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Game DesignSchools

Full Sail University

Game Design

Game Design Master of Science

Master'sMSGame DesignDedicated degreeOnline

Overview

A 41-credit Master of Science in Game Design offered on campus and online, with a 48-week program length in the catalog. Coursework covers production, game design, quality assurance, usability and leadership, ending with a Thesis Portfolio course.

Official program title
Game Design
Exact award
Game Design Master of Science
Source: fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Degree level
Master's
Discipline
Degree type
Dedicated degree
School and department
Location
Winter Park, FLFor an online program this is where the school is based — not a residency requirement, and not proof that students in every state may enroll.
Why this program is listed

Dedicated Master of Science in Game Design, offered on campus and online.

Source: fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026

We list dedicated game degrees and officially named game concentrations at institutionally accredited US schools. Eligibility rules

Format, length and attendance

Delivery, campus attendance, schedule and study intensity are separate facts, each shown only as the school states it. Online coursework does not by itself mean there is no residency, exhibition, internship or proctored exam.
Delivery
Online (on-site requirements not stated)The institution offers the degree online but its pages do not say whether any on-site activity is required.The institution offers the degree online but its pages do not say whether any on-site activity is required.
Source: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Campus attendance
Campus attendance not verifiedThe pages we checked do not say whether on-site activity is required.
Campus visits
Campus visits: not verified
Class schedule
Synchronous / asynchronous not verified
Study intensity
Not published
Duration
48 weeks
Source: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Credits
41 credit hours
Source: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Start terms
Monthly
Source: fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Curriculum

What the school publishes about the program's game design, programming, art and production content. Tools and engines are listed only when the school names them — a program not listed as teaching Unity or Unreal may still use them, but we have not verified it.

Courses include Game Design, Game Production Tools, Advanced Design Workshop, Quality Assurance, User Research Data Analysis, Prototyping and Content Creation, Game Usability and Testing, and Thesis Portfolio.

Game design topics

Capstone

  • Capstone options may involve UX studies, serious game development, indie game development, undergraduate game production and XR projects.
    Source: fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Thesis

Tools and engines named by the school

  • Unreal Engine and Unity; Maya, Blender, 3D Max and Zbrush; Audacity and Cakewalk; Jira, Confluence, Asana and Monday; AI-assisted tools such as Grok, Gemini and Claude
    Source: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Other published details

Hardware and software requirements

Internet connection
Online applicants need a reliable computer or tablet and a reliable high-speed Internet connection.
Source: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Admissions and portfolio

Required, optional and not-required items are shown exactly as the school states them. Anything not listed is not verified — not “not required”.

Portfolio

Portfolio policy not published

The school's pages we checked do not state a portfolio policy for this program. That does not mean no portfolio is required — ask the admissions office.

Prior degree
RequiredBaccalaureate or higher-level degree from an accredited institution
Source: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Prerequisite courses
RecommendedApplicants should have extensive academic coursework in Computer Animation, Game Art, Game Design, Game Development, Mobile Development or Computer Science.
Source: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Interview
RequiredAdmissions interview
Source: fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Application fee
Required$75 — $75 registration fee
Source: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Tests

GRE and English-language test policy: not verified. We publish this only when the institution states it on an official page.

We do not publish acceptance rates or estimate admission chances. How to prepare a game design portfolio

Start dates and deadlines

Dates are shown with the intake the school printed. A past date is marked passed and is never carried into a new cycle.

Application deadlines: not verified. We publish this only when the institution states it on an official page.

Tuition and costs

Each amount keeps its student category, academic year and basis. Per-credit, per-term and whole-program figures are not comparable with each other, and tuition is not the full cost of attendance.
CategoryAmountBasis and year
All students — Online, Game Design Master of Science, program tuition (October - December 2026 table; $854 average per credit hour)From the school's online tuition table$35,000entire program · academic year not printedIncludes feesSource: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026
All students — Campus, Game Design Master of Science, program tuition (August - December 2026 table; $878 average per credit hour)From the school-wide rate table for this level$36,000entire program · academic year not printedIncludes feesSource: catalog.fullsail.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Understanding tuition and equipment costs

Scholarships, assistantships and funding

Awards published by the school for this program or for students at this level. “Guaranteed” only when the school says every eligible student receives it. Loans must be repaid and are not scholarships. Scholarships guide

School-wide awards are listed because they apply at this degree level; eligibility conditions apply.

Accreditation and authorization

Institutional accreditation covers the school. Programmatic accreditation is shown only when it is named for this program — it is never transferred from another department or degree.

Institutional accreditation

  • Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC) — accreditedSource: ope.ed.gov · verified October 12, 2026

Programmatic accreditation

None verified for this program. Game design degrees do not require one specific specialized accreditation.

State authorization for online students

Not verified — check the school's state authorization page before applying from outside Florida.

International applicants

Not verified for this program.

Sources and verification

Every fact on this page comes from the official pages below. Last checked October 12, 2026.
  1. catalog.fullsail.edu/admissions — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 12, 2026
  2. catalog.fullsail.edu/degrees/game-design-master-of-science/campus — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 12, 2026
  3. catalog.fullsail.edu/degrees/game-design-master-of-science/online — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 12, 2026
  4. catalog.fullsail.edu/online-education — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 12, 2026
  5. catalog.fullsail.edu/tuition-breakdown-campus — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 12, 2026
  6. catalog.fullsail.edu/tuition-breakdown-online — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 12, 2026
  7. DAPIP — ACCSC institutional accreditation record (data files downloaded 2026-10-12) — U.S. Department of Education dataset (IPEDS / DAPIP), verified October 12, 2026
  8. fullsail.edu/degrees/game-design-master — Official program page, verified October 12, 2026
  9. fullsail.edu/degrees/game-development-bachelor — Official program page, verified October 12, 2026

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