hey guys, i was wondering if anyone here has majored in game design or game programming at UAT. I have already filled out an application to go there and im pretty sure if i get accepted i will go there. so what i was wondering is what you thought of the program, the college in general, and any other ideas you would tell a prospective student. if you dont go there do think this would be a good major to major in to go into the game design industry, here is a list of classes you can take: ›Animation Theory ›Animation Theory Applied ›3D Studio MAX Modeling ›3D Studio MAX 3D Animation ›Maya Modeling ›Maya 3D Animation ›Game Concept Design ›Game Modeling ›Level Design ›Game Animation ›3D Design ›Applied Game Theory ›Mod Development ›Figure Drawing you also have to take classes such as your maths and english classes, and certain classes required by the college such as XHTML and Computer concepts but i wont post those. thanks for any response

I have some serious misgivings about such specialized degrees given that there is likely to be a strong bias toward traditional degree programs in the industry. Firstly, I question whether or not the game-specific education can be acquired only through such a school or if you can learn more as a hobbyist. The design classes you listed are likely to be theory-laden, which means opinion-laden and therefore likely not very rigorous (ie, not asking the really challenging questions, more babysitting than not). The application classes you mentioned are functional, and you're going to find that each studio has its own asset pipeline, so the equipment training will be of the most use and that you can do yourself for relatively free.

Secondly, if you're going to spend the time and money you'll probably want your education to be as broadly applicable as possible so that you don't find yourself starting over again when you're older because you're sick of games.

I don't mean to be a downer. These classes may well speed your learning and give you an edge on getting into the industry. But I'd seriously question the course syllabus, how the course is vetted for correctness and applicability to real-world game development, and who is teaching it. I'd also demand to see their placement rate in the game industry as well as some tracking of past alumni (where are they four years later, what's the average income, what have others done with their majors, etc.)

It's very cool to be enthusiastic about going to any school, but make sure you don't get so excited that you get cheated because you didn't check them out thoroughly. Good luck!

thanks for the reply. i understand what your saying and talking to an alumni would be a very good idea. ive been looking at game degrees for about a year now and want to get the best one, so thank you for giving me some more ideas to research.

When looking at colleges I had the same goal, to study specifically my own career choice (game design), and I also wanted a specialized degree. However after further research and advice from some professionals, I found that gettings a specialized degree may not have been what I thought it was to be. What you should be aware of is that the game industry and game design in particular is still a young field and it doesn't have the type of standardization that most other fields have in other industries. That's my 0.02, agree with everything Wavinator said, educate yourself (about the school)!

Well, my opinion is if you really want to go to a school specialiaing in game programming, have you checked out DigiPen (www.digipen.edu)?
Looking at a first year's schedule at DigiPen

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Semester 1
MAT 140 Linear Algebra & Geometry
CS 100 Computer Environment
CS 120 High Level Programming I
GAM 100 Introduction to Game Design & Production
ENG 110 Composition
ART 210 Art Appreciation
Semester 2
MAT 150 Calculus & Planar Analytic Geometry
CS 105 Computer Environment II
CS 170 High Level Programming II
CS 180 Operating System I, Man-Machine Interface
GAM 150 Project I
ENG 150 Mythology for Game Designers
SOC 150 Social & Cultural Perspectives on Technology

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You'll notice there's only 2 Game Development courses for the entire year. All the other years have a similar schedule, with a heacy emphasis on math, programming, and physics. I think they offer more traditional courses to make sure you know how to program, not just program games using other tools avaiable.

Its your decision as to what school you want to go to, but I looked at UAT a year ago, and they didn't seem to give you a strong foundation in programming. The literature they sent me in the mail also degraded my opinion of UAT as well.

As far as game design, I've heard its really difficult to start in that, as most people are looking for someone who has experience in the industry (either programming or art). If you look at the number of real jobs available on gamedev.net, you'll notice this as well. There's usually about <5 game design jobs and >20 programming jobs.