Game Design Schools

As a professor or instructor of game design classes at one of the 31 accredited game design schools in the country, you play a crucial role in shaping the future of this growing field. The graphs, statistics and analysis below outline the current state and the future direction of academia in game design, which encompasses game design training at the following levels:

Game Design Certificate
Associates degree in Game Design
Bachelors degree in Game Design
Masters degree in Game Design
PhD degree in Game Design

Statistics

Professional Trends

National Employment growth for Game design professionals

2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
396,020	394,710	394,230	367,880	333,620

Dark Yellow: Actual Values

In 2010, 333,620 game design professionals were working in the US. The number of game design professionals has shrunk by 16% between 2006 and 2010.

And the growth for all careers between the years 2006 and 2010 was 1%.

National Salary percentiles for Game design professionals

10th percentile	$40,820
25th percentile	$53,940
50th percentile	$71,380
75th percentile	$91,420
90th percentile	$114,180

The median yearly salary earned by game design professionals, in 2010, was $71,380. The median yearly salary for game design professionals in the US was 13% more than that for all professions, which was $68,155 per year.

National Median Salary Growth For Game Design

2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
$65,510	$68,080	$70,940	$70,940	$71,380

Light Blue: Salaries

Game design professionals' salaries have seen a 9% growth from the year 2006 to the year 2010.

Educational Trends

National Game Design Student enrollment growth by degree

2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
582	0	0	0	136
718	0	0	0	1,576
0	0	0	0	1
208	0	0	0	403
43	0	0	0	68

Yellow: Associate's Degree in Game Design
Blue: Bachelor's Degree in Game Design
Red: Doctorates Degree in Game Design
Light blue: Master's Degree in Game Design
Grey: Certificate in Game Design

We are seeing a rapid change in the career outlook for game design professionals. And the story on the educational front is similar. In 2006, 1,551 students graduated from game design degree programs in the US. In 2010, 2,184 students graduated from game design schools.

Thus, in 4 years, there was a 41% growth in the number of game design graduates. This growth in the number of students graduating from game design courses is greater than the 12% growth nationally for students graduating from institutions of higher learning in general.

Game Design Programs offered Nationwide

associate	9
bachelor	14
master	5
doctor	0
Certificate	7
Total	35

The number of schools offering game design programs has decreased. There were 272 game design schools across the country in 2006. And there were 420 schools in 2010.

Game Design Faculty Salaries

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The number of game design faculty, growth in the field of game design academia and game design faculty salaries is all data we are currently in the process of collecting. We would appreciate your help. If you teach game design courses to students at the certificate in game design, associates degree in game design, bachelors degree in game design, masters degree in game design, and PhD degree in game design levels, please anonymously submit your information in the field below. By doing so, you will be helping us build a valuable database resource for the benefit of current and future game design faculty. Once you submit your information, you will get a chance to see an overview of what we have learned thus far from you and your peers.