The best game design programs, ranked by The Princeton Review 2026

26. Howest University of Applied Sciences

2025 Grads Hired: 54%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: Tristan Clarysse (Larian, Bioware), Kevin Hoefman (Larian)
Graduates: NR

27. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

2025 Grads Hired: 8%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $74,917
Faculty: Rush Swope (Guerilla Games), Maurice Suckling (Epic, 2K)
Graduates: Curtis Priem (Nvidia co-founder), Zach Barth (Zachtronics)

28. University of California, Santa Barbara

2025 Grads Hired: 33%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $155,000
Faculty: Pradeep Sen PhD, Tobias Hollerer
Graduates: Cody Corona (Electronic Arts), Eric Roth (Screenwriter)

29. Abilene Christian University

2025 Grads Hired: 63%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $52,200
Faculty: Dr. Brian Burton, Rich Tanner
Graduates: Morgan Davis (Gearbox), Chase Yamaguchi (Sony)

30. Kent State University

2025 Grads Hired: 34%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $65,000
Faculty: Christopher Totten, Justin McCrea
Graduates: Joey Gage (EA), Nina Marotta

31. Marist College

2025 Grads Hired: NR
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: Dr. Karen Schrier (Nickelodeon), Amy Finkel
Graduates: Darren Sugg (Epic), Rex Dickson (Blizzard)

32. University of California, Irvine

2025 Grads Hired: 25%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $83,000
Faculty: Katie Salen, Constance Steinkhueler
Graduates: Rob Pardo (Blizzard), Ben Brode (Blizzard)

33. LaSalle College Vancouver

2025 Grads Hired: 44%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $70,000
Faculty: Dr. Amir Jahanlou, Lisa Smedman
Graduates: Jarett Metcalfe (EA), Dani Merrithew (Blizzard)

34. Academy of Art University

2025 Grads Hired: NR
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: David Goodwine, Brian Hess
Graduates: Ciaron Ireland (Striking Distance), Tala Furniss (Playtika)

35. University of Miami

2025 Grads Hired: 32%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $54,000
Faculty: Dr. Lindsay Grace, Dr. Anna Queiroz
Graduates: Pingtin Ji (Ubisoft), Casey O'Brien (Respawn)

36. Northern Arizona University

2025 Grads Hired: 50%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: Jared Duval (Serious Games), James Palmer
Graduates: NR

37. Dakota State University

2025 Grads Hired: NR
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $41,964
Faculty: Peter Britton, Erik Pederson
Graduates: Matt Engesser (Rockstar, Epic), Jimmy Chattin (Microsoft)

38. University of Michigan-Dearborn

2025 Grads Hired: 20%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $80,000
Faculty: Brice Maxim, Foyzol Hassan
Graduates: Austin Krauss, Shane Costello

39. New Jersey Institute of Technology

2025 Grads Hired: NR
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $78,265
Faculty: Richard Thomspon, Hye Yeon Nam
Graduates: Jason Chin (Nvidia), James Tichenor (Meta)

40. University of Wisconsin-Stout

2025 Grads Hired: 10%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $40,000
Faculty: Dr. Andrew Williams, Kim Loken
Graduates: Jose Estrada (Riot), Eleanore Falck (Epic)

41. Stetson University

2025 Grads Hired: 100%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $68,000
Faculty: Dengke Chen, Matt Roberts
Graduates: Daryl Holt (EA Sports), Ben Burbank (Valve)

42. Oklahoma Christian University

2025 Grads Hired: 25%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $35,000
Faculty: Jacob Touchstone, Dr. Robert Nix
Graduates: Alex Hallenbeck (Bungie), Laurel Zwirtz (Ember Labs)

43. Bloomfield College of Montclair State University

2025 Grads Hired: 7%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: Samuel Leigh (Viacom), Oliver Hong (IGDA)
Graduates: Josiah Hunt (Cloud Chamber), Michael Murphy (Blizzard)

44. Indiana University Bloomington

2025 Grads Hired: 20%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $70,000
Faculty: William Emigh (Studio Cypher), Michael Uslan
Graduates: Max Lancaster (Psyonix), Kees Leyundjik (Nintendo)

45. University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

2025 Grads Hired: NR
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: Firas Khatib, Clinton Rogers
Graduates: Matt Mrazik (WB Games)

46. ArtCenter College of Design

2025 Grads Hired: 25%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: Zachary Adams, Tim FitzRandolph
Graduates: Syd Mead, Michael Bay (Director)

47. Louisiana State University

2025 Grads Hired: 4%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: Marc Aubanel (Electronic Arts), George Robins
Graduates: Janiece Campbell (Epic), Ashley Aucoin (Meta)

48. Oklahoma City University

2025 Grads Hired: 10%
2025 Grads Mean Salary: $50,000
Faculty: Justin Shaw, Shirley Zhang
Graduates: Andrew Remeniski, Jessica Jennings

49. Cleveland Institute of Art

2025 Grads Hired: NR
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: Steven Gutierrez (Serious Games), Harrison Walsh (Niche Worlds Cult)
Graduates: Zack James, Tim Elek (Epic)

50. New York Film Academy

2025 Grads Hired: NR
2025 Grads Mean Salary: NR
Faculty: Glenn Storm, Andrew Allen
Graduates: Leandro Ribeiro (Afterverse), Guillermo Quesada (Amazon)