We have ranked the top game design colleges in Pennsylvania for getting a bachelor's degree.
Pennsylvania has some of the best colleges in the U.S., and some of the best game design bachelor's degrees as a consequence.
Game Design is a growing industry, and as a result more colleges and universities are offering it as an undergraduate and graduate degree choice.
We have Game Design listed as one of the potentially highest paying careers from an online degree in our The 20 Best Online Degrees To Get For Careers article.
Pennsylvania is home to professional game design industry companies, including Skyless Game Studios, Burning Sky Games, and Mega Cat Studios.
Graduates can also work in gamification of other industries outside of commercial video games, such as healthcare, business training, and environmental science, among others.
The Top Game Design Colleges in Pennsylvania - Bachelor's Degrees
Rank | School | Location |
---|---|---|
1 | Drexel University | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
2 | Albright College | Reading, Pennsylvania |
3 | Pennsylvania College of Technology | Williamsport, Pennsylvania |
4 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
5 | Carnegie Mellon University | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
Ranking method:
We use data from the National Center for Education Statistics and academic influence in publications in our methodology. Please see our ranking methodology page for more information.
Drexel University
Westphal College of Media Arts and Design
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
![Drexel University](https://successfulstudent.org/wp-content/uploads/Drexel-University-768x576-1.jpg)
Drexel University was the first university to require students to have micro-computers (1983), the first major university to have a fully wireless campus, provided the first mobile web portal for students, and developed the first university portal app across all five major platforms.
Drexel offers the Bachelor of Science in Game Design and Production. This degree teaches students storytelling, programming, and animation and graphics. All of these skills are necessary to game design careers.
Drexel students have won numerous awards such as first place in the Microsoft Imagine Cup, the Unity Awards, the GDC's Narrative Review Competition, and first place in the Adobe Achievement Awards.
The school has particular strengths in using games to facilitate learning and even offers a Learning in Game Based Environments Certificate.
Albright College
Reading, Pennsylvania
![Albright College](https://successfulstudent.org/wp-content/uploads/Albright-College-1024x683.jpeg)
Albright College offers a Game and Simulation Development program for undergraduate students.
This interdisciplinary program is a combination of the College's Digital Media and Computer Science programs.
Students learn game and simulation skills in these subjects:
- math
- music
- physics
- computer science
- digital media
- programming
- artificial intelligence
- game engine development
- software packages
In addition to the technical instruction, students also learn soft skills including critical and creative thinking skills, communication skills (written and oral), and social awareness.
Courses include:
- Introduction to Game Design
- Sound Design for Visual Media
- Computer Graphics Art and Design
- Game History and Development
- Graphics Programming
The Game and Simulation Development is available as a major, a co-major and a minor.
Pennsylvania College of Technology
School of Engineering Technologies
Williamsport, Pennsylvania
![Pennsylvania College of Technology](https://successfulstudent.org/wp-content/uploads/pennsylvania-College-of-Technology-1024x684.jpeg)
Pennsylvania College of Technology has the Bachelor of Science in Game and Simulation Programming degree.
Pennsylvania College of Technology is a Penn State affiliate.
This program teaches the skills to create computer games and simulations for a variety of purposes. Computer games and simulations are applicable to many industries, including:
- information technology
- education
- corporate training
- homeland security
- healthcare
- manufacturing
- entertainment
Courses include:
- Game Programming
- Computer Simulation Applications
- C++ Game Development
- Game and Simulation Capstone
Penn College graduates are 100% employed from 3 to 6 months after graduation.
University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
![University of Pittsburgh](https://successfulstudent.org/wp-content/uploads/UniversityofPittsburgh-Pittsburgh-Signature-768x576-1.jpg)
University of Pittsburg offers a bachelor's in Digital Narrative and Design with a Game Design track, which is taken through their School of Computing and Information and the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences.
This is a unique degree, teaching from two perspectives: the technical side of Information Science and Computer Science, along with the narrative side of Writing and Composition.
The on-campus degree combines instruction from the English department and School of Computing and Information (SCI). The English aspect of the instruction includes learning media studies, narrative and world-building. The SCI teaches students software development, human-computer-interface skills, and coding.
This multifaceted instruction approach develops the skills to build interactive narrative systems in these domains:
- games
- literature
- virtual reality environments
- other media
Students in the Game Design track learn the historical and modern cultural and social contexts of game production and advertising.
Carnegie Mellon University
Integrative Design, Arts, and Technology
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
![Carnegie Mellon University](https://successfulstudent.org/wp-content/uploads/Carnegie-Mellon-University-e1686340522875.jpeg)
Carnegie Mellon University has long been known as one of America's leading schools in many disciplines.
The university's Integrative Design, Arts, and Technology (IDeATe) network allows students to complete a Game Design minor.
The interdisciplinary program features both practice and theory of game creation. Topics include interface design, visual asset creation, and character development.
This Game Design Minor is open to students who are enrolled in any major. Students will collaborate with the Entertainment Technology Center at CMU.
Career Information for Game Designers:
Game Designers nationwide earn an average salary of $95,298 per year, according to Indeed.com.
Game Designers at the low end of the average salary distribution earn approximately $62,000, whereas the designers at the high end of the average salary range earn approximately $146,000 per year.
In Pennsylvania, Game Designers earn an average of $63,870 per year, with a lower average of $59,108, and an upper average of $69,015 in the income distribution, according to Indeed.com.
More resources:
- The Best Video Game Art and Animation Degrees
- The Best Bachelor's in Computer Science: Game Design Degrees
- The Best Online Certificates in Game Design
- The Best Online Associate's Degrees in Game Design
- The Best Online Screenwriting Colleges
- The Top Women in Game Design and Development
- What Do Game Designers Earn? Salary Information
- The Best Game Design Colleges at Christian Colleges
- The Best Online Animation and Graphic Design Colleges
- The Best App Development Colleges
- The Best Artificial Intelligence Colleges: AI Degrees and Certificates
- The Best Online Artificial Intelligence Degrees
- The Best Online Video Game Design Degrees
- The Best Bachelor's Degrees in Computer Science: Game Design
Rankings by state: