[frio]

I think you've made an important distinction here, which is easy to gloss over: that UX isn't necessarily UI. I tend to think of the UI more as the layer of gloss that's put over the top; whereas UX is the actual interaction flow a user will participate in. FWIW, a product the company I work for is designing is extremely pretty to look at, but when it comes to using, it becomes painfully obvious there's been little to no external user testing. I'm not involved with the project, but it pains me to see them not stump up the cash for even a basic expert evaluation.

For the OP, while at an undergrad level those techniques might seem trivial (I can remember being an absolutely arrogant prick while we were learning them!), it quickly becomes apparent either in the workforce or at postgrad level that they're valid and necessary tools for turning out a great UX. There's no point in designing something you find pretty and easy to use, when other users (your personas) might struggle with it.

They might bore you now, and I know from experience that lecturers can take weeks to teach what can seem a simple idea, but if you are seriously interested in UX rather than UI, write them up and put them in a notebook somewhere you can refer to later. You'll almost definitely find them useful :).