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Field

Game Design

Game design, interactive media, and real-time simulation — what the training costs, what graduates earn, and how many finish.

Data last updated

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Key figures

$48,144
Median earnings, four years after completing

Across 128 programs reporting

Source: College Scorecard, Field of Study (retrieved September 2026)

$26,000
Median federal loan debt at completion

Across 90 programs reporting

Source: College Scorecard, Field of Study (retrieved September 2026)

6,530
Awards conferred in a year

284 institutions in this field

Source: IPEDS, NCES (retrieved September 2026)

What’s inside this field

Programs grouped the way a student looks for them. A performance degree, a production degree and a music-technology degree are different courses with different outcomes; each group gathers every federal code a program of that kind is filed under.

Game Design & Interactive Media

237

programs →

Simulation & Virtual Environments

58

programs →

Animation, VFX & Computer Graphics

201

programs →

Web & Multimedia Design

86

programs →

Software & Media, Other

15

programs →

How the federal data files these programs

The Department of Education groups programs by CIP family for statistics, not for choosing a degree. Every figure on this site is reported at that level, so each table names the family a program is filed under.

How they are delivered

23Fully online
21Online or on campus
63Hybrid
397On campus
10Not reported
Programs available online (44) →On-campus programs (397) →

Delivery is reported to IPEDS by each institution, program by program and credential by credential. “Fully online” means the program can be completed entirely at a distance. “Online or on campus” means the school offers it both ways. “Hybrid” means part of it is online and none of it entirely. Where IPEDS has no program-level answer, the Scorecard’s field-level flag is used and the row says so.

What it costs, by credential

Median debt and median earnings by credential — Game Design
Median debt at completionMedian earnings, 4 yrs after
$0$25k$50k$75k$100kCertificateCertificate — median debt $11,042Certificate — median earnings $39,933$11,042$39,933AssociateAssociate — median debt $15,125Associate — median earnings $36,208$15,125$36,208Bachelor’sBachelor’s — median debt $26,618Bachelor’s — median earnings $53,250$26,618$53,250Master’sMaster’s — median debt $67,489Master’s — median earnings $87,998$67,489$87,998
Median debt and median earnings by credential — Game Design
FieldMedian debt at completionMedian earnings four years after completing
Certificate$11,042$39,933
Associate$15,125$36,208
Bachelor’s$26,618$53,250
Master’s$67,489$87,998

Source: College Scorecard, Field of Study (retrieved September 2026)

Tuition is the published annual in-state figure. Debt is the median federal loan balance students actually carry at completion — a truer measure of cost than sticker price, because it accounts for aid.

Median tuition, debt and earnings by credential level for Game Design
CredentialProgramsAnnual tuitionpublished, in-stateMedian graduate debtat completionMedian graduate earnings4 yrs after
Undergraduate certificate168$3,248$11,042$39,933
Associate degree155$4,046$15,125$36,208
Bachelor’s degree147$27,530$26,618$53,250
Master’s degree44$35,650$67,489$87,998

Programs with too few completers are suppressed by the Scorecard for privacy and are excluded from these medians.

Sources: College Scorecard, Field of Study (retrieved September 2026); IPEDS, NCES (retrieved September 2026)

How we are paid: StudyCreative earns revenue when readers ask to be connected with a school. No school pays to appear in these figures, to change them, or to be left out of them. Full disclosure.

Every game design program, plotted

One dot per program. Anything above the dashed line leaves graduates owing more in federal loans than they earn in a year. The spread inside a single field is wider than the gap between fields — which is why picking the program matters more than picking the subject.

Median graduate debt against median graduate earnings, Game Design
Public and private nonprofitPrivate for-profitDashed line: debt equals one year of earnings
$0$20k$40k$60k$80k$100k$120k$140k$0$40k$80k$120k$160kUniversity of Southern California — Data Modeling/Warehousing and Database Administration, Master’s degree. Debt $63,625, earnings $179,055.University of Michigan-Ann Arbor — Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $19,230, earnings $162,114.New England Institute of Technology — Computer Programming/Programmer, General, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $35,500, earnings $114,963.Carnegie Mellon University — Computer Graphics, Master’s degree. Debt $111,064, earnings $113,586.Robert Morris University — Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation, Master’s degree. Debt $33,016, earnings $96,989.University of Southern California — Design and Visual Communications, General, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $18,000, earnings $89,022.Rochester Institute of Technology — Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $88,096.Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $25,000, earnings $87,358.Pratt Institute-Main — Graphic Design, Master’s degree. Debt $123,755, earnings $82,883.University of Wisconsin-Stout — Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $25,500, earnings $74,146.Maryland Institute College of Art — Design and Applied Arts, Other, Master’s degree. Debt $39,905, earnings $73,348.New England Institute of Technology — Computer Programming/Programmer, General, Associate degree. Debt $16,166, earnings $70,628.University of California-Irvine — Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $21,800, earnings $69,981.Laguna College of Art and Design — Illustration, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $68,934.Kennesaw State University — Computer Game Programming, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $24,862, earnings $67,437.Marist College — Fashion/Apparel Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,644, earnings $66,010.University of Wisconsin-Madison — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $17,875, earnings $65,874.Brigham Young University-Idaho — Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $9,312, earnings $65,397.St. John's University-New York — Graphic Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $63,659.Woodbury University — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $62,092.Quinnipiac University — Graphic Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,000, earnings $61,419.Pratt Institute-Main — Graphic Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,000, earnings $59,792.Texas A & M University-College Station — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $19,739, earnings $59,769.Purdue University-Main Campus — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $20,101, earnings $59,766.Southern New Hampshire University — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $21,771, earnings $57,772.University of Wisconsin-Stout — Graphic Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,000, earnings $57,718.Utah Valley University — Design and Visual Communications, General, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $12,500, earnings $55,728.West Virginia University — Design and Visual Communications, General, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $25,000, earnings $55,669.DePaul University — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $55,213.Indiana University-Bloomington — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $20,500, earnings $54,630.Champlain College — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,870, earnings $54,561.Saint Edward's University — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,000, earnings $54,297.Cornish College of the Arts — Design and Visual Communications, General, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $53,773.Michigan State University — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,997, earnings $53,250.Pennsylvania College of Technology — Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,970, earnings $51,764.University of Houston — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $22,500, earnings $51,596.Albright College — Fashion/Apparel Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $51,507.Wilmington University — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $16,516, earnings $50,722.Johnson & Wales University-Providence — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $50,374.Ohio University-Main Campus — Graphic Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $49,553.Columbia College Chicago — Fashion/Apparel Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $24,500, earnings $48,601.University of the Incarnate Word — Graphic Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $48,472.Columbus College of Art & Design — Illustration, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $48,204.Johnson County Community College — Interior Design, Associate degree. Debt $9,341, earnings $48,084.Cleveland Institute of Art — Illustration, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $47,147.Valencia College — Computer Graphics, Associate degree. Debt $15,280, earnings $46,230.Lindenwood University — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $23,804, earnings $45,810.Maryland Institute College of Art — Design and Applied Arts, Other, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,842, earnings $45,436.Arapahoe Community College — Interior Design, Associate degree. Debt $15,125, earnings $44,888.California State University-Chico — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $18,227, earnings $44,629.New England Institute of Technology — Game and Interactive Media Design, Associate degree. Debt $12,000, earnings $44,313.New England Institute of Technology — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $28,785, earnings $43,886.Fitchburg State University — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,000, earnings $42,946.Academy of Interactive Entertainment — Computer Graphics, Undergraduate certificate. Debt $12,000, earnings $42,554.Boise State University — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,618, earnings $42,527.Dakota State University — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $42,513.Grand View University — Graphic Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $21,502, earnings $41,944.Wake Technical Community College — Game and Interactive Media Design, Undergraduate certificate. Debt $10,084, earnings $41,857.Louisiana Tech University — Graphic Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $19,868, earnings $41,534.William Peace University — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $24,000, earnings $40,817.University of Saint Francis-Fort Wayne — Design and Visual Communications, General, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,000, earnings $40,619.Webster University — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $24,500, earnings $40,397.Pennsylvania College of Art and Design — Illustration, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $38,275.University of the Arts — Graphic Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $37,977.Quinsigamond Community College — Computer Graphics, Associate degree. Debt $19,235, earnings $37,814.Pittsburgh Technical College — Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design, Associate degree. Debt $18,122, earnings $36,207.Stark State College — Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design, Associate degree. Debt $6,699, earnings $34,518.Southern Arkansas University Main Campus — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $25,559, earnings $33,649.Guilford Technical Community College — Commercial and Advertising Art, Associate degree. Debt $11,708, earnings $33,521.Arkansas Tech University — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $28,950, earnings $32,960.Gwinnett Technical College — Interior Design, Associate degree. Debt $14,482, earnings $31,343.Cuyahoga Community College District — Graphic Design, Associate degree. Debt $6,000, earnings $30,936.Keiser University-Ft Lauderdale — Design and Visual Communications, General, Associate degree. Debt $24,486, earnings $29,280.Pratt Institute-Main — Graphic Design, Associate degree. Debt $12,000, earnings $26,557.Atlantic University — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $4,049, earnings $21,309.Universidad Ana G. Mendez-Carolina Campus — Computer Graphics, Undergraduate certificate. Debt $5,044, earnings $17,767.DigiPen Institute of Technology — Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $26,924, earnings $122,375.Gnomon — Game and Interactive Media Design, Undergraduate certificate. Debt $34,416, earnings $104,151.Academy of Art University — Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design, Master’s degree. Debt $71,352, earnings $87,998.Academy of Art University — Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $36,750, earnings $73,398.University of Advancing Technology — Computer Game Programming, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,500, earnings $72,462.University of Silicon Valley — Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $31,000, earnings $67,659.School of Visual Arts — Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $67,483.Academy of Art University — Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design, Associate degree. Debt $31,211, earnings $60,731.Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design — Computer Graphics, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $31,000, earnings $48,472.Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design — Illustration, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $31,750, earnings $41,617.University of Advancing Technology — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $27,000, earnings $38,996.Sullivan University — Computer Graphics, Associate degree. Debt $24,962, earnings $34,009.University of Silicon Valley — Game and Interactive Media Design, Bachelor’s degree. Debt $31,000, earnings $33,596.Median graduate earnings, four years after completingMedian graduate debt

89 programs reporting both figures. 1 of the plotted programs sit above the dashed line, where graduates owe more than they earn in a year. 13 are private for-profit. 2 programs earning above $160k are drawn at the right edge.

Source: College Scorecard, Field of Study (retrieved September 2026)

Individual programs

The last column is debt as a share of first-reported earnings. Above 100% means graduates owe more than they make in a year.

Debt and earnings for individual Game Design programs
InstitutionFieldand deliveryMedian graduate debtMedian graduate earnings4 yrs afterDebt to earnings
University of Southern CaliforniaMaster’s degree · CAData Modeling/Warehousing and Database AdministrationMaster’s degree · Hybrid$63,625$179,05536%
University of Michigan-Ann ArborBachelor’s degree · MIModeling, Virtual Environments and SimulationBachelor’s degree · On campus$19,230$162,11412%
DigiPen Institute of TechnologyBachelor’s degree · WAModeling, Virtual Environments and SimulationBachelor’s degree · On campus$26,924$122,37522%
New England Institute of TechnologyBachelor’s degree · RIComputer Programming/Programmer, GeneralBachelor’s degree · On campus$35,500$114,96331%
Carnegie Mellon UniversityMaster’s degree · PAComputer GraphicsMaster’s degree · On campus$111,064$113,58698%
GnomonUndergraduate certificate · CAGame and Interactive Media DesignUndergraduate certificate · On campus$34,416$104,15133%
Robert Morris UniversityMaster’s degree · PAModeling, Virtual Environments and SimulationMaster’s degree · Fully online$33,016$96,98934%
Rochester Institute of TechnologyBachelor’s degree · NYModeling, Virtual Environments and SimulationBachelor’s degree · On campusOffers: Game Design and Development (BS) · Game Design and Development (MS) · Film and Animation (BFA) · Motion Picture Science (BS) · 3D Visualization (Digital Design) (BFA) · New Media Design (BFA) · Graphic Design (BFA)$27,000$88,09631%

Source: College Scorecard, Field of Study (retrieved September 2026)

Find a program by field, delivery and credential →Best value Game Design programs →Full cost breakdown →

Paths in

Routes into Game Design, with typical length
RouteTypical lengthWho it suits
Bachelor’s degree4 yearsStudio pipelines that recruit from named programs
Associate degree2 yearsPortfolio-first entry with lower exposure
Bootcamp3–9 monthsThose converting existing art or code skills
Self-taughtOpenShipped projects matter more than credentials here

Source: StudyCreative editorial — route framing is our own; costs and earnings above are federal

What the work actually is

Studio jobs exist and they are salaried, but there are far fewer of them than there are graduates each year, and the roles that open to newcomers are quality assurance, not design. QA is hourly, often on contract, and usually the first thing cut when a project slips. Design and art positions are filled from portfolios and shipped work. A finished game, even a small one you completed yourself, counts for more in that review than a transcript.

A program earns its cost when it makes you ship: real engines, real deadlines, team projects that survive contact with a producer. It does not earn it when the portfolio at the end is the same tutorial project every graduate in the country has. Ask to see what last year's class actually shipped before you sign anything.

Where these graduates work

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage and employment figures for the occupations this field feeds into. We link rather than quote, because occupational averages cover everyone in a role — not only people who took this route.

Read the numbers and still want to go? Tell us the format and timeline that fit, and we’ll match you to programs.

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