Group Project Assignment 1: Project Scoping and Platform Selection
Module: Project Scoping and Platform Overview — Semester-Long Group Project Series
Learning Outcome
By completing this assignment, your team will be able to construct a formal project scope document that defines the boundaries, goals, target audience, platform selection, and toolchain for your semester-long HCI design project, using evidence-based reasoning drawn from platform characteristics and team constraints.
Connection to the Group Project Series: This assignment is the foundation for all subsequent group project submissions. The decisions you make here — what you are building, who it is for, and what platform and tools you will use — will guide every design, prototype, and evaluation deliverable your team produces for the rest of the semester. Treat this document as a working contract between your team members.
Background and Purpose
Every professional HCI design project begins with scoping: the process of clearly defining what a project is, what it is not, who it serves, and what realistic boundaries exist given available time, skills, and technology. Without a shared, written scope, teams frequently drift, disagree, or over-commit and then struggle to deliver.
In this first group project assignment, your team will research and decide on the application you intend to design this semester. You will choose one of the four primary platforms covered in this course, select appropriate design and development tools, and document your decisions in a structured Formal Project Description. This document will serve as the authoritative reference point for your team throughout the semester.
What You Will Produce
Your team will submit a single Formal Project Description document. This document must include all five required sections described below. Each section is a separate, clearly labeled part of your submission.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Work through the following steps as a team. All team members should participate in the discussion and decision-making for each step, even if one person takes the lead on writing a particular section.
Step 1 — Agree on an Application Idea (Whole Team)
As a team, brainstorm and agree on the type of application you want to design for your semester project. Your application should be realistic in scope: something a small team can meaningfully design, prototype, and evaluate within one semester. Consider the following as you brainstorm:
- What problem does this application solve, or what need does it address?
- Who would actually use this application?
- Is the idea specific enough to design, or is it too broad?
- Does the idea lend itself naturally to one of the four course platforms (Android, iOS, Windows, or Web)?
You do not need to finalize every feature at this stage. Focus on identifying a clear concept and a primary user need. Avoid choosing an idea that is simply a copy of a well-known existing app with no added value or distinction.
Step 2 — Research and Select Your Platform (Whole Team)
Once you have an application idea, your team must select one primary platform from the four options available in this course:
- Android — Mobile application following Material Design conventions
- iOS — Mobile application following Apple Human Interface Guidelines
- Windows — Desktop application following Microsoft Fluent Design System
- Web — Browser-based application following responsive design and WCAG standards
Your platform choice must be justified by evidence, not personal preference alone. To build your justification, discuss and investigate the following questions as a team:
- Where does your target user audience actually spend their time? What devices and platforms do they use?
- Does your platform of choice support all the features your application requires?
- Do your team members have the skills and tools available to work on this platform?
- Are there any hardware or software constraints within your team (for example, does iOS development require a Mac that not all team members own)?
Record your reasoning. You will use it when writing Section 3 of your document.
Step 3 — Identify Your Design and Development Tools (Whole Team)
Determine the specific tools your team will use for design and, where applicable, development this semester. At minimum, identify:
- Your wireframing and prototyping tool (for example: Figma, Adobe XD, Sketch). Figma is recommended for its real-time collaboration features.
- Your development environment appropriate to your chosen platform (for example: Android Studio for Android; Xcode for iOS; Visual Studio or Visual Studio Code for Windows; Visual Studio Code for Web).
- Any additional frameworks or libraries your team expects to use (for example: a CSS framework for Web, or a cross-platform framework such as Flutter if applicable).
Confirm that all team members have access to these tools or can obtain access before your next project milestone. Note any access issues as a constraint in your document.
Step 4 — Write the Formal Project Description (Assigned Writers, Reviewed by All)
Assign team members to draft each section, then review the full document together before submission. The document must include all five required sections described below.
Required Output: Formal Project Description
Your submission must include all five of the following sections. Each section must be clearly labeled with a heading. Sections that are missing or substantially incomplete will not receive credit.
Required Section 1 — Project Overview and Application Concept
Write a clear description of the application your team intends to design. This section must include:
- Application name or working title.
- A concise concept statement (2–4 sentences) describing what the application does and what problem or need it addresses.
- A brief explanation of why this application is worth designing: what gap does it fill, or what value does it provide to users?
- A clear statement of what the application will NOT include: list at least three features, functions, or use cases that are explicitly out of scope for this project. This boundary-setting is a critical part of scoping.
Length guideline: approximately one half to one page.
Required Section 2 — Project Goals and Constraints
Define the goals and known constraints of your project. This section must include:
-
At least two user-facing goals: statements describing what a user should be able to accomplish using your application. Frame these from the user’s perspective (for example: “A user will be able to log a daily health entry in under two minutes”).
-
At least two project goals: statements describing what your team aims to deliver by the end of the semester (for example: “The team will deliver a high-fidelity interactive prototype tested with at least five users”).
-
At least four identified constraints, covering at least three of the following categories: time, team expertise or size, tool or technology availability, and the chosen platform’s technical limitations. For each constraint, briefly explain how your team plans to work within it.
Length guideline: approximately one half to one page.
Required Section 3 — Target User Audience
Describe the people who will use your application. This section must include:
- A description of your primary user group, including relevant demographic characteristics, technical proficiency, and context of use (where, when, and how they would typically use the application).
- An explanation of how the target audience influenced your platform choice. Be specific: connect characteristics of your audience (for example, their preferred device type or their level of technical experience) directly to the platform you selected.
- Any secondary user groups, if applicable, with a brief note on why they are secondary rather than primary.
Length guideline: approximately one half to one page.
Required Section 4 — Platform Selection and Justification
State and justify your chosen platform. This section must include:
- A clear statement of your chosen platform (Android, iOS, Windows, or Web).
- A justification organized around three criteria:
- User audience alignment: explain how the platform matches where your target users are and how they interact with technology.
- Platform capability alignment: explain how the platform supports the key features your application requires. Reference at least one specific platform capability or constraint relevant to your app (for example, a specific API, hardware feature, or design convention).
- Team skills and tool availability