NMS 501 | PROSEMINAR IN NEW MEDIA STUDIES | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
The Proseminar in New Media Studies is an introduction to the field in both its academic and professional dimensions. The course addresses the humanistic and rhetorical approaches to new media that characterize the NMS program at DePaul, and helps students understand how these perspectives inform their work with new media.
NMS 502 | NEW MEDIA, OLD MEDIA | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
This course situates current media within a history of media technologies. Students examine the historical, cultural, and social contexts in which new media emerge, as well as how and why new media come to integrate with or supplant existing media.
NMS 504 | TEXT AND IMAGE | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
In this course we will explore the increasingly important dynamic between textual information and visual information. In this course we will read about how hypertext has changed the environment and nature of the written word, and we will examine how the Web has "remediated" previous media into a new dynamic. We will use this knowledge to perform analyses of visual and textual artifacts; students may also create their own artifacts.
NMS 505 | WORKSHOP/PORTFOLIO SEMINAR | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
Students will have a choice between a collaborative workshop or a more individually-centered portfolio development seminar. Each group prepares a digital media project for an existing community group, such as a social service organization. Those students preferring to work independently will, under the guidance of the advising professor, develop and defend a complete portfolio of their work within the NMS program. May be repeated for elective credit.
NMS 506 | INTERNSHIP | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
In consultation with the director of NMS, students design a field experience under the direction of a project director in the field. The field experience may be derived from issues raised in courses, from thesis research, or from personal research interests.
NMS 507 | INDEPENDENT STUDY | 1-8 quarter hours
(Graduate)
In consultation with the director, advanced students may devise, with the approval of an NMS faculty member, an independent course of study that is related to the field yet does not duplicate a core or elective course already available.
NMS 508 | DESIGN RHETORICS | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
This course provides students with a theoretical foundation and practical skills in the design of rhetorically sophisticated new media objects. We will learn basic principles of visual composition, both by examining existing compositions and building our own. We will also seek to understand the way visual literacies and culture shape the rhetorical choices we make as designers and managers of new media projects.
NMS 509 | SPECIAL TOPICS IN NEW MEDIA STUDIES | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
See schedule for current offerings. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
NMS 510 | WRITING DIGITAL CONTENT | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
This course teaches students how to author written and multimodal digital content. Students also learn how to strategically deploy digital content for professional and civic purposes through such practices as content strategy, content management, and measurement analytics.
NMS 520 | WEB DESIGN I | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
An introduction to the process of making functional sites for display on the Internet. Students will learn HTML-based development software, and work with imaging software to apply fundamental theories of new media design to the production of working computer-screen applications.
NMS 521 | WEB DESIGN II | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
An introduction to digital authoring software, such as Macromedia Flash, that allows for the combination of animation, sound, and complex user interaction. Students will design and produce working animations while exploring the balance between purpose, usability, and aesthetic appeal.
NMS 530 | HTML/CSS | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
An introduction to fundamental web development and design languages. Students will learn HTML syntax, naming practices, and techniques for developing and structuring web pages and sites. Students will also learn how to style HTML pages with Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). While most instruction will proceed through XHTML, students will also have an opportunity to explore HTML5 and CSS3.
NMS 531 | JAVASCRIPT | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
An introduction to JavaScript and JavaScript libraries, focused on the rhetorical possibilities JavaScript makes available for web development. Students will learn the basics of JavaScript as a language, how it interacts with HTML and CSS, how to use it to produce dynamic and interactive structures in sites, and how to leverage existing JavaScript libraries.
NMS 540 | DIGITAL ARCHIVES | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
This course provides students with an overview of issues related to digital archives, and hands-on experience with contemporary archiving practices. Students in NMS 540 will explore digital archiving through theoretical readings and case studies, and create or maintain digital archives for local organizations.
NMS 541 | DIGITAL STORYTELLING | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
Digital storytelling is a community-based media arts practice for creating first-person video narratives. This course introduces digital storytelling and its allied values of personal storytelling, participatory process, and accessible production methods. Students learn the digital storytelling methodology, create their own digital story, and explore how personal storytelling is used in organizations and communities. Some sections may include a service-learning component.
NMS 551 | USABILITY THEORY AND PRACTICE | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
Students in the class will learn the theory and history of usability, exploring how the practice developed in technical writing, web design, and new media contexts. We will explore arguments for greater user inclusion in design and development processes as well as critiques of these practices in industry. Students will develop practical experience by composing usability protocols (how to design user testing), running various kinds of usability tests with real technologies and users, interpreting results of those tests for a variety of audiences, and writing usability test reports. The course will explore the usability of technologies generally, but focus particularly on web usability.
NMS 597 | CANDIDACY CONTINUATION | 0 quarter hours
(Graduate)
This 0-credit hour course is available to master's degree candidates who are actively working toward the completion of a thesis, project, or portfolio. Enrollment in this course is limited to three quarters and requires thesis/project advisor and graduate director approval and demonstration to them of work each quarter. Enrollment in this course allows access to the library and other campus facilities. This course carries and requires the equivalent of half-time enrollment status. The student may be eligible for loan deferment and student loans. This course is graded as pass/fail. (0 credit hours)