U.S. Colleges and Unis Offering Video Game Degrees In Record Numbers – ESA

According to a new report from the Entertainment Software Association, there are 385 colleges and universities that offer computer video game and design programs or degrees.  This is an increase from 2012 and shows the increasing demand to prepare middle and high school students for science, technology, engineering and math fields.

“Video games are the fastest growing, most dynamic form of entertainment in the word today,” said Michael D. Gallagher, president and CEO of ESA, the U.S. trade association representing computer and video game publishers. “These students are preparing to join an industry that creates interactive software, innovative hardware, and ecosystems that spawn new business models and online communities, transforming consumer experiences, spurring technological advancements, and impacting important areas including education, healthcare, and business.”

There are a total of 55 schools that offer associate’s degrees, 226 that offer bachelor’s degrees, 46 that offer master’s degrees and four that offer Ph.D.’s.  More and more schools continue to add new degree programs in order to prepare more students for a career in the $21 billion entertainment industry.

“Computer and video game design programs represent the most transformational areas of study in higher education today,” said Dr. Scott Martin, founding director of the Computer and Game Design Program at George Mason University. “Students study both the sciences and the arts, all in a revolving-role team-based, project-based new pedagogical environment that is revolutionizing curricula to better prepare our students for the workforce of today and tomorrow.”

US States offering courses in video gaming in order of most to least are California with 72 schools, New York with 26, Texas with 24, Florida with 23, Illinois with 23, Pennsylvania with 19, Minnesota with 17, Massachusetts with 14, Washington with 11 and Wisconsin with 11.

For more information and to find out which schools are offering programs, be sure to visit the report’s website.