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Information Architecture

Closed for enrolment

Information Architecture

As a student at the Master’s Programme Information Architecture you will be concerned with user-driven design of all kinds of information systems, eg. mobile apps, corporate websites, or communication platforms.

Closed for enrolment

Information Architecture

As a student at the Master’s Programme Information Architecture you will be concerned with user-driven design of all kinds of information systems, eg. mobile apps, corporate websites, or communication platforms.

Special circumstances

The programme is put on standby prior to the 2020 admissions so that no new students will be admitted to the programme as of 2020.

If you want to know more about why the program is put on standby, read the FAQ or contact the student guidance.

Note: The 2019 admission continues unchanged.

At Information Architecture you will learn to design, develop, analyse, and evaluate information systems, while understanding the user, the context and the technological limitations. This enables you to take part as a design or a project-manager in the design process.

Making information accessible online is a crucial part of modern life. Students in the master's programme in Information Architecture will focus on making information available, accessible and interactive to a vide array of users and in many contexts. You will be working on creating coherence between content, form, presentation and organisation of content both online and in other IT systems, ensuring ease of use for the users of these systems, while meeting the requirement set in the context, organisation, etc.

The master's programme in Information Architecture is concerned with computer-mediated communications; user experience, and user-centred-development are keywords in the field of study. This enables you to develop, plan and execute studies that combine technology, design and human factors, providing knowledge into the field of user driven innovation.

This will also enable you to design readily understandable and effective information architecture that considers the human use of your designs, in terms of e.g. human reason, searching and navigation. As such, you will learn methods of creating user centred design and development, that supports human communication, interaction and understanding.

The structure, the modules, and the electives of the Master’s programme allow you to choose between two focus areas;

  • Information Architecture in general
  • Information Architecture and Persuasive Design (please see specialisations)

Please note, that this master’s programme is offered to international students, and thus, teaching is in English.

Academic content 

The master's programme in Information Architecture is problem based, and as such you will be working with both a theoretical and practical approach, having a human-centred and technological perspective. You will be acquainted with disciplines such as rhetoric, communication, information ecology and user centred design, to better understand and work with users. You will learn content management systems (CMS), search technology and system development, information processing, information strategies and project management in order to plan, develop and implement information architecture in a multimodal context.

Charlotte Bust Sigvardt: Information Architecture is highly focused on usability

One of the strengths of having studied Information Architecture is the fact that you learn to deal with situations in which others might be inclined to give up. You are simply prepared to make sense of even the most complicated situations imaginable.

Charlotte Bust Sigvardt, a bachelor in Information Technology, is studying for a master's in Information Architecture.

What I find particularly interesting about the programme in Information Architecture is its focus on usability. We evaluate entire structures and websites and quickly learn to find new ways of optimising these websites. The study programme provides us with the opportunity to focus on user involvement, and this gives us valuable experience which we are able to use in our future careers.
Working with a portfolio that allows you to reflect on your own practices and evaluate your own work and decisions has been a very positive experience for me. It has greatly enhanced my academic level and has taught me to defend my decisions on an informed basis.

We are especially prepared to deal with very complex situations in which many factors are at play. This is one of the major strengths of having studied Information Architecture; you learn to deal with situations in which others might be inclined to give up. You are simply prepared to make sense of even the most complicated situations imaginable.

Being a student at AAU is fantastic. You become part of an academic community that provides you with unique opportunities to benefit from the qualifications of your fellow students through working in groups. The master programme in Information Architecture is an international master programme. This creates a cross-cultural team in which we can all benefit from each other and from our various different qualifications and backgrounds. Learning from each other’s strengths enables us to become stronger candidates when entering the labour market.

Hildur Fjóla Svansdóttir, Web Manager

Today I manage corporate websites and handle project management at Icelandic Farm Holidays and the study has proved very useful.

Information Architecture proved to be an excellent addition to my Bachelor of Information and Library Sciences, especially as I wanted more education within the field of requirement/needs analysis and the organization of information systems in general. The Masters study incorporates well the objective theories of information systems and their communication. The study also has proven useful in project organization, especially on a larger scale, e.g. when working with programmers.

Today I manage corporate websites and handle project management at Icelandic Farm Holidays and the study has proved very useful in a situation where I had to develop the position in the firm as well as organize various tasks that needed a push to start. My knowledge from the studies has also proven to be valuable across departments and projects further supporting the importance of good objective and user oriented theoretical knowledge.

Job and career

Information architects are employed in both private and public companies or organisations, and most often in the communications, IT, design or Human Relations-department where they develop and maintain communication and/or information-systems. As an Information Architect you will be able to work as a designer, project manager, teacher or evaluation consultant within the fields of Information Architecture and User Experience. Information architects are also employed in web development and as EDMS consultants.

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