Abertay University Tops Princeton Review’s Rankings as Best International School for Games Design

Abertay University has today been ranked the top International School to study video games design by the prestigious Princeton Review.

In a new format for 2024, the Princeton Review has created several fresh categories to help students select from the best games design universities in the US and across the globe.

Based in Dundee, Scotland, Abertay’s School of Design and Informatics ranked top amongst all institutions outside the US for both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes to be named top International School, extending a long track record as Europe’s top-ranking games university.

There was further success in the combined US and International tables, with the University rising up both the undergraduate and postgraduate lists to be ranked 11th and 6th in the world respectively.

Professor Jim Bown, Dean of the School of Design and Informatics, said:

Staying at the forefront of video games education is among the University’s top priorities and we take enormous pride in the fact that Abertay offers one of the very best student experiences to be found anywhere in the world.

Ryan Locke, Head of the Centre for Excellence in Computer Games Education at Abertay University added:

Our investment in leading-edge facilities, the design of our collaborative and multi-disciplinary programmes, and the hard work and excellence of our academic and professional services colleagues all contribute to our continued success in this important ranking.

The Princeton Review recognised the strength of Abertay’s campus-based courses, including:

• Professional Masters in Games Development
• MSc Computer Games Technology programmes
• BSc (Hons) Computer Games Technology
• BSc (Hons) Computer Game Applications Development
• BA (Hons) Game Design and Production
• BA (Hons) Computer Arts

Rob Franek, The Princeton Review’s Editor-in-Chief, said:

The schools that made our lists for 2024 have awesome game design programs. Their faculties are superb. Their facilities are state-of-the-art, and their alumni include many of the industry’s most successful game designers, developers, and entrepreneurs. We recommend them highly to all students aspiring to a career in this exciting field.

Dr Richard Wilson OBE, CEO of TIGA, the trade association representing the UK video games industry, said:

Abertay University is one of the bedrock institutions upon which the UK video games industry has been founded, both in terms of the consistently high quality of its graduates and the wide-ranging research and innovation carried out by its School of Design and Informatics. A degree from Abertay has been a hallmark of excellence since the institution became the first to pioneer games degrees in the 1990s and today six of Abertay’s games degrees have achieved the accolade of TIGA accreditation. Additionally, the University’s strength has played an important role in the growth of Dundee as an international hub for games development and also the city’s designation as the UK’s only UNESCO City of Design.

Abertay is the global birthplace of video games education, having pioneered the world’s first degrees in the discipline in 1997. It is also national Centre for Excellence in Computer Games Education, with specialist facilities including:

• One of Europe’s largest PlayStation 5 development labs.
• An Emergent Technology Centre comprising five specialist labs and studios for creative practice, research, and knowledge exchange.

• A Virtual Production Research Environment (ViPRE) lab with industry-standard motion-tracking and high-definition LED screen technology.
• A configurable Development studio offering collaborative working space for artists, designers and technologists to conceive and rapidly prototype digital and physical prototypes.
• A light-controlled Visual Design Studio for concept designers, illustrators, animators, and 3D artists to develop production art.
• A Usability Lab equipped with cameras, microphones, and an observation room for UX research, product testing, and audience research.
• A dedicated lab for student projects linked to research and knowledge exchange.

Abertay is a pioneer in cross-disciplinary working through our workplace simulation approach where students from different courses such as artists, programmers and games production managers work together to create games as part of their degree programme.

Our annual Dare Academy games design competition produces student teams who often go on to become successful start-ups with their own games companies, with the winners receiving investment to further develop their prototypes and all finalists supported to showcase their games at the national EGX games expo in London.

Video games courses are accredited by Screen Skills, JAMES, Tiga, BCS and others, with graduates going on to work with the world’s most recognisable games companies, including Ubisoft, Sony, EA, Rockstar and many others.

Perhaps best known as the home of the original Grand Theft Auto franchise and the console edition of Minecraft, the City of Dundee is an international hub for the games industry – a reputation that’s been forged in tandem with the Abertay, whose graduates make up the majority of the cluster’s workforce.

In partnership with industry, Abertay has pioneered the development of games for sectors outside of entertainment, including healthcare, business and many other areas.

Leader of Dundee City Council, Councillor John Alexander said:

Abertay’s global reputation for producing some of the world’s very best games designers is a long-standing beacon of pride for the city and the University plays an integral role in supporting our thriving video games cluster. Our student population is really important to the economic success and cultural vibrancy of Dundee, so it’s excellent to see the quality of Abertay’s courses being recognised once again on a global scale.