ONIONTALK
overview
a mobile app designed to help improve the course selection process for students at CMU
learn human-centered research methods to gain an understanding of the student body
develop research protocols, conducted research, redesigned with an intervention
duration
1 month, completed in 2021
team members
Youie Cho, Charmaine Qiu, Mia Tang
role
user research (in person interviews), research analysis, information architecture, visual UI
identifying the problem
overall, many students at Carnegie Mellon University experience dissatisfaction during the course selection process, specifically with the already existing platforms of CMU’s Student Information Online (SIO) and Stellic Audit
expectations of a course vs. reality
leads to dropping courses
learning experience is not worthwhile if course does not meet student’s needs
less trials, less errors in course selection would be better
lack of opportunities to share course experiences with other students
course syllabus informs, but often cannot characterize the experience of taking a certain course
faculty evaluation forms exist for professors, but students do not have a structured platform to share thoughts on professors, course curricula, etc.
some students find it uncomfortable to find and reach out to other students for questions about certain courses
academic issues
students fail to find courses that suit them in terms of difficulty, style of class, etc., which could lead to unsuccessful credit completions for their major or minor
stakeholder map
shows different stakeholders and scenarios that occur during course selection & helps plan our research methods for next steps
user research
4 research methods to better understand the problem and identify leverage points:
online survey
in person interview
creative card game
website mock-up experiment
research methods
online survey
many drop courses but are afraid courses will be listed as “Withdrawal” on their transcripts, which leaves a negative impact
in-person interview
many do not want to use their “vouchers” because they do not want to waste them
students have a limited amount of vouchers they can use to drop their classes even after the course drop deadline
vouchers do not leave a record on students’ transcripts
creative card game (how do students feel about their current courses?)
most care about their courses and completing them
many take challenging courses as long as they think it is worth it
website mock-up experiment (what aspects of a course are students interested in?)
most want to hear from other students that have already taken the course they are planning to take
most tend to look at all of the information that is provided
affinity map
helped identify issues, themes, and desires by grouping and connecting points that led to common leverage points. as students ourselves, we felt the need for empathy towards other students’ problems and needs.
research conclusion
keep essential information
provide awareness of workload
tackle emotional aspects — qualitative information, course reviews from other students
provide confidence and comfort — anonymity, secure CMU login, empathy
redefining the objective
to design an informative mobile app that allows students to learn about the contents of CMU courses and anonymously engage in an open discussion platform
view pdf version here
intervention : OnionTalk
securely login with CMU ID
search course interested
gain general information
browse more through “More info” or “Discussion Boards”
gain access to all external sources that the university provides
discuss with peers by reading opinions from other students and/or participating and creating own discussion boards
an easily accessible social media platform between students only with anonymity
professors are able to view, but not participate which encourages a more open and honest discussion