https://www.princetonreview.com/press/game-design-press-release
https://www.princetonreview.com/college-rankings?rankings=top-50-game-design-ugrad
https://www.princetonreview.com/college-rankings/game-design/top-25-game-design-grad
Top Game Design Press Release
The Princeton Review Announces 2018 Rankings:
Top 50 Undergrad & Top 25 Grad Schools to Study Game Design
USC is #1 Undergrad and SMU #1 Grad School for 2nd Year in a Row
NEW YORK, March 13, 2018 — The Princeton Review™ today released its ninth annual ranking lists naming the best undergraduate and graduate schools for students to study—and launch a career in—game design.
The University of Southern California captured the #1 spot on the undergraduate schools list, and Southern Methodist University ranked #1 on the graduate schools list, both for the second year in a row.
The full lists, which name the “Top 50” undergraduate and “Top 25” graduate schools, are posted at Top Schools for Game Design 2018. There, users can also get information on The Princeton Review’s methodology for this project and its detailed profiles of the schools with guidance for applicants on their programs, admission requirements, and financial aid.
The Princeton Review chose the schools based on its 2017 survey of 150 institutions in the U.S., Canada and abroad offering game design degree programs or courses. The 40-question survey gathered data on everything from the schools’ game design academic offerings and lab facilities to their graduates’ starting salaries and career achievements. More than 40 data points in four areas (academics, faculty, technology, and career) were analyzed to tally the lists.
“Game design is an exciting field and for students aspiring to work in this field, the schools on our list offer extraordinary opportunities to launch a career in this industry,” said Robert Franek, The Princeton Review’s Editor in Chief. “We want to help students find the best program for their needs and interests. The top schools on our lists have outstanding faculties and great facilities which will give students the skills and experience they need to pursue a career in this dynamic and burgeoning field.”
Undergrad and grad students enrolled in the schools that made the lists also gain valuable professional experience while in school. According to The Princeton Review’s 2017 survey of administrators at the schools, 88% of their undergrad and/or graduate game design students that graduated in their 2017 classes developed actionable plans to launch games while in school. Moreover, 52% of undergrads and 75% of grad students at these school programs worked on games that were shipped before they graduated.
The Princeton Review has reported its game design program rankings annually since 2010. It has teamed up with PC Gamer, a monthly magazine published by Future plc, as its reporting partner on this project since 2013. PC Gamer’s May issue has a feature on the ranking lists that details the schools’ unique programs, prominent professors, and alumni. The issue lands in subscriber mailboxes this week and on newsstands 3/27.
The “Top 25” schools on The Princeton Review 2018 ranking list, “Top 50 Undergraduate Schools for Game Design,” are:
University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA)
New York University (Brooklyn, NY)
DigiPen Institute of Technology (DIT) (Redmond, WA)
Becker College (Worcester, MA)
Rochester Institute of Technology (Rochester, NY)
University of Utah (Salt Lake City, UT)
Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI)
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (Worcester, MA)
Hampshire College (Amherst, MA)
LaSalle College Vancouver (Vancouver, British Columbia)
Drexel University (Philadelphia, PA)
Champlain College (Burlington, VT)
Cogswell College (San Jose, CA)
Vancouver Film School (Vancouver, British Columbia)
Bradley University (Peoria, IL)
Miami University (Oxford, OH)
University of California—Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, CA)
Ferris State University (Big Rapids, MI)
Abertay University (Dundee, Scotland)
Laguna College of Art and Design (Laguna Beach, CA)
Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, GA)
Shawnee State University (Portsmouth, OH)
Northeastern University (Boston, MA)
University of Wisconsin-Stout (Menomonie, WI)
The University of Texas at Dallas (Richardson, TX)