Category Archives: IMA Electives (Legacy Structure – Seminar/Studies)

Courses that count in IMA’s Seminar/Studies category

Fall 2022

The Ethics of Big Tech & Social Media: Technoethics (DANC-UT 701)

This course offers a look at the lack of ethics and affects and effects upon humanity in the development of big tech, social media and the internet. Kicking off with the viewing of the number one doc on this topic “The Social Dilemma”, we begin a conversation around the impact of social media and technology on our lives and how to address it. Students will view documentaries, read books and engage in conversations in break out think tank groups in order to come up with solutions in a midterm one page manifesto for the greater good of humanity. Required readings include from “Understanding New Media Extending Marshall McLuhan” by Robert K Logan to set a framework of what technology is, followed by reading Jaron Lanier, “10 arguments for deleting your social media accounts right now”, and dipping into the spirituality side with “igods” by Craig Detweiler, ending with “Irresistible” by our very own NYU Professor Adam Alter. In partnership with the center for Humane Technology and their curricula support for academics, this course seeks to ask hard questions, dispel mistruths, host constructive conversations, test experiments and create a dialogue around how we must change the ways we develop and interact with tech for our survival. A willingness to take part in class experiments and experience based learning around topics of social media and technology is required. Final culmination of work from the course is a utopian project pitch deck that students design with the task of creating seedlings for new sustainable and humane business models for social media, big tech, and entrepreneurial situations, in hopes that some may go on to grow, bloom and fruit necessary change for the greater good of all. Students at the end of the semester will ethically assess their work and assign their own grade based on their self evaluation.

Dance (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 15 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2022)

DANC-UT 701-000 (14794)at Washington SquareInstructed by

IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Undergraduate

Multi-disciplinary Arts Practice with Community Groups: Theories and Practice of Group Work in Arts (OART-UT 1017)

Whether you are a filmmaker looking to better understand how to build a cohesive and productive film crew; a theatre maker excited about building a performance project or theatre company; a multi-media artist looking for ways to innovate your ideas for artistic work in collaboration with others; an artist looking for tools for building an artistic ensemble, or a multi-disciplinary artist looking to take your creative work out into communities as social practice, this combination lecture/activity-based class provides you with tools for better understanding how to enter into and engage others in collective creative work of purpose. Multi-Disciplinary Arts Practice with Community Groups: Theories and Practice explores the challenges and benefits of making artistic work with others and the tools needed to create meaningful collaborative projects. In this class we interrogate definitions of community and group, explore the balance between group process and producing an artistically excellent project, and examine the processes of creating artistic work with others to strengthen our own artistic voices while helping raise the creative voices of others. With its focus on social practice, this course provides a foundation for working with small group structures in a variety of community settings and professional creative work environments. The course satisfies a CA major requirement as well as a social science requirement for all other Tisch students.

Open Arts Curriculum (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)

OART-UT 1017-000 (18613)09/02/2025 – 12/11/2025 Thu2:00 PM – 5:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Washington SquareInstructed by Bitel, Mary

Fall 2025 IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Societies & the Social Sciences Undergraduate
Spring 2022

Critical Experiences (IMNY-UT 206)

“​​Critical Experience is an experiential journey through a research driven art practice rooted in care, community, and somatic inquiry. This class is based on the premise that there are many ways to know things and we can draw upon these ways of knowing and our desire to know in order to nurture a creative practice grounded in research, clear intention, and a critical lens. Critical here means: discerning, eager to participate differently, cast new light on, re-examine, course-correct. You will be guided through traditional research methods (library and interview techniques, citations, informal ethnographies) and experience design while also being asked to cultivate intentional awareness of your own positionalities, communities, personal strengths, emotions, and desires through experimentation, hunch following, rituals, and contemplative practices.This class was created for or artists/designers who are interested in participation/interaction and its relationship to social practice, critical design, and change-making as well as individuals curious about knowing what moves them. Why experience? The work in this class will be looked at through the lens of its ability to transform (a user, participant, audience, viewer). Interactivity is one way of doing that, but through the lens of experience design, all art is temporal and embodied.”

Undergraduate

Class #
Section #
Meets

Class #: 11362
Section #: 001
Meets: M 12:20-3:20p

IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Media & Entertainment) IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Spring 2025 Undergraduate
Fall 2020 Spring 2022

Global Media Cultures (INTM-SHU 194)

This course surveys the implications of globalization for the production, circulation, and consumption of media. In this course, we will look across both analog and digital media (radio, TV, film, video, pop music, podcast, etc) in relation to a series of questions: How do media (and media industry) represents localities for a global audience? How can media practices create a feeling of belonging to the world/community? How may global media tell us about different material infrastructure, social imagination, and political desires? Students will explore media phenomena and critically examine media texts often beyond North American experiences. By the end of the class, students will be able to articulate how media connects to global flow of finance, cultural product, labor, and social aspirations.

Interactive Media Arts (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 16 Weeks

Sections (Spring 2022)

INTM-SHU 194-000 (23470)01/24/2022 – 05/13/2022 Wed9:00 AM – 12:00 AM (Morning)at ShanghaiInstructed by Pan, Weixian

IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Undergraduate
Spring 2022 Spring 2023

Introduction to Mindful Product Management (IMBX-SHU 254)

Technology products and services are increasingly a huge part of how businesses reach their end-customer and Product Managers (PMs) are the ones to lead teams to build software that solve real problems. This course is designed as an introduction course of how PMs do this across a variety of contexts to evaluate customer needs, translate needs into functional requirements, prioritize different aspects of development, work with cross-functional teams, launch a product and create a holistic vision of how customers experience the product. This course will focus on lectures, discussions, case-studies and hands-on exercises that replicate a typical product process at a startup, tech or non-tech company. This course equips students with the mindset, tools, frameworks to mindfully discover, design and build things that make an impact and meet the needs of real humans. We will cover both core product thinking, and also how to translate that into practical ways to make decisions and build great products. Prerequisite: None Fulfillment: Interactive Media Business Elective ; Interactive Media Arts Elective

Interactive Media and Business (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks

Sections (Spring 2023)

IMBX-SHU 254-000 (20028)01/30/2023 – 05/12/2023 Thu9:00 AM – 12:00 AM (Morning)at ShanghaiInstructed by Wang, Nicole

General Elective IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Undergraduate
Spring 2022

Introduction to the Technology Innovation Process (IMBX-SHU 105)

This course will introduce the full process for the identification, invention, and implementation of new technologies. With case studies on innovative products from around the world, successes and failures, practical advice, and ’Getting Started’ discussions, students are encouraged to learn from real projects and apply important lessons to their own ideas. Prerequisite: None. Fulfillment: IMA Major Electives; IMB Major Business Elective/Interactive Media Elective; Business and Finance Major Non-Finance Electives; Business and Marketing Major Non-Marketing Electives.

Interactive Media and Business (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 16 Weeks

Sections (Spring 2022)

IMBX-SHU 105-000 (17840)01/24/2022 – 05/13/2022 Tue,Thu9:00 AM – 10:00 AM (Morning)at ShanghaiInstructed by Grewell, Christian · Lu, Zhong-Lin

IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Undergraduate
Spring 2022 Spring 2025

Introduction to Media Industries and Institutions (IMBX-SHU 106)

The traditional understanding of media industries reminds us of mass media such as TV, radio, newspaper etc. Digital technologies, however have reshaped how media is made, consumed, and comprehended by increasingly fragmented audience groups. Self-made public accounts, search-based video streaming platforms, and social media apps refreshed our vision of media and challenged the existing ways of running a successful media. How to develop a thorough understanding of the rapidly changing market? This course is an introduction to the media industries, with a particular focus on the institutional forces (i.e., market structures, law and regulation, technological advancement, and audience dynamics) that shape the content and forms of emerging media. Combining lectures and guest talks, this class will make sense of the key concepts, professional terms, and business logics embedded in the production and operation of the global media industries. Furthermore, we will take case studies approach to examining the economic and social influences of media companies in specific contexts, particularly China, U.S., and U.K. These knowledge, together with the analytical skills that the students will acquire through in-class discussions, will allow them to comprehend and cope with the interplay among technology, market forces, and regulators in a wide array of media companies, including television, film, news, social media, video streaming, and the media-related tech businesses. Prerequisite: None. Fulfillment: IMB major Emerging Media Foundation course or IMB major IMA/IMB elective.

Interactive Media and Business (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks

Sections (Spring 2025)

IMBX-SHU 106-000 (21279)02/03/2025 – 05/16/2025 Mon12:00 AM – 3:00 PM (Early afternoon)at ShanghaiInstructed by Froehlich, Fabian

Expressive Culture IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Societies & the Social Sciences Undergraduate
Spring 2022

Entrepreneurship Experienced (IMBX-SHU 232)

This practical course will introduce students with knowledge and tools to quickly iterate, validate and gauge business ideas. The course will explore questions such as: How can we validate an opportunity? What is a “value proposition” and how critical is it? What are the most popular business models and can new ones be invented? Why are investors constantly looking for “Product Market Fit”? Why do “Customer Cost of Acquisition” and “Lifetime Value” matter? The course will also provide an opportunity to apply these newly learned methodologies with two projects during the term of the class. The fourteen weeks classes will be divided into two projects where students will work in teams. One project will be focusing on the Chinese market, whereas the second one will be targeting the North American market. For both projects, teams will be experimenting with customers’ feedback, iterating business propositions and identifying key traction factors. At the end of each project, students will present and demo their business idea to their peers and an external audience of entrepreneurs/ business managers in Shanghai. Prerequisite: None Fulfillment: IMA Major Electives; IMB Major Business Elective/Interactive Media Elective; Business and Finance Major Non-Finance Electives; Business and Marketing Major Non-Marketing Electives.

Interactive Media and Business (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 16 Weeks

Sections (Spring 2022)

IMBX-SHU 232-000 (17970)01/24/2022 – 05/13/2022 Mon9:00 AM – 12:00 AM (Morning)at ShanghaiInstructed by Chou, Gabrielle

IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Undergraduate

Queer and Trans Identity (MCC-UE 1408)

Credits: 4
Duration: 15 Weeks
Dates: Tue,Thu

In this course, we explore queer and transgender identity through practice, theory, and politics. Approaching media from queer, trans, and intersectional lenses can inform the way we understand the circulation of power around media technologies, and enable us to better understand their histories and cultural contexts. Our approach is grounded in theories, case studies, and readings from communication and media studies. Students are equipped to bring tools from queer theory & trans studies to their everyday encounters with media, technology, and culture.

Media, Culture & Communication (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks

Fall 2025 IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Spring 2026 Undergraduate
Spring 2022

Critical Making: Intermediate Game Studies (GAMES-UT 111)

Intermediate Game Studies provides students with an overview of the different methodological approaches used in game studies, in order to lay the foundations for advanced work in games research. Given the interdisciplinarity of the field, each section of the class will deal with the main areas of research that are included in games, from the humanities, to social sciences and computer science. Each section will analyze the approach of pre-existing research, alongside readings that will allow students to understand and critique how they followed specific methods.

Game Design (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks

Sections (Spring 2022)

GAMES-UT 111-000 (22279)01/24/2022 – 05/09/2022 Thu11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (Morning)at Washington SquareInstructed by

IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Undergraduate
Spring 2021

Practicum on Innovation and Branding (MKTG-SHU 110)

Innovation is the process by which an organization generates creative new ideas and converts them into viable commercial products. Branding, on the other hand, is the process of creating a unique image for the product in the consumers’ mind. This perception reflects on the organization as a whole. Moreover, branding aims to establish a differentiated presence in the marketplace to attract and retain loyal customers. Thus, innovation and branding are inextricably linked for organizational success, or survival, in today’s hyper-competitive business landscape. This course aims to equip students with knowledge in both the innovation and branding processes. By participating in the International L’Oreal Brandstorm Competition, students will gain practical experience in formulating an idea, develop branding around said idea, and then pitching said idea (innovation and branding) in a competitive forum. Students will also develop an understanding of the role of design and innovation as a collaborative, multidisciplinary group activity; and improve writing and presentation skills. The course incorporates multiple ways of learning including: lectures, case studies, ethnographic research, industry expert feedback on projects and guest presentations, and design activities in the interactive media lab. In essence, the course integrates a project-based learning approach. (No Pre-requisites; satisfies IMB Major, and Business Major – Marketing Elective if Intro to Marketing has been taken, otherwise Non-finance/Non-marketing Elective)

Marketing (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 16 Weeks

Sections (Spring 2021)

MKTG-SHU 110-000 (18163)01/25/2021 – 05/14/2021 Thu1:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Early afternoon)at ShanghaiInstructed by Ro, Raymond

IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Undergraduate
Fall 2021 Spring 2022

Clicks, Likes, and Tweets: Behavioral Addiction in the Digital Space (CAMS-UA 503)

Is healthy media use possible? What does that look like? Most of us use our electronic devices more than we had planned, and a quarter of US college students are estimated to experience internet overuse. Electronic device overuse is associated with an increased risk of depression, anxiety, and loneliness, along with a host of neuropsychological changes. In this course, we will discuss the rise of internet overuse, its associated negative consequences and possible strategies to reduce excessive use.Specifically, the course covers: 1) the definition of internet and phone overuse, 2) the brain mechanisms and behavioral patterns which lead to excessive use, 3) how brain/behavioral mechanisms are exploited to make video-games, television programs, and websites as addictive as possible, and 4) what we can do to regain our balance at the personal and societal levels. Department of History Medieval France.

Child/Adoles Mental Hlth Stds (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 15 Weeks

Sections (Spring 2022)

CAMS-UA 503-000 (9659)01/24/2022 – 05/09/2022 Mon9:00 AM – 10:00 AM (Morning)at Washington SquareInstructed by Baroni, Argelinda · Cervantes, Paige

IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Liberal Arts & Sciences - Electives Undergraduate

Art on the Edge (OART-UT 1019)

Credits: 4
Duration: 15 Weeks
Dates: Wed

Taking off from the practices of medium-based art categories, this course is structured across key topics in contemporary art – “art of today, produced by artists who are living in the twenty-first century”. During the semester, via the framework of readings, projects and assignments, we will consider the importance of the visual arts in the larger context of society. Each week we will look at a different topic, which will be organized around key concepts, artists and artwork examples. The main goal is to allow us to contemplate the process of interaction between visual art, history, cultural, socio-economical, and technological forces. The stress of our gatherings will be on the artist as a thinker and a maker.

Open Arts Curriculum (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks

Fall 2025 IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Liberal Arts & Sciences - Electives Spring 2026 Undergraduate

Data and Society (MCC-UE 1349)

Credits: 4
Duration: 15 Weeks
Dates: Mon,Wed

Data is often considered the domain of scientists and statisticians, but its increasing dominance across nearly all aspects of life – from political and advertising campaigns to social media, dating, education, and public health — has social, political, and ethical consequences, presenting both new possibilities and new hazards. In this course we think critically about how collecting, aggregating, and analyzing data affects individual and social life, with a focus on the ways in which it reproduces and creates new structural inequalities and power asymmetries.

Media, Culture & Communication (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks

Fall 2025 IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Spring 2026 Undergraduate
Fall 2021

Creative Resistance (ITPG-GT 2355)

Artists and creative practitioners are widely seen as responsible for destabilizing or critiquing dominant cultural norms and social systems; for example, in her book “Race After Technology”, Ruha Benjamin argues that artists “…can better understand and expose the many forms of discrimination embedded in and enabled by technology”. But when we talk about resistance or refusal enacted through creative means, what exactly do we mean? How does artistic work serve to resist, protest and subvert—and where does it sit in relation to the ideas it aims to critique? This class engages with the notion of “creative resistance”, unpacks the meanings and ethical stances associated with the term, and evaluates how it has been applied in both artistic and academic contexts. Students will explore theories of resistance, refusal and solidarity, and experiment with applying them to (or discussing them through) creative work. In the first half of the class, through reading, class discussion and student presentations, we will engage with scholarly and activist literature on resistance, protest and subversion, and look at examples of creative technological works that purport to achieve these goals. We will discuss commonly used strategies such as dark sousveillance (or “looking back” at the machine), speculative design, and distributed or guerrilla artmaking; examine their mechanisms of action; and debate their effectiveness in achieving their professed goals. In the second half, students will apply this thinking to their own project ideas. Students can choose to produce either a final project responding to the themes of the course, accompanied by a short written artist statement, or a more academic written piece that engages relevant literature from the class readings and beyond in service of an argument about the role of resistance in creative practice.

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2021)

ITPG-GT 2355-000 (23989)09/02/2021 – 12/14/2021 Fri3:00 PM – 6:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by

Graduate IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies)
Fall 2021 Fall 2023

Learning the World One Thing at a Time (ITPG-GT 2345)

What can an object tell us about the world? What can the world tell us about an object? As students and practitioners in creative media, investigating the world around us is a core part of an art/design/tech practice. This course focuses on a specific research approach for doing so: the implosion method (developed by Joseph Dumit based on Donna Haraway’s work). Over the course of this two-weekend workshop, we will individually and collectively critically examine, break down, rearrange and communicate as Haraway says, the “sticky economic, technical, political, organic, historical, mythic, and textual threads that make up [an object’s] tissues.” Students will choose an object at the beginning of the class and over the course of a week will follow the implosion method process, culminating in a presentation of findings the following weekend. The implosion methodology will be supplemented by lectures, group conversation, hands-on activities and skill building of complementary research methods. The final presentation will be to communicate findings and learnings through a multimedia or art/design/tech-based form. By working through the implosion method, students will build skill sets in methods and tools for 1) conducting research in the media studies/creative tech/art fields and 2) structuring and communicating the information they collect by creating a media-based representation. This class is for students interested in fostering, developing, starting, or deepening a research-based art practice with topical interests in how technology relates to society, social issues, and ethics.

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
1 credits – 15 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2023)

ITPG-GT 2345-000 (21867)

Graduate IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies)
Summer 2021 Summer 2023 Summer 2024

Cultural Capital: Food & Media in NYC (MCC-UE 1162)

This course explores the multi-faceted nature of New York City as a cultural & economic hub for food & media. Food is never just something we eat, but in New York City food has taken on an increasing prominence in public life. Food shapes communities & is an increasingly important marker of social & cultural identities. Media of all types fuel & shape our connections to food. Tastes are defined; diets & food habits are promoted & demoted; food fortunes & food celebrities are made. How has New York City become so important to the business of taste? What goes on behind-the-scenes? Topics include: Food-related publishing & broadcasting; green markets, food trucks, & systems of supply & distribution; marketing; Chinatowns, diversity, fusion, & identity. Open to majors & non-majors including special students. Classroom instruction is supplemented by site visits, guest lectures, & field research.

Media, Culture & Communication (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 6 Weeks

Sections (Summer 2024)

MCC-UE 1162-000 (2919)07/03/2024 – 08/15/2024 Tue,Thu11:00 AM – 2:00 PM (Morning)at Washington SquareInstructed by

IMA Electives IMA Electives (Legacy Structure - Seminar/Studies) Undergraduate