Graduate Program in Game Media

The Graduate Program in Game Media prepares students for advanced roles in game design, game development, interactive media, and production leadership. Throughout the curriculum, students critically integrate AI-assisted tools to enhance ideation, prototyping, asset creation, and workflow efficiency while maintaining ethical standards and creative authorship. Most students may complete the program in 18 to 24 months

Program at a Glance

Program Duration

18 Months Full time

24 Months Part time

Intake

Fall

Format

Hybrid

Schedule

Evenings and Online at BBC Campus

Speak with an Advisor

Ph: 305.919.5634
Email: ngaray@fiu.edu

Program Details

The Graduate Program in Game Media prepares students for advanced roles in game design, game programming, technical production, and interactive media development. Throughout the curriculum, students critically integrate AI-assisted tools to enhance ideation, prototyping, development workflows, and production efficiency while maintaining ethical standards and creative authorship.

What you’ll learn

Students in the Graduate Program for Game Media develop the creative, technical, and production skills required to design, build, and deliver modern interactive experiences using industry-standard tools such as Unreal Engine.

Through a structured, project-based curriculum, students will learn how to:

  • Design and develop gameplay systems that support player progression, engagement, and meaningful interactive experiences
  • Build games using Unreal Engine through Blueprint scripting, gameplay programming, and real-time development workflows
  • Design, prototype, and implement advanced gameplay mechanics including combat, inventory, progression, economy, and multiplayer systems
  • Integrate artificial intelligence technologies to support gameplay, procedural content generation, adaptive experiences, and production workflows
  • Develop mobile-ready game experiences through responsive design, touch-based interactions, optimization, and platform deployment strategies
  • Create and integrate production-ready assets, animations, and gameplay systems into cohesive interactive experiences
  • Apply testing, balancing, optimization, and production methodologies used throughout professional game development pipelines
  • Utilize AI-assisted tools and emerging technologies to support design, development, documentation, and workflow efficiency

Students graduate with a strong understanding of both the creative and technical aspects of game development while completing a portfolio-ready game project that demonstrates proficiency in gameplay design, programming, AI integration, multiplayer systems, real-time production, and professional development workflows.

Why earn a graduate degree in Game Media at FIU

The Graduate Program in Game Media at FIU is designed to reflect the way modern studios operate, preparing students for careers in a rapidly evolving industry.

Industry-Aligned Curriculum

The program is structured around a real-time production pipeline, ensuring students gain experience with workflows used in animation studios, game development, and virtual production.

Hands-On Project Development

Rather than working on isolated assignments, students develop a single, evolving project across the program, culminating in a professional, portfolio-ready final deliverable.

Real-Time Production Focus

The curriculum is centered on Unreal Engine and real-time workflows, aligning with industry trends in cinematic production, virtual environments, and interactive media.

Technical and Creative Integration

Students develop both artistic and technical skills, gaining experience in:

  • Animation and storytelling
  • Gameplay systems and interaction
  • Pipeline design and technical direction

Program Format and Schedule

The program is offered in both full-time and part-time formats, providing flexibility while maintaining a structured production-based learning experience.

Full-Time Format (4 Semesters)

Students complete the program in approximately two years, progressing through a structured sequence:

Year 1 – Fall – (Concept Development & Technical Foundations)

Students establish the foundation of their project through game design, programming, AI integration, and production planning.

  • Topics include:
  • Game design theory
  • Gameplay programming
  • AI in game development
  • Pipeline planning and documentation

Year 1 – Spring (Systems Development & Platform Design)

Students expand their projects through advanced gameplay systems, multiplayer functionality, mobile development, and gameplay asset creation.

Topics include:

  • Multiplayer networking
  • Mobile app development
  • Game asset development
  • Advanced game systems and mechanics

Year 1 – Summer (Integration & Production Preparation)

Students bring previously developed systems together while preparing their projects for full production.

Topics include:

  • Unreal Engine integration workflows
  • Motion capture
  • System integration
  • Production planning and testing

Year 2 – Fall (Production, Optimization & Delivery)

Students complete, polish, optimize, document, and present their final game project.

Topics include:

  • Production workflows
  • Gameplay optimization
  • Final asset development
  • Portfolio preparation
  • Professional presentation

Part-Time Format (7 Semesters)

A part-time option is available for students who require greater scheduling flexibility. Courses follow the same developmental sequence and maintain identical learning outcomes, academic standards, and project expectations as the full-time program.

Students progress through the curriculum at a reduced course load while continuously developing the same game project across multiple semesters.

Final Project Experience

During the final phase of the program, students integrate all systems, assets, gameplay features, and production components into a unified game experience.

Students complete a professional portfolio project that demonstrates their abilities in:

  • Game design
  • Gameplay programming
  • AI implementation
  • Multiplayer development
  • Mobile game development
  • Technical production
  • Real-time game engine workflows

Final Deliverable

Students graduate with:

  • A playable game prototype or production-ready game experience
  • Technical and production documentation
  • Professional presentation materials
  • Portfolio-ready development assets
  • Experience using industry-standard tools and workflows

This final project serves as the centerpiece of each student’s professional portfolio and demonstrates readiness for careers in game development, interactive media, simulation, virtual production, and emerging real-time technologies.

Curriculum

The Graduate Program in Game Media focuses on:

  • Gameplay design, systems development, and interactive experiences
  • Artificial intelligence, multiplayer networking, and mobile game development
  • Programming, systems integration, and real-time production workflows
  • Final output: Fully playable game experience

Both the Graduate Program in Animation Media and Game Media share a unified real-time production pipeline and utilize industry-standard tools including Unreal Engine. Students develop projects through structured production workflows that emphasize planning, implementation, integration, optimization, and professional presentation.

In the final phase of the program, students complete a portfolio-ready project, either:

  • A professional cinematic sequence (Animation Media), or
  • A fully playable game experience (Game Media)

Projects are refined using industry-standard production methodologies and presented through formal critique, technical review, and professional demonstration.

Course Sequence Guide

Graduate Game Media Full time Course Sequence Guide PDF
Graduate Game Media Part time Course Sequence Guide PDF

Program Schedule

 

Students establish the foundation for a real-time cinematic project through concept development, production planning, workflow design, and technical documentation. The course emphasizes industry-standard pipeline methodologies, project management, and production readiness while incorporating AI-assisted tools to support planning and workflow development.

Students learn core gameplay programming concepts using Unreal Engine, Blueprint scripting, and code-based development workflows. Topics include gameplay architecture, player controls, interactions, debugging, and system implementation.

This course explores the principles of game design, player psychology, progression systems, balancing methodologies, and gameplay loops. Students evaluate and refine the design foundations of their game project while learning systems-thinking approaches to interactive experiences.

Students explore how artificial intelligence can be used in gameplay systems, procedural content generation, adaptive experiences, player modeling, and production workflows. The course also examines ethical AI implementation and AI-assisted development practices.

Students develop multiplayer game experiences using networked gameplay systems, server-client architectures, replication workflows, and synchronization techniques. The course explores how multiplayer systems influence gameplay design, player interaction, and technical implementation.

This course focuses on adapting game projects for mobile platforms through touch-based interactions, responsive interface design, accessibility, optimization, and deployment workflows. Students create mobile-ready gameplay experiences while learning platform-specific design and development strategies.

Students design and implement advanced gameplay systems including combat, progression, inventory, economies, abilities, and player interaction frameworks. The course emphasizes scalability, balancing, optimization, and production-ready system architecture.

This course focuses on the creation of high-quality, production-ready character assets for real-time animation and game development pipelines. Students develop hero characters and creatures through advanced sculpting, retopology, texturing, optimization, and Unreal Engine integration workflows.

Students assemble assets, animation, visual effects, and environments within Unreal Engine to establish a fully integrated real-time production environment. Emphasis is placed on scene construction, asset interoperability, system integration, lighting, and project organization.

This course introduces motion capture workflows for animation and real-time production. Students learn performance capture, data cleanup, retargeting, and integration techniques that support realistic character movement and cinematic storytelling.

Students refine and complete their real-time cinematic projects through advanced Unreal Engine production workflows. The course focuses on final integration, optimization, rendering, troubleshooting, cinematic polish, and professional delivery practices.

This advanced asset creation course focuses on the development of environments, props, and supporting assets for real-time cinematic productions. Students create production-ready worlds using modeling, texturing, optimization, world-building, and Unreal Engine integration workflows that support their final project.

Tuition

Tuition and fees vary based on your program, residency status, enrollment, and other factors. To receive the most accurate estimate of your tuition and associated fees, please use FIU’s Tuition Calculator.

Click the link below to calculate your costs

https://controller.fiu.edu/departments/student-financials-systems/bursar-cashiers/calculator/

Application & Requirements

Application Requirements at a Glance

  • Show high promise of success in graduate studies
  • Hold a bachelor’s degree or equivalent from an accredited college or university
  • In general, have a minimum upper division grade point average of 3.0
  • Provide a professional resume and statement of purpose(500-750) words.
  • Demonstrate proficiency of the English language with admissible test scores (if necessary)

Admission Requirements

  1. All applicants must have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
  2. All candidates must show promise of success in graduate studies. Applicants must meet the following criteria, in addition to any program-specific requirements:
    1. Meet minimum GPA: Candidates must have a minimum
      grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 earned during the last
      60 hours of upper-level work.
    2. Candidates must submit a 500-750 word essay. Topic
      should reflect why the program is a suitable fit for the
      applicant’s needs.
    3. Candidates must submit a professional and current resume.

Application Procedures

A student applying for admission to the graduate program must:

  1. Complete online graduate admissions application available at Graduate Applicant | FIU Admissions
    1. When selecting your major, please first choose Mass Communication from
      the dropdown menu, and then Animation Media
    2. Have two official copies of transcripts from all colleges or
      universities attended sent to the Admissions Office.
      (Copies submitted by applicants will be rejected.)
    3. Submit appropriate test scores and documents to the Admissions Office

Application Deadline

July 1st

Students should adhere to the Florida International University graduate admissions deadlines for Fall, Spring and Summer terms. These deadlines are listed at Graduate Applicant | FIU Admissions.

(The master’s program follows a cohort model; therefore, new students are admitted only for the Fall semester.)

International Student Requirements

International graduate student applicants whose native language is not English are required to submit a score for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). A total score of 80 on the iBT TOEFL or 6.5 overall on the IELTS is required.

 

Application Process

Start your application process here and apply today!
https://admissions.fiu.edu/how-to-apply/graduate-applicant/index.html