-10 | Conceptualization & Prototyping I & II | Ideation, sketching, and creating low/high-fidelity prototypes. |
| Weeks 11-12 | Usability Heuristics & Testing I & II | Evaluation methods (Nielsen's Heuristics) and conducting user tests. |
Essential Reading & Resources
To complement the lectures, the course draws from seminal texts in the field, including:
- Nielsen, J. - Usability Engineering (1993)
- Preece, J., Rogers, Y., & Sharp, H. - Interaction Design: Beyond Human-Computer Interaction (2003)
- Shneiderman, B. - Designing the User Interface (2000)
- Cooper, A. & Reimann, R. - The Essentials of Interaction Design (2003)
- Green, W. & Jordan, P. - Human Factors in Product Design (1999)
Transform Your Design Mindset
By the end of this course, you will possess a robust toolkit to capture user needs, translate them into actionable design parameters, and conceptualize functional, intuitive, and satisfying products. You will shift from making assumptions about users to making evidence-based design decisions. Whether you aim to build the next groundbreaking app, a revolutionary robot, or a consumer product that stands out, mastering Usability Engineering is your first critical step. Enroll today and start designing for success, one user at a time.
Enroll Now →