The Computational Media (CM) Department engages in boundary-pushing research and education that integrates technical, interpretive, and design work to create human-centered media that address complex problems for societal impact.
These are the core values we hold, which form the foundation on which we perform work and conduct ourselves as scholars, researchers, and members of communities:
- Impactful: We create media, experiences and ways of understanding that have an impact in the world we live in.
- Socially responsible: We actively perform research and education that benefit society at large and advance social goals.
- Open: We embrace diverse ideas, disciplines, approaches, concepts, and methods in our work and community.
- Boundary-pushing: We are forward facing while being reflective of the past.
- Collegial: We engage in partnership across our communities in a respectful manner.
- Address “messy” problems: We are unafraid of handling real-world problems that are naturally messy.
#5
best game/simulation development program in the nation (U.S. News & World Report, 2024)
9th
undergrad game design program (U.S. News and World Report, 2022)
#10
best school for game & interactive design bachelor's degree (College Factual, 2024)
#19
in the top 25 public augmented/virtual reality (AR/VR) schools in the U.S. (Animation Career Review, 2022)
Humanizing artificial intelligence
A new study shows how AI chatbots like ChatGPT perpetuate biases when performing empathy—highlighting gaps between human and AI responses.
CM research news
Games promote preparedness and build community resilience to wildfire
UC Santa Cruz game makers invite users to test their safety instincts before disaster strikes
Using technology and games to build climate resilient communities
Linda Hirsch, a postdoctoral fellow at UC Santa Cruz who is supported by the Center for Coastal Climate Resilience, is exploring how technology can help individuals and communities prepare for and recover from climate-related hazards.
A fresh look at TikTok: short food videos encourage long-term healthy eating habits in teens
Research from UC Santa Cruz human-computer interactions scholars is revealing how online habits translate into offline actions
Ph.D. opportunities
Computational Media faculty are recruiting Ph.D. students for the 2024-25 academic year
Explore potential Computational Media career paths
- UI/UX Designer
- Interactive Designer
- Game Designer
- Multimedia Developer
- AR/VR Specialist
- Product Manager
- Front End Developer
- Professor/Researcher
Learn More
Linda Hirsch, a computational media postdoctoral fellow, developed an interactive game to increase flood preparedness in the local Santa Cruz community—demoing the game at the UC Santa Cruz Seymour Marine Discovery Center.
Sri Kurniawan, associate professor of computational media, is leading her students to research and develop games and applications to help people with special needs.
Professor of Computational Media Katherine Isbister and her students use games to explore how technology can influence humans’ emotional experiences.