New York University · NYU Game Center, Tisch School of the Arts

Game Design (MFA)

Master of Fine Arts in Game Design

Master'sMFAGame DesignDedicated degree

Overview

A two-year, 60-credit, full-time MFA in Game Design at the NYU Game Center (Tisch), with a second year centered on a thesis project.

Official program title: Game Design (MFA)
Exact award: Master of Fine Arts in Game Design
Source: bulletins.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Degree level: Master's
Discipline: Game Design
Degree type: Dedicated degree
School and department: New York University — NYU Game Center, Tisch School of the Arts
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Location: New York, NY

Why this program is listed

Dedicated MFA in Game Design at the Tisch School of the Arts.

Source: bulletins.nyu.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: On campusClasses meet on campus.
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Campus attendance: Regular campus attendanceClasses meet on campus (campus and hybrid programs).
Study intensity: Full-time
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Duration: two years, full-time
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Credits: 60 credits
Source: bulletins.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Start terms: Fall
Source: gamecenter.nyu.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.

Required courses include Games 101, Game Design I, Game Studio I and II, Code Lab, Visual Lab, Game Studies I and a two-semester thesis, plus 18 elective credits chosen with an adviser; the thesis may be individual or group work.

Programming content

Code Lab series of game programming courses
Source: bulletins.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Production and team projects

Studio courses focused on collaborative creation of digital games
Source: bulletins.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Thesis

Thesis I and II (14 credits) in the second year, individual or group project
Source: bulletins.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Hardware and software requirements

No hardware or software requirement published on the pages we checked.

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 required

Creative portfolio uploaded to Slate: 1-page resume, personal statement (max 2 pages), 1-page critical analysis of a game, and selected work with a 1-page design statement per project.

Format: Slate upload

Official portfolio instructions

Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Prior degree: RequiredBachelor's degree from an accredited college
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Statement / essay: RequiredPersonal statement of no more than 2 pages (part of the portfolio)
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Recommendation letters: Required2 letters — Two letters of recommendation submitted through Slate
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Résumé / CV: Required1-page resume listing projects and roles
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Writing sample: RequiredCritical analysis of any game, no more than 1 page
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Transcripts: RequiredOfficial undergraduate transcript(s)
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026

Tests

GRE General Test: OptionalNot required; may be submitted
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
TOEFL iBT: Required for some applicantsInternational students; no minimum required score
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026

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 deadline
December 1, 2025 · for Fall 2026
Source: gamecenter.nyu.edu · verified October 12, 2026
Passed

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.

Category	Amount	Basis and year
All students — Tisch graduate, 12 to 18 credits, per term (estimate based on 2025-2026 rate)From the school-wide rate table for this level	$41,451	per term · 2026-2027Source: bulletins.nyu.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

Program-specific funding: not verified. We publish this only when the institution states it on an official page.

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

Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) — 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.

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.

bulletins.nyu.edu/graduate/arts/cost-attendance/ — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 12, 2026
bulletins.nyu.edu/graduate/arts/programs/game-design-mfa/ — Official catalog / bulletin, verified October 12, 2026
gamecenter.nyu.edu/about/ — Official program page, verified October 12, 2026
gamecenter.nyu.edu/academics/game-design-mfa/apply/ — Official admissions page, verified October 12, 2026
gamecenter.nyu.edu/apply/ — Official admissions page, verified October 12, 2026
DAPIP — MSCHE institutional accreditation record (data files downloaded 2026-10-12) — U.S. Department of Education dataset (IPEDS / DAPIP), verified October 12, 2026

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