BA (Hons) Games Design and Development Bachelor's degree at the University of Chichester
BA (Hons) Games Design and Development at University of Chichester. You'll study across core theory, research and methods, applied practice, and specialist options, culminating in an independent project where you apply professional skills in a real context.
About this course
This Games Design and Development degree will prepare you for a wide range of career options across the fast growing games industry. From the provider’s course page.
BA (Hons) Games Design and Development is a Bachelor's degree (BA (Hons)) at the University of Chichester, based in Bognor Regis Campus. It runs 3 years, studied full-time.
For Art & Design graduates from this provider, 90% were in work or further study 15 months after graduating, 65% in highly skilled roles. (HESA Graduate Outcomes / LEO, via Discover Uni.)
For the typical curriculum, specialisations, career paths and graduate earnings for Art & Design, see the sections below.
Course evidence score
The arithmetic mean of the official measures available for this course: NSS satisfaction, graduate activity and continuation.
Published threshold met NSS publication requires sufficient responses; small differences are not a rank. NSS mean of 7 published themes (Discover Uni snapshot 2026-06-21)
Published threshold met Sample size is not included in this snapshot. Cohort 2021-23. Graduate Outcomes work or further study 90% (2021-23; Discover Uni snapshot 2026-06-21)
Published threshold met Discover Uni suppresses continuation data below its publication threshold. Cohort 2022-23. Continuation 90% (2022-23; Discover Uni snapshot 2026-06-21)
Curriculum & modules
Real modules published for this course, grouped only where the source gives a year, stage or level.
Year One 6 modules
- Art and Visual Design: An Introduction
Module details
This module will introduce you to the basics of art theory, giving you the opportunity to create artistic work that demonstrates an application of these concepts. You will investigate the foundations of art production through a series of projects that establish a fundamental understanding of visual communication.
- Design Fundamentals
Module details
This module introduces you to the fundamentals of game design. You will learn about the foundational elements that comprise games and how these elements are used to create emotional player experiences.
- Games Theory and Criticism
Module details
This course focuses on deconstructing theories from game studies and learning how to apply these concepts to practical games design work. You will gain a critical vocabulary for analysing games both inside and outside of the classroom and a necessary theoretical foundation to draw on for future games design work or game analyses.
- Introduction to 3D Art
Module details
This module serves as a foundation for developing a range of technical knowledge and procedural skills in the core concepts of 3D computer graphics using the appropriate industry-standard software.
- Prototypes and Programming Principles
Module details
This module provides you with a fundamental level of knowledge and understanding of key prototyping and programming principles necessary for making rapid digital game prototypes. Whether or not you have any prior programming experience, the module looks to bring you and your peers to a common level.
- Working With 3D Engines
Module details
Throughout the course of this module, you will be introduced to an industry-standard 3D engine, learning about its core features and how it can be used to create digital games.
Year Two 7 modules
- 3D Animation for Games
Module details
This module introduces you to the fundamental principles of animation and provides an opportunity for you to familiarise yourself with animation in the context of games development.
- Games Design Project
Module details
On this practical module you will work in small groups to produce a computer game concept. You will learn to work as a teams, break tasks apart, and deliver a Games Design Document (GDD) to a set deadline, reflecting industrial practices and presentation expectations.
- Games Production
Module details
This module examines a range of topics pertaining to games production – exploring the elements a producer must manage to ensure a successful game launch. This module explores the game development process outside of the typical creative disciplines studied (e.g. art, code, and design) – instead focusing on project management skills and processes that apply both to games but also to similar roles in other creative industries.
- Games: Social & Cultural Contexts
Module details
This module explores the social, historical and political context surrounding videogames, debating topics relating to their cultural development and impact. The module will further develop your critical engagement with games studies, providing you with further theoretical frameworks to draw upon in games development projects.
- Motion Capture Suit Technologies
Module details
The aim of this module is to develop a significant body of knowledge of a typical film and multimedia motion capture pipeline, from setting up cameras and capturing data, through to editing and transferring data to industry standard animation packages. This module offers the opportunity to develop a range of professional technical and procedural knowledge.
- Narrative Design and Interactive Fiction
Module details
This module develops your understanding of fundamental theories, pipelines and processes pertaining to narrative design in videogames. You will then learn to apply these theories in practical exercises that mirror the responsibilities of writers working in the contemporary games industry. During the module, you will have the opportunity to create a piece of interactive fiction using the tools and techniques taught.
- Writing for Games
Module details
This module examines the role of the screenwriter in the development of narrative based computer games. You will explore the role the screenwriter plays in developing characters, dialogue and worldbuilding. You will also be introduced to the debates around narrative vs Ludology and the tensions created between story and play.
Year Three 6 modules
- Audio and Music for Video Games
Module details
This practical module develops your creative and technical skills in sound design, music composition and basic audio implementation for video games. You will explore the creation of a broad range of sound assets and audio related content, as well as on non-linear adaptive processes and structures. You are also introduced to industry standard middleware that enables sound designers and composers to implement their assets in game. In addition, whilst working with one of our industry partners, you
- Final Year Games Design Project
Module details
In this independent, project-driven module, you will have the opportunity to pursue your own enthusiasms and specialisms. You will begin the module by pitching a game idea to a panel for feedback. You will then generate associated pre-production documentation that covers all the key aspects of their proposed game and will be continually updated through the development of the final year project. You are then expected to provide extensive 'proof of concept' for a commercially-viable computer game.
- Games Industry and Creative Careers
Module details
This module aims to develop your understanding of the creative sector as an industry, becoming aware of key dynamics within the sector and specific expectations related to employability, especially within the games development sector. These include Discipline-specific working practices Geographic spread Working structures Team working and inter-personal skills Freelancing and collaborative work Funding streams Developing portfolio /studio setup Taxation Regulation Law and ethics. You will get th
- Creative Portfolio
Module details
You will enhance your career prospects by producing creative artefacts that align your skills with your commercial and professional objectives. The module aims to develop your transferable skills in balancing creative and strategic career objectives.
- Motion Capture Face/Feature Tracking Technologies
Module details
The aim of this module is to develop a range of professional, technical and procedural knowledge and an understanding of the core concepts of optical motion capture in the context of the film, TV and gaming industry. It explores both software and hardware solutions and will explore rig setup, image capture and 2D/3D data processing.
- Resilience and the Freelancer
Module details
This module serves as an introduction to the wide range of skills required for survival in the modern creative and media industries. Self-employment is increasingly considered the norm and this module will prepare the student for a freelance career.
Source: provider course page. Modules can change; required/optional status, credits, descriptions and assessment are shown only when explicitly published.
Course in depth
What this course covers, who it suits and where it leads.
What you'll study
This degree prepares you for careers across the games industry. You'll study visual communication, design principles and materials, building your visual language through colour, composition and form. Year 1 typically introduces you to processes and making (workshops spanning digital fabrication and traditional media) alongside contextual studies in art and design history. In Year 2, you'll develop sustained studio practice and work with digital and emerging media, covering creative software, motion and 3D techniques relevant to games. Live briefs and real-world client projects give you practical experience with genuine deadlines. Year 3 moves toward specialisation, such as graphic design, illustration, UX and digital. You'll develop professional practice and a portfolio, culminating in a major final project and degree show.
Who it's for
You're drawn to games, their mechanics, narratives, art and systems, and want to understand how they're made from concept to release. You combine creative thinking with problem-solving; you're comfortable with iterative design and feedback. You may come from art, programming, or general design backgrounds, or you may be self-taught but driven. Studying this will involve collaborative project work, technical learning (possibly new tools or languages), critical reflection on industry practice, and regular critique of your own output. It suits those who thrive when theory informs making, and who see games as a serious medium.
Careers & job market
Graduates across Art & Design enter employment or further study at rates of 87% within 15 months of graduating; 55% of working graduates occupy highly skilled roles or pursue further study. Early career earnings (15 months after graduation) typically fall between £22,000 and £27,000 nationally. By year 5, this range reaches £20,825 to £29,400. These figures reflect the broader Art & Design field rather than games roles specifically, so actual outcomes vary by specialism and individual progression.
University & format
This is a full-time, three-year BA (Hons) degree taught in English at the University of Chichester, based at the Bognor Regis Campus. The University is a recognised UK degree-awarding body; your degree is nationally recognised. It holds Gold status for teaching quality in the Office for Students' TEF 2023.
Student satisfaction
How students on this course answered the National Student Survey, by theme.
Share of students responding positively.
Published threshold met NSS publication requires sufficient responses; small differences are not a rank. NSS mean of 7 published themes (Discover Uni snapshot 2026-06-21)
Applicant information
The next application dates for this course, followed by facts the provider publishes.
- 2027 entryCompleted applications can be submitted
Your application needs a reference before you can send it.
- 2026 entryFinal date for 2026 applications
Applications must reach UCAS by 18:00 UK time.
- 2026 entryLast day to add a Clearing choice
Check that this course still has a vacancy before adding it.
- 2027 entryEqual-consideration deadline
18:00 UK time for most undergraduate courses.
Show 5 later dates
- 2027 entryUCAS Extra opens
Applicants who used all five choices and hold no offer may be able to add another choice.
- 2027 entryLast day applications go directly to providers
Applications received after 18:00 UK time are entered into Clearing.
- 2027 entryClearing opens
Eligible applicants can see vacancies and release themselves into Clearing.
- 2027 entryFinal date for 2027 applications
Applications must reach UCAS by 18:00 UK time.
- 2027 entryLast day to add a Clearing choice
Check that this course still has a vacancy before adding it.
The provider publishes contextual-offer information. Eligibility and any reduced offer are applicant-specific.
See and book current events. Dates can fill or change.
Entry & how to get in
Who gets in
What recently admitted students actually held, official admissions data, not a stated requirement.
UCAS tariff of entrants
Grades are the A-level equivalent of each points band. Tap a band to check your own chances below.
Qualifications held on entry
| Qualification | Share |
|---|---|
| A-levels or equivalent | 95% |
| another higher-education qualification | 5% |
Entry & your chances
An honest read from the official entry data, plus your personal match.
Accepted students came in with a broad spread of qualifications and UCAS points. If you're worried about grades, this course has historically taken a wide range, and contextual offers may apply.
Will you get in? Plot your grades
Pick your predicted A-levels and watch your UCAS points land on the real spread of students admitted to this course.
Each bar is the share of admitted students in that UCAS-points band (lower → higher). Grades show the A-level equivalent.
Based on the official admitted-student tariff distribution. Many universities make contextual (reduced-grade) offers, so a result below the range doesn’t rule you out.
How to apply
Undergraduate applications go through UCAS. Here’s what matters for this course, the right deadline, the grades to aim for, and the steps in order.
- 1Register on UCAS Hub
Create your UCAS application and add this course. One application covers up to five choices.
- 2Write your personal statement
A single statement covers all your choices, so keep it broad enough for similar courses while showing genuine interest in this subject.
- 3Submit by 13 January 2027, 18:00 UK time
UCAS equal-consideration deadline for most undergraduate courses. Source: UCAS 2027 dates.
- 4Reply to your offers
When decisions are in, pick a firm (first) choice and an insurance (back-up) choice with slightly lower grades.
- 5Results day & confirmation
On results day (mid-August) your place is confirmed if you meet the offer. Just missed? Talk to the university, or find a place through Clearing.
Fees & funding
What this course costs and how UK student finance covers it.
Tuition per year
Provider fee page (England 2026/27 cap where not stated).
Check fees at University of Chichester →For students who normally live in England
2026/27 Student Finance England figures. Maintenance support is means-tested and this two-point view is not an entitlement calculator. The course total uses its published length and home fee where both are available; a missing full-time fee uses the clearly labelled England-cap scenario, while part-time fees and unknown lengths are never guessed. Use the official calculator. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland use separate systems: SAAS, Student Finance Wales, and Student Finance NI.
Starting on or after 1 January 2027?
The Lifelong Learning Entitlement is a separate system. A new learner’s tuition entitlement is currently stated as £39,160 (about 480 credits at 2026/27 fee levels), subject to prior study and eligibility. Check the official LLE guide.
Paying for it
- Tuition Fee Loan: can cover eligible tuition up to the applicable limit and is paid straight to the provider.
- Maintenance Loan: up to £10,830/yr away from home outside London (England, 2026/27), means-tested on household income.
- Repayment: 9% of income above £25,000, nothing below it; written off after 40 years.
- Earn alongside: most students work part-time in term, part-time roles on the StudySmarter job board.
England figures shown; Scotland, Wales & NI run their own schemes, check gov.uk.
Scholarships & bursaries you could qualify for
That does not mean no funding exists. Check the university directory for current amounts, eligibility and application dates.
We only display a named award when its provider source identifies the award and who it is for.
Still deciding what to study?
StudyKit brings course choice, applications and funding together in one place, with a personal AI assistant. Find what really fits you and start your UCAS application step by step.
Careers & earnings
What Art & Design graduates actually earn, from real outcome data, 15 months, 3 years and 5 years after graduating.
Graduate outcomes, 15 months on: this course
- 1Graduate roleFirst role after the degree · 0–2 yrs
- 2Specialist / PractitionerWorking in art & design · 2–5 yrs
- 3Senior / LeadLeading work and people · 5–10 yrs
- 4Head of / ExpertSenior leadership or deep expertise · 10+ yrs
How pay grows: this course vs Art & Design nationally
National figures for Art & Design graduates, HESA Graduate Outcomes (15 months) and the Longitudinal Education Outcomes (LEO) dataset (3 & 5 years). These are national, not university-specific; actual pay varies by employer, region, role and experience. Different cohorts, so the bars are not one group over time.
Work out your pay
Headline figures hide a lot. Calculate realistic take-home pay for this field by role, region and experience, then check your CV before you apply.
What happened to 100 students?
Choose an outcome to translate the published percentage into a simple 100-person view. Each dot represents one percentage point, not an individual tracked student.
were in work or further study
15 months after graduation
Source: Discover Uni, using Graduate Outcomes and continuation data. Cohorts: 2021-23. Published threshold met. Sample size is not included in this snapshot. Cohort 2021-23. Each tab is a separate published measure; categories can overlap and should not be added together.
UK occupations graduates enter
Published graduate destinations, joined conservatively to UK SOC 2020, ONS pay and Skills England demand.
- Web and Multimedia Design ProfessionalsSOC 2020 214 · 25% of published destinations · ASHE median £32,574
- Managers, directors and senior officialsSOC 2020 1 · 15% of published destinations · ASHE median £51,733
- Business and public service associate professionalsSOC 2020 35 · 15% of published destinations · ASHE median £38,760
- Sales occupationsSOC 2020 71 · 10% of published destinations · ASHE median £15,975
- Process, plant and machine operativesDiscover Uni category · 10% of published destinations
- Science, engineering and technology associate professionalsSOC 2020 31 · 10% of published destinations · ASHE median £34,828
Discover Uni JOBLIST/JOBTYPE; ONS ASHE 2025 provisional, all employee jobs; Skills England Occupations in Demand 2025. SOC is shown only for an exact normalised label match; demand is shown only at exact four-digit SOC. Published sample: 25; response rate: 65%. Pay describes the occupation across workers, not a guaranteed graduate salary.
Job market & outlook
How Art & Design graduates fare in the labour market, and how AI is reshaping the work.
How AI is changing the work
AI doesn't replace the profession, it shifts it: routine tasks get automated, while judgement, working with people and using AI well become more valuable.
What AI takes off your plate
- Routine information gathering
- First-draft writing and summaries
- Standard analysis and admin
- Repetitive processing tasks
More human than ever
- Judgement and original thinking
- Working with and leading people
- Owning and sense-checking AI output
- Ethics and accountability
The strongest graduates pair subject depth with the ability to use AI tools critically.
Roles & employers
Where Art & Design graduates typically go, indicative destinations from graduate career data. Each role links to live openings on the StudySmarter job board.
Roles graduates go into
Where they work
- Design studios & agencies
- In-house brand teams
- Games & media companies
- Freelance & self-employed
Jobs after this course
Current roles from the StudySmarter job board that suit Art & Design graduates.
Is this course right for you?
The essentials UK applicants ask about: finance, outcomes, entry and quality.
Student finance
For comparison, the standard full-time England tuition cap is up to £9,790 per year in 2026/27; the actual fee varies by course and provider. If you normally live in England, eligible students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan, plus a Maintenance Loan for living costs. Under Plan 5 you repay 9% of income above £25,000, nothing below that, and the balance is written off after 40 years.
Where graduates go
90% were in work or further study 15 months after graduating. See the full breakdown in Careers & earnings above.
Your entry chances
Use the UCAS points calculator above to see how your predicted grades compare with admitted students, and whether a contextual offer could apply.
Official-data snapshot
Averaging the official measures published for it, this course scores 8.9 out of 10: NSS 88% · in work or study 90% · continued 90%.
Who studies here and in this subject?
Provider- and UK subject-level context.
The University of Chichester
Design, and creative and performing arts across the UK
HESA student record 2024/25. Counts are rounded.
Local crime-data context
A neutral snapshot around the published teaching location.
Around Bognor Regis Campus
1,261 street-level reports returned within roughly one mile across 2026-04 to 2026-06.
Police.uk street-level API. Approximate locations, not confined to campus. England, Wales and Northern Ireland; not Scotland.
Is Art & Design right for you?
Tick what applies to you and see how good a fit it is.
International students
What applying to University of Chichester from outside the UK involves: fees, English, visa, funding and living costs.
Tuition fees
International tuition is £16,800 / year for this course (from the provider’s fee page). You’re not eligible for UK Tuition Fee or Maintenance Loans, so plan for fees plus living costs upfront.
English language
Most UK undergraduate courses ask for around IELTS 6.0–6.5 (no band below 5.5–6.0), or an accepted equivalent. If you’re just short, most universities run a pre-sessional English course that counts towards the requirement.
Student visa
You’ll usually need a Student visa (Student Route). After you accept an offer the university issues a CAS; you then show funds for fees plus about £1,023–£1,334/month living costs and pay the Immigration Health Surcharge for NHS access.
Scholarships & funding
Many universities offer international/global scholarships (often £2,000–£6,000/yr), check University of Chichester’s funding pages.
Living costs
Budget roughly £1,100–£1,400/month outside London and £1,400–£1,800/month in London for rent, food and travel; the figure also matters for your visa.
Working while you study
A Student visa usually allows up to 20 hours/week in term time and full-time in holidays, useful alongside study, though not something to rely on for fees.
Visa rules and fees change. Always confirm the current requirements with University of Chichester and gov.uk before you apply.
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BA (Hons) Digital Film ProductionBA (Hons) · University of ChichesterCommon questions
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What will it cost me?
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