The upcoming fall semester at Franklin College will herald the introduction of a new academic concentration in Game Development. It will be offered as part of the software engineering major and provide students a direct avenue into the rapidly growing career field of video game development.

Game developers are a critical piece of a $185 billion industry. It is a multidisciplinary practice, involving programming, design, art, audio, user interface and writing, making it ideal for a liberal arts institution as well as students seeking a wide variety of transferable skills. Gaming has also become one of the fastest growing employers of college graduates.

Franklin College’s game development concentration was built in collaboration with Rize Education with significant input from Unity Technologies, the makers of the #1 most used video game engine in the world. The program focuses on portfolio-building coursework and project-based learning and is centered around real-world lessons learned from industry partners and studio heads. This new program reflects the institution’s goal of ensuring that students are learning the knowledge, skills and tools that are in highest market demand in Indiana and across the globe.

“Developing this program shows the desire to meet student interest in a high-demand field while staying committed to the skills that are best delivered through a liberal arts education and ensuring our relevance in a contemporary marketplace,” said Kristin Flora, Ph.D., dean of the college.

Flora added the tech-forward concentration also directly connects to the college’s digital fluency program. Students will gain experience with the same tools and techniques that professionals use today and have the opportunity to build toward industry certifications as part of their coursework.

The new concentration will be partially funded through the Charting the Future of Indiana’s Colleges and Universities grant the college received from Lilly Endowment Inc. in 2020 to support efforts to increase digital fluency for its students and faculty.

For more information, contact the Office of Communications at (317) 738-8185.

POSTED May 9, 2024