The University of Miami has earned a #24 ranking on The Princeton Review’s just-released list saluting the top 25 graduate schools for game design for 2018.
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.
“Consistently ranking in the top 25 Universities for the past few years speaks to the quality of the work produced by our faculty and students. The University of Miami is gaining momentum as the place to come to study how to design effective gameful learning experiences,” said Kim Grinfeder, director for the Interactive Media program at the University of Miami School of Communication.
The University of Miami has appeared regularly as one of the top 25 graduate schools for game design on The Princeton Review’s rankings since the Interactive Media M.F.A. program was first offered in 2013. UM was ranked #24 for 2014, #23 for 2016, and #25 for 2017. Students of the Interactive Media program bring together social, public-interest, environmental, sustainable, humanitarian, human-centered, and other related design disciplines to develop innovative games with a social impact. Class sizes are small and students have access to state-of-the-art equipment, including the latest virtual and augmented reality gear, high performance gaming platforms, and a maker space.
The School of Communication also offers a minor in Game Design where undergraduate students from different majors combine their interest in other disciplines with game design, creating innovative games for learning and positive change.
“It has long been our mission to help students find—and get into— the best programs for their needs and interests, ” said Robert Franek, Editor-in-Chief for The Princeton Review. “For students aspiring to work in the exciting field of game design, we strongly recommend the University of Miami and each of the other top schools that made our 2018 lists. These schools offer extraordinary opportunities to launch a career in this industry. They 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.”
The Princeton Review’s full report on this project at www.princetonreview.com/game-design also features a companion list of “Top 50 Undergraduate Schools for Game Design.” It includes profiles of the schools with application information and links to the school sites.
For the sixth consecutive year, The Princeton Review teamed up with PC Gamer, a monthly magazine published by Future plc (www.futureplc.com) as its reporting partner for this project. PC Gamer has a feature on the list in its May issue available on newsstands March 27. The feature has information on some of the schools’ unique programs, class offerings, prominent professors, and alumni.
The Princeton Review developed its “Top Game Design Schools” project in 2009 with assistance from a national advisory board that helped design the survey instrument and methodology. Board members included administrators and faculty from respected game design programs, and professionals from some of the top gaming companies.
The Princeton Review is also known for its annual rankings of colleges, business schools, and law schools in dozens of categories it reports on its site and in its books including The Best 382 Colleges and Colleges That Pay You Back. The company is not affiliated with Princeton University.
