Spector and Blizzard Entertainment’s Paul Sames will guide post-baccalaureate certificate program.
Texas is an epicenter for the computer and video game industry. It has the second-largest concentration of game companies in the U.S., with more than 155 development and publishing companies throughout the state providing around 4,000 full-time jobs, according to the Texas Film Commission in the Office of the Governor.
The academy will be industry driven – instead of a graduate degree, students will earn a post-baccalaureate certificate, which offers fewer restrictions than a traditional academic degree and will enable the program to remain relevant and responsive to industry trends.
The academy will include an intense,12-month program in which students will create a small-scale game from start to finish, working in teams to handle every aspect of the creation. The accelerated timeline will help aspiring professionals acquire the skill they need to join the workforce.
Wofford Denius (B.A., Business Administration '74) is director of the Cain Foundation and co-founder of the academy. He has a long history of contributing to innovative projects at the university and the College of Communication.
"By combining the best professors with some of the gaming industry's top minds and contributors, The University of Texas will immediately establish itself on the cutting edge of gaming design technology and the gaming industry," Denius said. "But even more importantly, the Denius-Sams Gaming Design Academy will help our students by enhancing their marketability and providing them with unique leadership skills to advance as leaders in their employment and in the gaming industry."
Admission to the academy will be highly competitive, with only 20 spots available for 2014. Admission will be open to U.S. and international students. Admitted students will receive a tuition waiver and a $10,000 stipend to assist with fees and housing expenses – the only game design program to do this.
The academy is a joint effort between the College of Communication, the College of Fine Arts and the Department of Computer Science. It also is supported by the Provost's Office at the university.
It complements the university's undergraduate Game Development Program, which offers a capstone project course in video game development.
"The Denius-Sams Gaming Academy will create the most-intense program of its kind, in which aspiring professionals enlist in an all-in adventure, rather than complete mere credit hours," said Roderick P. Hart, dean of the College of Communication. "The program will prepare students to become creative team leaders who will drive the creation of games in the future, and ensure the vitality of the gaming industry."
One of the nation's foremost institutions for the study of advertising and public relations, communication sciences and disorders, communication studies, journalism and radio-TV-film, The University of Texas at Austin College of Communication is preparing students to thrive in an era of media convergence. Serving more than 4,600 undergraduate and graduate students, the College is nationally recognized for its faculty members, research and student media.
