My grandson, a junior, has strong math, science, and computer skills, a 3.6 unweighted gpa, AP physics currently, AP computer science, honors calculus and challenges in writing though in honors level. Most interested in game development but needs some direction regarding a more expansive view. He would probably be best served in a small environment. Looking at WPI and RIT for reputation but probably in the Reach category.
Non-need based financial aid is important.
Advice and suggestions please.
U of Utah
Central Florida
Bradley - run NPC for merit
Kent State
Miami Ohio
Arizona - depending on budget. 3.6 gets 12.5k off.
Thank you. Despite my age, I am a newbie with the acronyms. What is NPC?
Look into RIT.
https://www.rit.edu/admissions/aid/merit-based-scholarships
Edited to add that I somehow missed RIT in your original post!
Net pruce calculator. Not all do but some like Bradley will tell you how much $. Just google the school name + net price calculator.
Many schools will be large but the programs may not be.
https://admissions.bradley.edu/ssl/estimator/?status=viewtab2
If you are in CA, I strongly recommend UC Santa Cruz.
In CT thus an east coast preference but not necessarily a requiremnet
Anyone have insider info on SUNY Polytechnic?
Champlain College would be a likely. Beautiful college town (Burlington, Vt) and offers good academic support if he needs it for writing. Small supportive environment with multiple majors within gaming/computer science and career guidance. Seems to have everything you are looking for and easy to get to from CT.
Utah may be best value - a leader and possible merit and residency.
But you can look at Marist and George Mason too staying East.
Is he artistic, or more into the “nuts and bolts” aspects of gaming? Some programs lean more artistic, such as Drexel’s, which is in their College of Media Arts & Design Game Design & Production | Drexel Westphal (Not sure about the affordability of Drexel for his profile, though.)
NJIT could be worth a look https://gamedev.njit.edu/ Their programs span the whole range of artsy-to-technical; the Game Design track is in Art&Design, Game Production is in IT, and Game Programming in CS or IT. Their NPC asks for GPA, so hopefully it provides a merit projection.
In CT, he could look at Quinnipiac BA in Game Design and Development which is private but gives a lot of merit - no idea whether he’d get enough to make it affordable. Clarkson, in far-upstate NY, is also quite generous with merit Bachelor's in Digital Arts & Sciences | Clarkson
SUNY programs at schools where their Flagship Match deal would allow him to attend for the same price as UConn:
That said, graduates of specialized game design programs will be competing for jobs with students who have broader CS or IT degrees. It’s important to strike a balance between feeling engaged in a program that fits with one’s passions, and laying a solid technical foundation in ways that may not be as immediately exciting. NJIT’s programs seem to balance this well, offering the gaming specialization as a track within CS or IT. Some general CS programs where there are gaming electives and extracurriculars may be worth considering also; for example, U of Maine, which is another Flagship Match opportunity. They also have this new major, which could be appealing: SCIS offers new B.S. program in Human-Centered Technology Design - School of Computing and Information Science - University of Maine
Good luck; hope you can help him to figure out a good path!
Clark University in Worcester, MA. Many no need merit based awards.
Great suggestion - sounds like an excellent program Major in Interactive Media: Game Design & Development (B.A.) | Clark University and Clark is great for internship opportunities; and the 4+1 MFA is a nice option to have.
Thanks for your input. I completely agree a broader approach will offer greater flexibility in the job market and afford the ability to veer to another path as needs and interests develop.
A regular CS major with in major electives in such areas as graphics, artificial intelligence, security, database, etc. in addition to the usual stuff like operating systems and algorithms, plus out of major courses in art, physics, social sciences, and creative writing, should be good preparation for computer game development, but also leave open other computing work as options, since not everyone finds the game industry to their liking as a sector to work in.
I don’t have any insider info on it, but I’ve read some very complimentary comments about it here on CC.
There was another thread where someone was talking about small classes, lots of hands-on experiences, etc, but I can’t find it.
Some other schools that your grandson may want to look into include:
Thanks for your reply. “Since not everyone finds the game industry,y to their liking as a sector to work in” sounds like personal experience. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts about that.
The industry is highly seasonal, so computer game company may need to bet the company annually on this year’s game being a big seller in November / December. If it bets wrong, or the game is not out in time at the needed quality, then that can be very bad for the company.
Our son and daughter are both in computer software engineering.
Both thought that they would be doing some gaming design but as they completed their coursework, they realized that “it’s not fun”, but tedious.
They have to repeatedly play the “games” in order to try to “break them” for problem-solving issues. It was repetitive and “boring” for both.
Industry jobs, for that selective of a discipline, are hard to find and when found, are competitive. It is VERY seasonal. Our neighbor is in the industry and often gets laid off. She is trying to transition to regular CS, but she only has a basic foundation and has limited experience in some industry programmer languages.
Our son and daughter are each in social groups of CS grads. They design games for “fun” and don’t plan to pursue any business opportunities because they know that the market is fickle and can be unstable.
If your grandson wants to pursue a gaming major, let him try. He will share his experiences with many classmates who are strong in STEM but also strong in written language skills.
Yes, Utah is good value, but this kid is not from a WUE state and wouldn’t qualify for the higher level scholarships. That means residency via staying the summer after freshman year is the best path. The cost for tuition, room and board would be about $45K the first year then $25K in subsequent years.
We loved Utah, it is particularly good for outdoorsy kids, with great skiing very close by and amazing national parks in every direction.