Six months from zero foundation to interaction design of Sydney University, the collection of works integrates six majors: interaction, plane, device, product, exhibition space, JavaScript, coding code programming! Precise dream school positioning and multi-disciplinary integration enabled her to get an offer from the University of Sydney with zero foundation. Today we invited JiaYi to share her application for interaction design of Sydney University in the form of interview dialogue!

University of Sydney Interaction Design

University of Sydney

　　 Basic information of trainees:

JiaYi, who has completed the undergraduate degree in industrial design in China, has completed the preparation from basic courses to works collection and successfully obtained University of Sydney Offer for interactive design.

Natural light: In fact, the major you applied for is far from the undergraduate major. Why do you choose Interaction Design?

Because the interaction design major has just emerged. In fact, I learned some of the interaction design in our undergraduate courses, and I feel very interested in it. Then I also took part in the domestic postgraduate entrance examination at that time, read some related papers, and felt very interesting, so I decided to go abroad to learn interaction design.

Natural light: How did you decide to study interaction design abroad? Because you said before that you had taken postgraduate examinations in China. How did you learn about overseas universities?

Because the interaction design may be more advanced in foreign countries and originally originated from foreign countries, I feel that foreign countries should pay more attention and be more professional. In addition, if I take the postgraduate entrance examination in China, I should also improve my politics and English. English is good, mainly because politics needs to be improved, but I don't like to recite too many political articles.

        Is it better to go abroad or at home for postgraduate entrance examination of interactive design?

　　 Moreover, the exam oriented English prepared for the postgraduate entrance examination is certainly different from the actual improvement of English when living in an English environment. Language, as a skill, should pay more attention to practical application, so I want to force myself to learn both English and design by communicating with different people through interdisciplinary study abroad. In addition, going abroad is also a kind of exercise.

Many students have a doubt, whether my major is suitable for studying abroad or not, and whether to choose domestic postgraduate entrance examination or study abroad?

In fact, this multiple choice question does not only happen to JiaYi. We often meet students in similar situations in our usual consultation.

In fact, whether you go abroad or study in China, the final choice is up to you personally. But different majors do exist at home and abroad, and there will be some bias. For example, you just want to study deeply and exclusively in some unique art majors in China, such as traditional Chinese painting and blue and white porcelain manufacturing. Of course, there will be better development and prospects in China.

But such emerging majors as innovative design, installation art, new media art, and interactive design applied by JiaYi students will have better development abroad. As JiaYi said, these majors originated abroad. In the foreign art environment, these disciplines have formed a very systematic and mature learning system and framework.

In China as a whole, the interaction environment is more UI/UX oriented, but in fact, interaction design is a very large field, and natural light has paid great attention to this new major since its inception, and has accumulated a lot of teaching experience and offer achievements until today. If you like innovation and are obsessed with technology, good at planning and eager to show. Then, you will love interaction design. This art form of harmonious integration of design and high-tech will give you enough space to display and present an unprecedented visual experience.

Natural light: Why did you choose the University of Sydney? Not Britain and America?

Because the University of Sydney ranks very high, I want to choose a better one since I want to learn. As for why I didn't consider Britain and the United States, it is still because I want to go to Australia. The Australian environment is very good and I am more interested in Australia. I often enjoy photos about the Australian environment consciously or unconsciously when I take a break, and I feel very good. In addition, I feel that if I go to the United States, I am afraid that Australia is not safe and the pace of life is different. I prefer a comfortable and beautiful working environment.

Natural light: What advice did the teacher of natural light give you when choosing a school?

Yes, they told me which school in Australia has a better interaction design major. Then let me make my own choice.

Through the recommendation of the tutor of natural light, I also participated in a summer workshop. I think it is very good. Through this activity, I can see different professional effects of different students, and it can help me speed up my work.

This workshop is for interactive design and graphic design. I think it's very good. Many of them come from different majors. They really have many excellent students in the natural light.

      How to choose a school for graduate study in interactive design?

In addition to students' own research, teachers of natural light will give some targeted guidance according to students' specific needs.

Many students don't know which college to choose when they first came here, especially those who have zero foundation and don't know about art colleges. The natural light will first understand the students' hobbies and interests, such as what kind of school atmosphere they prefer, what kind of teaching form they prefer, and even the "gold content" of the school's certificate in the target industry. After that, they may show the students some students' works of colleges and universities, let them know about different schools themselves, and then make a decision.

In the case of Jiayi, she has her own ideas and has done detailed research, so the tutor can directly give a detailed guidance plan for her dream school's interaction design portfolio.

Interactive Design Portfolio Guidance Scheme

Natural light: What impressed you in the course? For example, projects and workshops will greatly inspire your future interaction design portfolio.

For example, in the interactive design portfolio project that I worked with Teacher Zhang, I really realized that Teacher Zhang is a very powerful teacher. Many logical thinking will provide me with guidance and advice on how to do it better. I think she is particularly thorough in design, and he will help me consider almost every aspect.

I think that the work she guided me to do is very perfect, and it is hard to criticize even from every angle. In addition, the visual effect is also very good, so I think it is really good and a good teacher.

Natural light: Can you tell me how many projects you have in your interactive design portfolio? Then what is the content of each project?

I have experienced different teachers and worked on three projects. Let's focus on two~

In the interdisciplinary project, Mr. Peng of Natural Light led me to complete the main contents of the interactive design portfolio of this project. He is a very patient and practical teacher, and his teaching style is completely different from that of Mr. Zhang. In the process of creating works, he always gives me some suggestions on the plane, because he wants to open a breakthrough in my portfolio from this aspect, He also often discusses interaction with me.

Like the work I made with him, it took me a long time to do it. It was a product to detect similar products. The process of "interaction" between me and him was often that when I met a bottleneck, I would first make a general picture, and the teacher would give me many key suggestions, and then I would revise it repeatedly. At that time, teacher Peng's patience was reflected, Because I had to prepare for the English test at that time, I often couldn't allocate too much in my portfolio because of my limited energy. He would constantly urge me to follow me again and again to take me to review and revise. I felt embarrassed. He really had a special idea and often gave me suggestions on plane collocation.

Exhibition of interaction design works

Interaction Design Works Collection of Sydney University

Another project, directed by other teachers, is about future devices, called chat robots. At that time, he gathered all his students together and chose his own design direction according to the future theme. Several students and I were assigned together because of our impatience. The teacher was also particularly interested in this topic. He asked us to collect data first. In the process, many problems were exposed. Because what we thought was simple, he asked us to dig a little more information. He said:

If we want to design a device, we must consider the possible problems and how it operates. We must know the root and the source.

Because he was afraid that we would not be able to tell him in the interview in the future, he let us go every step clearly and logically. Another teacher Zhang often appeared in the study room. Every time he appeared, he asked us about the progress of our collection of works and would often give us suggestions. I felt that he did everything well because we also involved product design, When we do it, we will use software to make a model for him, and he will immediately give us some suggestions, that is, what kind of things you want to make will be better.

When the final product is made, he will also look at it from a professional perspective, telling us where it is not true, the details and voice will also get stuck, and he will help us look at the professional vocabulary of details, because he thinks it is very important, because he is worried that the examiner cannot understand what you mean, and he attaches great importance to the presentation form of combining pictures and text, It is not recommended to always use words. He said that if you make the picture clearly, there is no need for words, so he will let us make the picture better.

Exhibition of installation design works

apply Interaction Design Works Collection of Sydney University

In fact, many foreign schools will give students such creative opportunities: to cooperate with students in different majors to complete the project. Although everyone is mainly responsible for their own professional content, the communication and collision between their respective majors can help them gain different dimensions of understanding and thinking.

The specialty of interaction design itself is a very "interdisciplinary" field, especially in the curriculum. The natural light will not only bring you the kind of workshop that Jia Yi said, but also encourage students from different departments of the "six major departments" to cooperate in ordinary classes.

　　 Suggestions for Interactive Design Portfolio

As JiaYi said in this article, the teacher asked them to refine the details and show what can be shown with pictures. In fact, this is also the "wrong path" that many students went into without the guidance of a teacher, which requires the guidance of professional teachers to "demine".

Many students often enter a misunderstanding when they create a collection of works. My collection of works is a collection of works to display. Although this understanding is not wrong, the collection of works applied for by foreign colleges and universities has a strong purpose and is used for application. So at this time, your collection of works should not only display your works, but also tell the admissions officer, How do you think in your creation and use your ability to solve problems.

How to present these contents? It is the same as the "early stage" and "late stage" process charts in the collection of works, which is what JiaYi said and is strictly required by Mr. Zhang Cen. Although these pictures may be classified as sketch in typesetting, it does not mean that you can not take them seriously.

Each page of the portfolio is a chance for you to show. The 20 page portfolio is 20 opportunities for you to show. Each opportunity should be arranged reasonably to show the recruiter your ability and expertise in different dimensions.

Natural light: Can you tell us more about this Training of overseas works collection What about the content of the project?

This interactive design portfolio project is led by Mr. Wei of Natural Light, and its focus is actually interdisciplinary.

Its theme is about exploring the exhibition space of the soul. What we several students wanted to do at the beginning was to ease people's fear of death, hoping to reflect the soul of people in a visual perspective.

This work has always been Mr. Wei's help, providing some suggestions, and then we can do the simulation device together in the classroom. In fact, it is very difficult to do that, because if we want to show this thing, we must have something similar to LED lights, we will borrow it everywhere, and we need to use programming in the production process, and even this is not difficult for Mr. Wei, He often guides us.

Display of interdisciplinary works

graduate student apply Interaction Design Works Collection of Sydney University

　　 Where did the inspiration for this project's collection come from?

　　 Collection creation inspiration It comes from the fact that after we were divided into groups, we talked about the recent events. One of the most powerful students said that we found that everyone's fear of death was always there, and then we began to discuss. Originally, we explored many options, but finally we chose this one.

Natural light: The students in your group are all from different majors or fields. Do you feel that the students in different majors work together as a team? Or benefit points?

The feeling is that everyone has their own ideas, especially several interdisciplinary students. I know that they graduated from a very good school in China, and their logical thinking is also very strong. Their ideas are very creative. In addition, they often visit some exhibitions, and often design some small things by themselves to exercise their logical thinking ability in this way.

This also gave me a lot of encouragement. When I found some things that they thought of but did not think of me, I would encourage them to keep up with them in the future and pay attention to what they pay attention to. They also pay attention to some details like Mr. Zhang Sichen.

I feel that many students in different majors can learn a lot together. I feel that there are many good students in this major and many things to learn, so that I can stimulate my desire to learn. Otherwise, if I always do it myself, there will be no new ideas to stimulate myself.

Curriculum planning for customization of works

JiaYi's Interactive Design Collection Although the course lasted only half a year, the natural light still made customized course planning for each of her projects. There are professional teachers who lead the whole creation of the collection of works, and also professional teachers who are responsible for the corresponding curriculum content in different "interdisciplinary" projects.

Tailor targeted courses for different students, and arrange specialized teachers according to specific projects to help students as much as possible. As a tutor+partner, the teacher joins the project, guides students' creative ideas and affects the process of the group.

The whole creation is led by the team members, but the teacher will check each link layer by layer. When the group creation has reached a certain stage, the teacher will sort out, review and criticize to help students spread their thinking, sort out the previous creative process at each step to summarize experience, and see if there is a better solution or improvement measures for the project.

When it comes to Critique, it is a very important element to revise a work collection. Critique is the process of analyzing a work and putting forward feedback and suggestions. Listening to others' feedback is an important part of designers' growth. They can not only view their own design ideas from a larger perspective, but also train their own systematic thinking and sensibility to give meaningful feedback to others.

In the process of Critique, students can quickly improve their speaking ability, communication ability and psychological quality. As a genuine foreign product, natural light perfectly transplants the whole R&D process of the works collection into the art study abroad education through the professional teacher team, so that you can stay at home and experience the teaching environment and rhythm abroad in advance 。

Natural light: Will you get inspiration in these projects?

Yes, yes, we will. After discussion, we will find that everyone's ideas are different. We think it is good to assemble them in this way. Our own words are a single assembly line, and no one can inspire us. Maybe my ideas are some fixed ideas learned in college. At that time, I thought it was normal, but I didn't know what was missing, Because everyone is so successful, only when they graduated from different schools and came from different majors, they found that everyone's ideas were in all directions.

Natural light: Classmate, how do you balance your time when you are working on your portfolio, that is, learning English and working on your portfolio? What suggestions do you have for future students? It is in learning English and doing works.

At the beginning, I also asked others whether I should learn English first or make a collection of works first, or at the same time?

Some people told me that if you have the ability, you can do it at the same time. Anyway, you can save time, but it proved impossible later.

So if you ask me, I'd better concentrate on one subject first, because I was very quick when I was working on this project, and I should be able to complete it in less than a month. But I didn't make arrangements and procrastinated, so I didn't do well in my English exam, and my portfolio also delayed for a while. Later, when I worked with Mr. Zhang Cen, I decided to concentrate on one subject, Then I concentrated on studying this collection of works. I worked very fast every day. When I finished it early, I could concentrate on learning English. So I'd better learn one subject first, or I will delay both subjects.

　　 In the half hour of talking with JiaYi, we looked back six months with her. There were surprises and explorations. It was an unforgettable and meaningful memory for both the students themselves and the many tutors who accompanied her. The information sorted out was also very useful for younger students who wanted to go on interactive design.

Natural Light focuses more on students' personal expression than on their work collection training, which is full of opportunities to show yourself, as well as opportunities to cooperate with major brands to enrich your personal experience.

Want to apply Study abroad in interactive design Please consult the teacher of Natural Light. We will give you a detailed introduction to foreign interaction design art schools, including the University of Sydney, Art Center Design School, Carnegie Mellon University, Goldsmith College, University of London, and so on. We will plan the creation scheme and application planning of interaction design works for students in detail.

Recommended courses for more interactive design collections:

Foreign universities with good interaction design: Britain, the United States, Australia, providing a detailed explanation of bachelor's degree and master's degree

This article belongs to the original article of Natural Light International Art Education Team. Without permission, it cannot be reproduced commercially in any form. If it is found, it must be investigated for legal responsibility.