Interactive Media Management Program Offers Students Unique Business and Creative Experience
Posted by Jason White on Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Under: College Education
Laura James is the Digital Content Producer & Strategist at Mulberry
Media Interactive, Matthew Flanagan serves as Digital Content
Coordinator of Movie Services at Astral Media, Violet Edwards,
meanwhile, is a User Experience Designer at Twist Image and Guilherme
Chee works at Interactive Designer at Electrolux in Brazil. What do all
of these people have in common? They are all graduates of the respected Interactive Media Management program at Centennial College.
The interactive media program takes three semesters to complete and is
open to applicants who have completed a college diploma or university
degree in any discipline, or those who have partial post-secondary
(minimum two years) and relevant work experience.
The offering was designed to make students effective producers working in interactive media design
and development, content production and process management. As such, it
emphasizes strategy, user experience, and narrative and management
skills in the interactive digital media industry with an emphasis on
understanding industry, user experience, strategy, processes, job roles
and documentation skills. This is achieved through courses that first
establish a foundation in user experience planning through wireframing,
content structure analysis, practical coding, A/V production for digital
platforms, and management skills. These courses then progress into
advanced business, analytics, technology, and planning documentation
topics. Lastly, students partake in a field placement that sees them
working in the field for ten weeks.
Interactive Digital Industry: There are certain interactive media
industry expectations of which students must be aware. This course
teaches students about the institutions and enterprises that are shaping
interactive media today, and the resulting socio-cultural conditions
they impose. Through guest speakers and industry-relevant research,
students are introduced to various opportunities available to them
within this field. This aspect also allows them to network.
Experience Design Tools: This course is all about analyzing and
working with the standards of the user experience design in the current
web and mobile environment. Issues that are explored include: elements
and principles of visual design, readability, page identification and
navigation systems, as well as constraints of the web environment
including layout design that works across multiple resolutions,
platforms, basic accessibility practices, and managing file sizes and
download times.
Studio Mentorship/ Partnership: As a real life feature, this
Interactive Media course combines class and industry to teach students
about the creation and exploration of interdisciplinary projects in a
real-time development cycle. This is achieved by having students work
collaboratively with both members of the industry and members of the
community at large, while defining personal strengths and career goals.
Entrepreneurship: Because freelance is a common form of
employment in this field, students learn the business structures for
freelancers and studios, considering the business administration and
operation obligations of working freelance or as an incorporated entity.
Topics covered in this course include: guidelines for starting up and
maintaining an interactive media business, accounting advice, business
budgeting/funding, pricing strategies, and community resources
In : College Education
Tags: interactive media program interactive media design interactive media course