Expect to see budding game designers from across the country vying for the opportunity to study at Michigan State University. In its latest ranking of top game design programs, Princeton Review has MSU's program in the top ten not once, but twice.
The game design and development program, housed in the Department of Media and Information at the College of Communication Arts and Sciences, secured the No. 7 spot in Princeton Review's undergraduate ranking, and No. 8 for graduate programs.
The Princeton Review compiled its ranking based on a 2017 survey of 150 institutions offering game design coursework or degrees in the United States, Canada and some countries abroad.
"We are very honored to once again be placed in the top ten of game design programs," said associate professor Brian Winn. "This increase parallels the growth and investments we have made in the game program, including growing our number of outstanding faculty, investing in new facilities and expanding our curriculum. The rankings help bring visibility to the wonderful things we do here and hopefully attract students to the program that otherwise would not be aware of us."
MSU's game design and development program, founded in 2005, offers a mix of disciplines and backgrounds, with faculty and students comprised of designers, artists and programmers. The college's GEL Lab, or Games for Entertainment and Learning Lab, offers students state-of-the-art technology resources to design prototypes and techniques, and to advance research on the social and individual effects of digital games.
"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."
