Whether you’re taking your first steps or honing your skills, there’s a game design program for everyone. Check out the 50 best undergraduate and 25 best graduate programs.
Luckily in this rapidly changing world, we always have video games to comfort and challenge us. Who can forget to explore secret corners of Skellige or triumph over a towering boss in Dark Souls? Of course, it takes a lot of incredibly talented people to make games, and they all started somewhere.
That’s why Princeton Review has worked to rank every major video game design college program in North America and beyond. Whether you’re a recent high school grad or looking to change your already established career, you’ll want to know what each school has to offer. Maybe it’s imaginative teaching styles, valuable internship programs, or even teachers who have worked on your favorite games. It’s hard to go it alone, so take this guide as your ultimate tool to achieve game design glory.
Would you like to know more? For more information on game design programs, visit The Princeton Review website: princetonreview.com/game-design
Table of Contents
Top 50 Best Game Design Bachelor Degrees
1. University of Southern California
Employed graduates 2021: 90%
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $65,000
Faculty: Richard Lemarchand (Uncharted), Danny Bilson (The Sims)
Graduates: Jenova Chen (Travel), Jeff Kaplan (Overwatch)
2. New York University
Employed graduates 2021: 52%
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $62,049
Faculty: Winnie Song (Square Enix Montreal), Matt Boch (Rock Band VR)
Graduates: Atlas Chen (thatgamecompany), Noelle Mazurek (Games for Change)
3. Clark University
Employed graduates 2021: 64%
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $65,600
Faculty: Ezra Cove (Lord of the Rings Online)
Graduates: Stanley Pierre-Louis (ESA), Michael Abrash (Chief Scientist, Meta)
4. Rochester Institute of Technology
Employed graduates 2021: 85%
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $66,900
Graduates: Elan Lee (Xbox), Alex Kipman (Kinect, HoloLens)
fun fact: The only school with a Geographic Information Systems minor that helps create games that can save lives through city planning and crisis response.
5. DigiPen Institute of Technology
Faculty: Claude Comair (Co-Founder of Nintendo Software Technology)
Graduates: Kim Swift (Portal, Google Stadia), Adam Brennecke (Pillars of Eternity)
6. Michigan State University
Employed graduates 2021: 83%
Graduates: Brian May (Creative Director, EA), Steven Messinger (Design Director, Rockstar)
7. University of Utah
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $77,443
Graduates: Doug Bowser (COO, Nintendo of America), Nolan Bushnell (Atari)
8th. Drexel University
Graduates: Gregory Lebanov (Chicory, Wandersong), Tom Fulp (Newgrounds)
Faculty: Tony Rowe (The Force Unleashed), Dr. Paul Diefenbach (Open World)
9. Shawnee State University
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $58,350
Graduates: Dan Clark (Creative Director, Epic Games), Kip Ricker (Apple Arcade)
10. Champlain College
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $57,500
fun fact: Features four new programs: Game Business and Publishing, Sound Design, Interaction Design, and App Development
11. Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $82,000
Faculty: Mark Claypool (Google Stadia), Ed Gutierrez (Disney Animation)
12. University of Applied Sciences Breda
Employed graduates 2021: 80%
Graduates: Perry Leijten (Team Asobi), Nathalie Jankie (Level Design, Remedy Entertainment)
13. University of Central Florida
Total courses: 168
Graduates: Alexia Mandeville (Principal Designer, Niantic), Melissa Yancey (Technical Artist, EA)
14. Vancouver Film School
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $60,000
Faculty: Glen Hamilton (Head of Development, EA), Scott Henshaw (EA)
fifteen. University of Silicon Valley
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $63,000
Faculty: Evan Skolnick (Author, Days Gone, Star Wars), Phil Campbell (Tomb Raider)
16. La Salle College Vancouver
Total courses: 187
Graduates: Greg Findlay (Tomb Raider), Mitchell Lagran (Age of Empires 4)
17. Abertay University
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $51,100
Graduates: David Jones (Creator, Grand Theft Auto), John Pile Jr. (Software, Microsoft)
18. Laguna College of Art + Design
Faculty: Daniel Alpert (Art Director, Obsidian Entertainment), Thomas Olson (Artist, Insomniac)
19. Bradley University
Graduates: Austin Wood (Amazon Games), Emily Berger (Blizzard), Joseph Lax (Sony Santa Monica)
20. Savannah College of Art and Design
Employed graduates 2021: 41%
Graduates: Chad Dezern (CCO, Insomniac Games), Harrison Pink (Quest Design, Diablo 4)
21. The University of Texas at Dallas
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $47,000
fun fact: Ranked 7th in the nation for collegiate esports and has a content creator program.
22. Quinnipiac University
Employed graduates 2021: 76%
Graduates: Zaria Brogdon (Production, Rockstar), Donovan Sepulveda (Sports, Blizzard)
23. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $68,400
Graduates: Zach Barth (ZachTronics), Curtis R. Priem (NVIDIA)
24. Miami University
Average Graduate Salary 2021: $50,912
Graduates: Chris Carney (Level Designer, Valorant), Stephanie Tsirlis (Producer, Riot)
25. Howest College
Employed graduates 2021: 80%
Faculty: Tristan Clarysse (Main Artist, Larian), Samuel De Vos (Environmental Artist, Ubisoft)
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