| Program start date | Application deadline |
| 2023-05-24 | - |
| 2023-09-14 | - |
| 2024-01-18 | - |
Program Overview
Whether it's the fun of Super Mario or the horror of Resident Evil that amaze you, this is your chance to convert your passion for playing games into knowledge about how to create them.
You'll get the most out of our course if you come with an interest in all kinds of games as you will explore, design, and create games for multiple different purposes and areas.
This programme is created with industry focused direction and allows you to work towards specialism within the game programming field. Our course will equip you, like many of our successful graduates, for a role in the expanding game industry. We're justly proud of the originality and quality of our students' work. By the end of your course, you should be playing a game you developed yourself - and hopefully following in the footsteps of the many UEL graduates now making their mark in the games industry.
You can also take this course with a foundation year (FY), which means it will take you four years to complete the course full-time.
Program Outline
In your first term of the first year, you will explore the three core areas of games development. This is to allow you to get an idea of each field and make an informed decision, of an area that interest you. Within the second term, the course branches off and will develop your fundamental programming skills by introducing you to C++ (the primary language used within game programming), you will also learn and develop your understanding within maths and physics and its application within programming for games. Alongside this you work within a simulated studio environment to help develop your soft skills such as working in a diverse team, introducing you to project management methods and working towards a creative vision.
In your second year, you will explore specialised areas within the game programming such as AI programming and graphics programming. Exploring these specialisms will give you an informed decision on what area you wish to pursue when progressing further within the course. In the second term, you will have another simulated studio environment experience, with an emphasis on completing and publishing a small-to-medium scale game project as a multidisciplinary team but working within a specialised role. You will begin to develop your online presence and identity, learn how to market yourself for potential internship and employment opportunities as well starting to develop your portfolio into the area of game programming you wish to enter upon completion of the course. In your final year, you’ll complete a final project that will allow you to further explore and experiment within your chosen field. You will also explore advanced programming practices which includes using modern C++ features. Spanning both first and second term, you will have your simulated studio environment experience, with an emphasis on completing and publishing a polished medium scale game project as a multidisciplinary team. In a separate module, you will develop items for your personal portfolio that will showcase your skills and experiences within your chosen specialism, tailored towards the area of game programming you wish to enter when you graduate.You'll be taught by a range of academics, many of whom are practitioners in the area they teach. Some of the assessments focus on practical skills and are presented as 'live or simulated briefs'. This ensures that the practice-led teaching is relevant to industry. Our staff are well placed to take advantage of a range of professional networks and industry contact. Each module is designed with practical components informed by theoretical underpinnings, with the intention that students develop an ability to have an informed approach when designing their practical assignments.
Guided independent study
When not attending timetabled lectures or workshops, you will be expected to continue learning independently through self-study. This will typically involve skills development through online study, reading journal articles and books, working on individual and group projects and preparing coursework assignments and presentations. Your independent learning is supported by a range of excellent facilities including online resources, specialist facilities, such as game labs, the library, the full Microsoft Office software, including MS Teams, and Moodle: our Virtual Learning Environment.
Academic support
Our academic support team provides help in a range of areas - including learning and disability support
Dedicated personal tutor
When you arrive, we'll introduce you to your personal tutor. This is the member of staff who will provide academic guidance, be a support throughout your time at UEL and who will show you how to make the best use of all the help and resources that we offer.
Workload
Each year you will spend around 276 hours of timetabled learning and teaching activities. These may be lectures, workshops, seminars and individual and group tutorials. Contact hours may vary depending on each module. The approximate workload hours for this course are:
Your timetable
Your individualised timetable is normally available to students within 48 hours of enrolment. Whilst we make every effort to ensure timetables are as student-friendly as possible, scheduled teaching can take place on any day of the week between 9.00am and 6.00pm. For undergraduate students Wednesday afternoons are normally reserved for sports and cultural activities, but there may be occasions when this is not possible. Timetables for part-time students will depend on the modules selected.
Class sizes
To give you an indication of class sizes, this course normally attracts 30-40 students a year. Lecture sizes are normally 30 plus students. In the classroom you will be taught in groups of 18-30+ students. However, this can vary by academic year.
Coursework will include practical outcomes, e.g. individual or group-based games, artefacts, presentations, written assignments.
The approximate percentages for this course are:
You'll always receive written or audio feedback, outlining your strengths and how you can improve. We aim to provide feedback on assessments within 15 working days.
