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SALT LAKE CITY — The University of Utah's video game design program ranked third in the nation in U.S. News & World Report's inaugural Best Undergraduate Game Design Programs list.
The university's entertainment arts and engineering program, part of the College of Engineering, tied the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and New York University for third place while costing at least 77% less than the other schools ranked at the top of the U.S. News list.
The U.S. News & World Report's college rankings are some of the most comprehensive lists for students. This is the first time they have ranked game design schools.
The publication evaluates schools based on surveys and data regarding factors like graduation rates, retention rates, academic reputation and faculty resources.
This ranking is yet another accolade for the 14-year-old program, which is frequently ranked among the best video game design programs in the country. Earlier in the year, Animation Career Review ranked the program No. 1 on its list of top public game design schools and colleges in the U.S.
In the latest Princeton Review, the U.'s undergraduate game design program ranked second for public American schools and eighth in the country, and the graduate program was ranked second for public American schools and sixth overall.
The program teaches all facets of video game design and development including art, humanities, social science, computational research, game design, rapid prototyping, game engineering, production, digital content creation, ethics in games, digital storytelling, 2D and 3D art and marketing management.
The faculty and students also conduct research in modeling and game artificial intelligence.
"EAE is an established leader in games research and education," Michael Young, the program director, said in a press release. "Our recognition among the very top programs speaks to the growing importance of games education nationally and the University of Utah's role in shaping the future of games."
Because their students have such a comprehensive education and development of a wide variety of skills, Young explained that they are likely to be hired and influence the whole industry.
