Learning New Skills
This checklist includes some of the skills you will be learning in the program.
If you have time to do some preparatory work on your own before you start, or during the course of your study, a list of resources and tutorials is provided below. This is not required!
Self-Assessment/ Checklist
Technical Skills
Prototyping and Image editing
Coding (e.g. HTML & CSS)
Research and Writing Skills
Citing Others' Work (i.e. avoiding plagiarism)
APA formatting (we use APA formatting for most formal writing assignments)
How to find good sources for research
RECOMMENDED TUTORIALS for TECHNICAL SKILLS
Our recommended online tutorials and courses are listed below. We don't require that you learn one particular tool vs another, but having some familiarity with each category below will be useful to you.
LinkedIn Learning - Every NYU student has free access to LinkedIn Learning.com, a vast library of excellent courses and skill based videos. Simply log into to NYU Global Home Page and search for LinkedIn Learning (or go directly to LinkedIn Learning here).
Tip: Did you know that once completed you can add courses and related skills to your LinkedIn profile?
PROTOTYPING
Figma for UX Design (LinkedIn Learning) - time required 1 hr 51 minutes
Discover how to use Figma, an online UX design and collaboration tool, for projects you create or projects distributed across a team. This course begins by explaining what Figma is and how to get a Figma project started. Next, discover how to add content to your design project by working with frames, creating and editing shapes, drawing, adding and formatting text, and more. Plus, learn how to create a prototype, share designs using the collaboration features in Figma, and generate assets for development.
Sketch Essentials (LinkedIn Learning) - time required: 2hr 34 min
Sketch is one of the most popular UX design tools around. This course can help designers of all skill levels be productive with its focused, comprehensive workflow. Follow along with Chris Converse and learn the ins and outs of the Sketch interface, and how to design modern user experiences with Sketch, starting with project setup and working through to interactive prototyping. Chris shows how to create custom shared libraries, draw icons, work with imagery and typography, and share your designs across the web using the Sketch Cloud service. Finally, see how to export your work for developers or project teams for integration into their workflows. By the end of the course, you'll be able to use artboards, share libraries, draw icons, create prototypes, and export assets to high-definition PNGs, JPEGs, and PDFs.
Other tools: InVision, Adobe XP
IMAGE EDITING
Adobe Photoshop Essentials (linkedIn Learning) - time required: 4 hr 34 minutes
Learn how to work efficiently and effectively with Adobe Photoshop CC 2019. In this course, Julieanne Kost filters out the noise and complexity for you so that you'll end up empowered and able to quickly get the image results you want. Julieanne reviews the basics of digital imaging—from working with multiple images to customizing the Photoshop interface to suit your needs. She shows how to use different Photoshop tools to crop and retouch photos, while always maintaining the highest-quality output. She also demonstrates the most efficient ways to perform common tasks, including masking and working with layers. Along the way, she shares the secrets of nondestructive editing using Smart Objects, and helps you master features such as adjustment layers, blend modes, filters, and much more.
Other helpful tools: InDesign, Adobe Illustrator
CODING
HTML & CSS (codeacademy.com) - time required: 7hrs
Learn how to create websites by structuring and styling your pages with HTML and CSS. This is an interactive codeacademy.com course.
Unity Essentials (LinkedIn Learning) - time required: 4hr 12min
Unity is a powerful 3D development tool for mobile and desktop games, real-time simulations and visualizations, and even short films. This course is designed to transform complete beginners into savvy users with enough skill to be dangerously effective in Unity 2019. Start with a tour of the Unity interface and discover how to set up a simple project. Then find out how to import assets—or create your own—and use materials to bring your objects to life. Instructor Emmanuel Henri then shows how to design levels with ProBuilder and create reusable objects called prefabs. Once you’ve mastered these basics, you’re ready to explore the chapters on animation, collisions, audio, lighting, scripting, and special effects. To wrap up, Manny shows how to package and present a complete Unity project.
RECOMMENDED TUTORIALS for RESEARCH and WRITING
Properly citing other's work (i.e. avoiding plagiarism)
APA formatting (we use APA formatting for most formal writing assignments)
How to find good sources for research
Writing well
The NYU library offers excellent classes on these topics. Sign up for a class here. Note that most classes take place in the W. Village (BOBST library) but we also have the excellent BERN DIBNER library at 5 Metrotech Cntr on the Brooklyn Campus if you wish to consult a librarian or take classes in Brooklyn.
WRITING SKILLS
Conducting Research- Link (OWL, Purdue Online Writing Lab)
General Writing Resources- Link (OWL, Purdue Online Writing Lab)
NYU Writing Center (make an appointment, get personal attention. This is a very helpful and free resource for all NYU students)
PROPER CITATION/ AVOIDING PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism
NYU defines plagiarism as the “failure to properly assign authorship to a paper, a document, an oral presentation, a musical score and/or other materials, which are not your original work.”
NYU resources and guide on how to avoid plagiarism! Read this.
Citation Basics
Listed below are a number of websites that will help you avoid plagiarism:
Purdue Online Writing Lab (APA formatting): Includes best practices, safe practices, examples and quizzes.
Indiana Universty's "Plagiarism: What It is and How to Recognize and Avoid It": Includes a general overview, examples of paraphrasing, citations, and best practices.
Northwestern's "How to Avoid Plagiarism": Includes examples and best practices.
CITATION SOFTWARE
When writing research and other papers you will need to carefully document your sources. You should plan to use citation software to help with this. It's great to pick and learn your favorite tool before you need it!
Here is a list of citation management software supported by NYU:
Using Citation Software: Mendeley (mendeley.com) - time required: 21min |
Learn how to setup a repository for academic papers, share those repositories, and manage citations within your papers.
RESEARCH SOFTWARE (esp for PhD students)
Qualtrics: Getting Started (NYU Guide) - time required: 36min | qualtrics.com
NYU provides students free access to Qualtics to create all kinds of surveys.
SPSS Essential Training - time required: 4hr 57min | lynda.com
In these tutorials, author Barton Poulson takes a practical, visual, and non-mathematical approach to SPSS. From importing spreadsheets to creating regression models, to exporting charts, this course covers all the basics, with an emphasis on clarity, interpretation, communicability, and application.