The Princeton Review Ranks Top 50 Undergrad & Top 25 Grad Schools to Study Game Design for 2016

NEW YORK, March 15, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Princeton Review (www.princetonreview.com) today released its seventh annual ranking lists naming the best undergraduate and graduate schools for students to study – and launch a career in – game design.

The University of Utah captured the #1 spot on the undergraduate schools list (up from #2 in 2015). The University of Central Florida ranked #1 on the graduate schools list (also up from #2 last year).

The full lists, which name the "Top 50" undergraduate and "Top 25" graduate schools, are posted at www.princetonreview.com/game-design. There, users can also get information on The Princeton Review's methodology for this project and its detailed profiles of the schools with guidance for applicants on their programs, admission requirements, and financial aid. 

The Princeton Review chose the schools based on its 2015 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.

"For students aspiring to work in game design, the 58 schools that made one or both of our 2016 lists offer extraordinary opportunities to hone one's talents for a successful career in this burgeoning field," said Robert Franek, The Princeton Review's Senior VP-Publisher.  "The faculties at these schools are outstanding. Their facilities are awesome. And their alumni include legions of the industry's most prominent game designers, developers, artists, and entrepreneurs."

Undergrad and grad students enrolled in the schools that made the lists also gain valuable professional experience while in school. According to The Princeton Review's 2015 survey of administrators at the schools, about 85% of their ugrad and/or grad game design students that graduated in their 2015 classes developed actionable plans to launch games while in school.  Moreover, 49% of undergrads and 59% of grad students at these school programs worked on games that were shipped before they graduated.

The Princeton Review has reported its game design program rankings annually since 2010.  It has teamed up with PC Gamer, a monthly magazine published by Future plc, as its reporting partner on this project since 2013. PC Gamer's May issue has a feature on the ranking lists that details the schools' unique programs, prominent professors, and alumni. The issue lands in subscriber mailboxes this week and on newsstands March 29^th.

The "Top 25" schools on The Princeton Review list, "Top 50 Undergraduate Schools to Study Game Design for 2016," are:

1. University of Utah (Salt Lake City, UT)
2. University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA)
3. Rochester Institute of Technology (Rochester, NY)
4. DigiPen Institute of Technology (Redmond, WA)
5. Becker College (Worcester, MA)
6. The Art Institute of Vancouver (Vancouver, British Columbia)
7. Hampshire College (Amherst, MA)
8. Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI)
9.  Drexel University (Philadelphia, PA)
10. New York University (Brooklyn, NY)
11. The University of Texas at Dallas (Richardson, TX)
12. Northeastern University (Boston, MA)
13. Champlain College (Burlington, VT)
14. Vancouver Film School (Vancouver, British Columbia)
15. Bradley University (Peoria, IL)
16. Ferris State University (Grand Rapids, MI)
17. Lawrence Technological University (Southfield, MI)
18. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Troy, NY)
19. Cogswell College (San Jose, CA)
20. Shawnee State University (Portsmouth, OH)
21. University of Wisconsin-Stout (Menomonie, WI)
22. Abertay University (Dundee, Scotland)
23. University of California-Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, CA)
24. Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, GA)
25. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA)
For the full list of top 50 undergraduate schools, go to www.princetonreview.com/game-design

The Princeton Review's "Top 25 Graduate Schools to Study Game Design for 2016" are:

1. University of Central Florida (Orlando, FL)
2. Southern Methodist University (Plano, TX)
3. University of Utah (Salt Lake City, UT)
4. University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA)
5. DigiPen Institute of Technology (Redmond, WA)
6. New York University (Brooklyn, NY)
7. Rochester Institute of Technology (Rochester, NY)
8. Drexel University (Philadelphia, PA)
9. The University of Texas at Dallas (Richardson, TX)
10. Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI)
11. University of California at Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, CA)
12. Abertay University (Dundee, Scotland)
13. Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, GA)
14. Texas A&M University (College Station, TX)
15. DePaul University (Chicago, IL)
16. University of Wisconsin-Stout (Menomonie, WI)
17. Full Sail University (Winter Park, FL)
18. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA)
19. University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA)
20. The Ohio State University – Columbus  (Columbus, OH)
21. Sacred Heart University (Fairfield, CT)
22. American University (Washington, DC)
23. University of Miami (Coral Gables, FL)
24. University of Illinois at Chicago (Chicago, IL)
25. St. Mary's University (San Antonio, TX)

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 380 Colleges and Colleges That Pay You Back.

About The Princeton Review
The Princeton Review is a leading tutoring, test prep and college admission services company. Every year, it helps millions of college- and graduate school-bound students achieve their education and career goals through online and in person courses delivered by a network of more than 4,000 teachers and tutors, online resources, and its more than 150 print and digital books published by Penguin Random House. The Princeton Review is headquartered in Natick, MA and is an operating business of Match Group (NASDAQ: MTCH).  For more information, visit www.princetonreview.com. Follow the company on Twitter @theprincetonrev.

About Future plc
Future plc is an international media group and leading digital business, listed on the London Stock Exchange (symbol: FUTR). Future has operations in the UK, US and Australia creating publications, apps, websites and events. Future holds market-leading positions in Technology, Games, Music, Film, Photography and the Creative & Design sector. Future attracts more than 50 million monthly users globally to our websites, which include techradar.com, GamesRadar.com and musicradar.com. Future sold more than 14 million magazines last year. Our most well-known brands include T3, Total Film, Edge, MacFormat and Xbox: The Official Magazine. Future, and its portfolio, reaches over 84 million people on social media. Future has over 200 licensing & syndication agreements in 89 countries worldwide, and exports over 55 titles.

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