Elective Courses - Been there, done that
- Alice
- Apr 8
- 10 min read
It's time to choose your elective courses... but wait - what should I choose?
A very good question, that we all have been through! We can't decide for you, but here are some of the courses we did, why we chose them, what we liked and disliked about them.
As you begin considering your elective choices, our blog team wanted to share some reflections on the courses we took in our third semester. Since some of you have asked for recommendations and insights, we hope our experiences can help you decide.
Below, we’ll discuss the electives we took:
Disclaimer: This post reflects our personal experiences and opinions from the third semester in Fall 2024. The program may have changed since then, so please keep in mind that this is not an official nor up-to-date guide.
Digital Professional Learning
University: GU
Credits: 15
Course structure: on campus, non-compulsory classes, theoretical design project
Alice: This course is a highly theoretical class, relevant for learning designers and HR professionals. The course topics were interesting, and gave us a better understanding of the opportunities and challenges tied to workplace learning. There were also some workshops integrated into the syllabus, but I personally felt that they could have been structured in a way that allowed us to apply concepts more thoroughly, such as experimenting with learning evaluation methods (e.g. the Kirkpatrick Model) or course design frameworks (e.g. ADDIE).
One standout session for me was led by Lena, who shared her experiences designing learning interventions across various sectors. We then were divided into groups, each selected a sector and designed a learning intervention to address a learning gap. This exercise was particularly impactful because we went through all aspects of the design process and received detailed feedback, which greatly helped in shaping my own approach to the course paper.
The course leader was highly knowledgeable and supportive, though I would have appreciated more direct engagement with her expertise through hands-on activities rather than just peer discussions. The final course paper required us to come up with a learning gap within a professional setting of our choice, and design a learning intervention to address it. It was a challenge, but in hindsight, it served as excellent preparation for the early stages of the thesis research and writing process.
Grace: This course provided me with a better understanding about professional learning and development, and lifelong learning. Thanks to this course, we were able to step out of the "theory of learning" to the role of learning designer, and we could focus on our personal job interests for assignments. It therefore gave me more exposure to future job opportunities.
Yen: I shared most of Alice’s opinions and believe that this course has the potential to provide more practical aspects rather than focus on theory. It would be great to have case studies of how these theoretical frameworks are applied in a company or a design challenge to solve a specific learning challenge from a company in the area.
Internship Course (PDA685)
University: GU
Credits: 15
Course structure: on campus, non-compulsory classes, internship work, portfolio
Alice: A significant portion of this course is dedicated to the internship itself, 20 hours per week, allowing us to gain hands-on experience in a professional setting. This opportunity alone makes the course extremely valuable - an amazing opportunity to apply what has been learned in the master's, further expand your knowledge, and network. The remaining credit hours were spent on readings, research for the internship portfolio, and in-class seminars. These in-class sessions were helpful in navigating our internships, as they provided a space to discuss our experiences, share concerns, and receive feedback from both teachers and peers. I would have liked more applied activities to supplement these discussions or in-class time to write the portfolio.
In addition to our internships, we were required to complete a detailed portfolio and reflection similar to a research paper. While this was useful, I feel that a digital portfolio or a presentation format could have been more beneficial, particularly as a resource to showcase during future job interviews.
Sonja: I would really recommend this course if you are looking to figure out if a research career is something that could be of interest to you. I was very unsure of what the day-to-day research looked like, and this internship course really opened my eyes to what it entails to do research. It's also your chance to specialize yourself and/or get a foot in the door.
Check out our blog posts about different internship experiences:
Data analytics with R
University: Umeå University
Credits: 4.5
Course structure: online, non-compulsory classes, exercises
Yen: For me, this course was very practical and interesting. If you had exposure to quantitative research in TIA 132 - the research method course and felt totally lost with the amount of knowledge and new terms in quantitative, this course probably would help you to get on track with that.
The course was 100% online and not compulsory to attend every session. Learning materials were uploaded on Canvas and Youtube with instructions on how to use the learning materials. The way the teachers structured the course step by step, with given examples was very helpful for me in order to retrieve information. And they had a support session once every two weeks to answer any concerns you have. I didn’t attend any, but it was nice to know you have support if needed. The course is also a given example of how an online course is handled in principle. Therefore, you can also learn something about instructional design from this course.
Of course, it has pros and cons, as you can be flexible with your schedule but also a bit stuck since you’re doing it by yourself. My friends heard me complain a lot about how this course was killing my soul since I didn’t understand anything 😂.
Alice, Grace & Sonja: We can confirm - but she pushed through like a champ ✨😂
Yen: But since the exercises were pretty straightforward and technical on how to use R basically, I managed to get through it with the support of YouTube and one friend who attended the course before me.
So if you’re interested in data analytics or want to do quantitative research for your thesis and don’t know where to start, I suggest enrolling in this course.
Social Sustainability in Product- and Service Development
University: Blekinge Institute of Technology
Credits: 7.5
Course structure: online, group work, non-compulsory classes
Sonja: This course was something completely new for me. I originally chose it because I wanted to learn more about digital product development and if rarely seen social sustainability topics related to this. For context, my boyfriend is focusing on sustainability product development in mechanical engineering, so I knew a bit about doing sustainability analysis. Still, needless to say, I learned so much more. The course is structured in online classes, as well as group work. When I say I have never seen an online course with a better structure, I really mean it! This was an instructional masterpiece!
I especially appreciated that they supported with finding and working in groups, as most students did not know each other and the course was 100% online.
There were four exercises:
Picking a topic of social sustainability and creating an informative 2-pager
This way I not just learned about the topic, but also practiced some design work. Check out my 2-pager here
Social Sustainability Analysis of a Physical Product
This was a group work and included following a social sustainability framework over the complete development process of a bamboo toothbrush (or other product).
Recorded Presentation of Service Development Feature
You could pick a topic in pairs, focusing on an element of service development. I chose designing for trust, focusing on brands like Airbnb and how trust influences the lifecycle of a product or service.
Final reflection
This included reflecting on what you learned and how group work was handled.
I recommend this course to everyone interested in a more holistic product development process and/or sustainability issues. It was not about IT & Learning really, but I think, nevertheless, it was valuable if you aim for a career in any kind of product development.
Research Methods for Human-Machine Cooperation
University: Halmstad University
Credits: 3
Course structure: online, non-compulsory classes, user research & design project
Sonja: I started this course because I wanted to know more about user research, and it did not disappoint. The lecturer was an experienced, chill guy, with tons of experience in the business world. He brought in theory compared with theoretical examples, which made the whole thing especially nice.
The course explored different user research methods while designing an idea for an AI service. You could choose any two methods you would like to explore, do a mini study by trying them out, and make a few designs for an AI service. You could give a presentation about your project, share insights, and get feedback on your design voluntarily.
The final exam was a 10-page paper, documenting your process, reflecting on what you learned, and how your design idea would benefit potential users.
I especially appreciated the openness to using AI in this course - everything was allowed, and you were encouraged to use it. The final paper instruction included prompting a generative AI tool of your choice to receive feedback on your final paper.
I recommend this course if you want to gain some practical experience in user research and/or designing AI service products. It's a very chill course, which allows you to focus on whatever method you like. For reference, I wanted to try out a quantitative survey and think-aloud observations, since I've never done them properly before.
Intercultural and Global Competences
University: KTH
Credits: 3
Course structure: online, non-compulsory classes once a month, group discussions
Sonja: This course was a nice in-between course that primarily targets your social skills and self-reflection. There were papers, videos, or scenarios to read and discuss online with others. Similarly, the classes were structured around many group discussions, reflective exercises, and thought-provoking topics.
The main task was to develop a personal action plan for one part of intercultural competences that you wanted to work on. The final exam included writing a 4-page action plan, presenting it to others in a group, and reworking it with their feedback.
This course is for everyone, and if you think "nah, I'm good - no need", sign up for this! You probably need it the most of all. 😅 It was a bit uncomfortable of course, to think about those topics at times, being forced to reflect on how your behavior, privilege, and thoughts influence your work with others. Still, it was a good thing to do!
Honestly, I didn't follow through on my action plan, but I think about this course when working with others A LOT.
Elements of AI
University: Linköping University
Credits: 2
Course structure: online videos and exercises
Sonja: This was a fun and relatively easy online course, similar to a MOOC. It showed how AI works in a really easy and understandable way. Because it's simply an online course, we could do it whenever, so Alice and I often combined it with a coffee and banana bread at Alkemisten ☕️
I think half of our cohort did this course, so join the club :)
Once you finish, you can add the course directly to your LinkedIn profile as a certificate.
Alice: I agree! It was interesting and the topics were explained very simply, with plenty of examples and exercises to keep you engaged. There is some math involved, but it's completely doable. It's not very time consuming, so I highly suggest to take it - even just to learn a bit more about the global obsession that is AI!
Prototyping in Interaction Design (DIT176)
University: Chalmers & GU
Credits: 7.5
Course structure: on campus, mandatory workshop classes, group project
Sonja: If you want to add some practical design work, this is for you! The whole course is structured to learn different prototyping methods, from paper sketches, Arduino boards, sewing, programming, Figma, or Lego.
The course is centered around a group project, where you will develop different prototypes. Beginning with easy paper sketches, you will move on to more advanced methods. Each class will allow working on those prototypes, making it relatively easy to fit group work into the schedule. You will present your end product as a video and a research paper-like final paper. This was such a fun class! Unlike any theoretical class, it was just about experimenting with different materials.
I totally recommend this class if you are looking into design-related or product development roles!
Graphical Interfaces (DIT493)
University: Chalmers & GU
Credits: 7.5
Course structure: on campus, mandatory workshop classes, group project
Sonja: This is all about UI, UX, and interface design. If you like the ity-bitty grid of how to design interfaces, you will love this course! I realized I don't like the super detailed stuff, but this class was still tremendously impactful. The class starts with an open-book exam on a huge book - it's a lot to cover. As a reference, this was my face when I realized that I had to read this whole book in two weeks, but even the exam was practical, and there are great videos from the lecturer Tommy to guide you towards the essential parts.
Once everyone knows the basics, there is a group project, which taught me so much! I knew Figma a bit, but this project upped my game completely. I also had the perfect team, everyone from different backgrounds but with a shared interest. The course is the main course for the master's in Interaction Design, so many people know coding and/or graphic design. I learned a ton from them!
Due to personal reasons at that time, I didn't do the final project because I didn't need the credits. However, the task was to design a few interfaces for a circuit light switch system, a room booking system, or a fitness app. The focus was always on interaction design, so inputs like navigation or clarity of design were critical.
I would recommend this course if you are interested in design work, especially if you need basic knowledge of interface design, even if it is not entirely your thing.
Final Thoughts
Alice: Both of my electives were insightful, and I appreciated the support from the instructors. If I had to choose again, I might opt for something more applied and hands-on, such as a design-oriented class, rather than Digital Professional Learning. Not because I didn’t learn from it or appreciate what I gained, but simply to have exposure to a different way of learning.
Sonja: I was pretty happy with my choice of electives, as I wanted more design-related input. Workwise, I would say I did a lot during that semester. I felt a bit stressed about gaining as much knowledge as possible during this time - probably unnecessarily!
But all in all, I think electives are a great way to try out different aspects.
We hope this overview of our electives was helpful for you! If you are interested in particular ones we mentioned, feel free to contact us individually!
Please share your experience about the courses that we mentioned, but especially those that we didn't mention in the comments under this post
For all students currently looking for electives: Happy course selection!
Alice, Grace, Sonja & Yen
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