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USC named top game school

Princeton Review releases top-10 lists for undergraduate and graduate game design programs, with the University of Southern California topping both categories.

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Thinking about going to school for game design? College preparation service The Princeton Review today released a ranked list of game design programs in the US and Canada, and the University of Southern California scored top marks at the undergraduate and graduate level.

USC stands tall in game design, according to The Princeton Review. Photo credit: USC.
USC stands tall in game design, according to The Princeton Review. Photo credit: USC.

Rounding out the top five undergraduate schools for video game design were the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Utah, the DigiPen Institute of Technology, and the Art Institute of Vancouver.

As for graduate schools, The Princeton Review's top five schools were led by the aforementioned USC, followed by the Rochester Institute of Technology, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Central Florida, and Southern Methodist University (The Guildhall).

See below for the full top-10 lists for undergraduate and graduate game design programs. In total, The Princeton Review ranked 50 schools: 18 graduate schools and 32 undergraduate institutions. For the full lists, check out the company's website.

The Princeton Review chose the schools based on what it called a "comprehensive" survey, conducted during the 2011-12 academic year at 150 schools offering game design courses or degree programs in the United States and Canada.

The company's survey touched on a range of items related to game design, including questions related to academic standards, faculty knowledge and experience, career placement, and technological capabilities.

Top undergraduate game design schools, according to The Princeton Review:

1. University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA)
2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA)
3. University of Utah (Salt Lake City, UT)
4. DigiPen Institute of Technology (Redmond, WA)
5. The Art Institute of Vancouver (Vancouver, BC)
6. Rochester Institute of Technology (Rochester, NY)
7. Shawnee State University (Portsmouth, OH)
8. Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, GA)
9. University of New Mexico (Albuquerque, NM)
10. Becker College (Worcester, MA)

Top graduate game design schools, according to The Princeton Review:

1. University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA)
2. Rochester Institute of Technology (Rochester, NY)
3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA)
4. University of Central Florida (Orlando, FL)
5. Southern Methodist University (SMU) (Plano, TX)
6. Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh, PA)
7. Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, GA)
8. DigiPen Institute of Technology (Redmond, WA)
9. Univ. of California, Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, CA)
10. Drexel University (Philadelphia, PA)

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