Design, Evaluate, and Scale Development Technologies
This required course for the Designated Emphasis in Development Engineering will include projects and case studies, many related to projects at UC Berkeley, such as those associated with the Development Impact Labs (DIL). Student teams will work with preliminary data to define the problem. They will then collect and analyze interview and survey data from potential users and begin to design a solution. Students will explore how to use novel monitoring technologies and "big data" for product improvement and evaluation. The student teams will use the case studies (with improvements based on user feedback and data analysis) to develop a plan for scaling and evaluation with a rigorous controlled trial.
Topics
- Students will use multiple qualitative and quantitative methods to learn about user needs, to come up with new concepts and solutions, and to understand how new products and services achieve or fail to achieve their goals in a development setting.
- Students will develop a set of skills that will allow them to flourish in a climate of complex problem solving and design challenges in development engineering Students will learn to participate in and lead innovation and creativity in collaborative settings Students will learn how to learn from users using qualitative and quantitative tools including surveys, interviews, new monitoring technologies, statistical analyses and experimental designs Students will be able to apply the skills to current challenges in development engineering
Official catalogue course objectives and student learning outcomes
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗2026-2027