Course overview
UCA’s new postgraduate degree course in Games Arts builds on your existing talents to give you the knowledge and skills to create advanced art for games or for aligned industries.
Taught at UCA Farnham’s new £2 million School of Games & Creative Technology, you will combine theory and practice to develop a high-quality games art project, and learn to be ambitious, team-leaders, planners and develop rounded game artists. You will explore the benefits of game-related artificial intelligence to enrich user experience, and learn about future developments in the industry, including the deployment of virtual and augmented reality environments and the metaverse.
In addition to building your technical skills, this course also explores research and professional practice related to the games industry. As part of this you will either work on a group professional practice project working with students from other games postgraduate courses or work on a creative business start-up.
Please note, this course is subject to validation.
Accredited by:

The Rookies
The Rookies is a leading platform for digital artists to promote their work and assists members in preparing for industry. It also helps students find a school and course that’s right for them with its directory of accredited schools.
What you'll
study
The content of the course may be subject to change. Curriculum content is provided as a guide.
For our students coming from a non-UK educational background, UCA has launched an Integrated International Pre-Masters year. On this course you’ll prepare for postgraduate study with a mix of online and face-to-face learning that will give you the study skills required to complete a Master’s, and you’ll also improve your English for academic study.
Term 1
- Launch week
- Thinking, Prototyping and Practice
- Games Research and Professional Contexts 1
Term 2
- Opportunity week
- Exploration and Development
- Games Research and Professional Contexts 2 (Includes Creative Business Start-up or Collaborative Practice Project option)
Term 3
- Games Arts Major Project
Full details for the course units will follow shortly.
Course specifications
Please note, syllabus content indicated is provided as a guide. The content of the course may be subject to change in line with our Student Terms and Conditions for example, as required by external professional bodies or to improve the quality of the course.
Fees &
financial support
Tuition fees - 2023 entry
UK students:
- Integrated Pre-Masters course - £10,500
- MA course - £10,500
EU students:
- Integrated International Pre-Masters course - £10,500 (see fee discount information)
- MA course - £10,500 (see fee discount information)
International students:
- Integrated International Pre-Masters course (30 weeks) - £17,500
- Integrated International Pre-Masters course (15 weeks) - £8,750
- MA course - £17,500
Further information
For more detailed information about our course fees and any financial support you may be entitled to please see our fees and finance pages.
The fees listed here are correct for the stated academic year only. Costs may increase each year during a student’s period of continued registration on course in line with inflation (subject to any maximum regulated tuition fee limit). Any adjustment for continuing students will be at or below the RPI-X forecast rate.
Financial support
There are lots of ways you can access additional financial support to help you fund your studies - both from UCA and from external sources.
Discover what support you might qualify for please see our financial support information
UCA scholarships and fee discounts
At UCA we have a number of scholarships and fee discounts available to assist you with the cost of your studies.
You'll find everything you need to know for your level of study on our scholarships page.
Additional course costs
In addition to the tuition fees there may be other costs for your course. The things that you are likely to need to budget for to get the most out of a creative arts education will include books, printing costs, occasional or optional study trips and/or project materials.
These costs will vary according to the nature of your project work and the individual choices that you make.
Facilities
Our outstanding computer games studios have high-end PCs dedicated to games design with games systems and interactivity software including Maya, Photoshop and Substance, and Unity and Unreal games engines. There are also sound production studios, a Foley studio and pro tools suites. There is a modern library with a wealth of books, journals, special collections and online resources.
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Games studios, UCA Farnham
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VR motion capture studio, UCA Farnham
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Games studios, UCA Farnham
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Games studio, UCA Farnham
Career
opportunities
Our students have previously graduated to find themselves within easily accessible pathways that have guided them to prosperous and fulfilling job roles within the games industry:
- Concept designer
- Game designer
- Games developer
- Multi-media programmer
- Multi-media specialist
- Software engineer
- VFX Artist
You may also wish to progress onto a PhD or MPhil research degree.
Entry & portfolio
requirements
MA course
- A good honours degree or equivalent qualification in a related discipline
and/or
- Relevant work experience, demonstrating your ability to study at postgraduate level.
Consideration will also be given to applicants who can make a strong case for admission in relation to a particular project and can demonstrate their potential to satisfactorily complete the course.
Portfolio requirements
For this course we will need to see your written or visual portfolio for review. We’ll invite you to attend an Applicant Day so you can have your portfolio review in person, meet the course team and learn more about your course. Further information will be provided once you have applied.
MA course
The entry requirements for this course will depend on the country your qualifications are from, please check the equivalent qualifications for your country:
Any additional entry requirements listed in the UK requirements section, e.g., subject requirements, work experience or professional qualifications, also apply to international applicants applying with equivalent qualifications.
Portfolio requirements
For this course we will need to see your written or visual portfolio for review. We’ll invite you to attend an Applicant Day so you can have your portfolio review in person, meet the course team and learn more about your course. Further information will be provided once you have applied.
MA course with Integrated International Pre-Masters course
- A recognised bachelor degree or 3 year diploma with a strong portfolio in a relevant subject.
Any additional entry requirements listed in the UK requirements section, e.g., subject requirements, work experience or professional qualifications, also apply to international applicants applying with equivalent qualifications.
Portfolio requirements
For this course we will need to see your written or visual portfolio for review. We’ll invite you to attend an Applicant Day so you can have your portfolio review in person, meet the course team and learn more about your course. Further information will be provided once you have applied.
English language requirements
To study at UCA, you'll need to have a certain level of English language skill. And so, to make sure you meet the requirements of your course, we ask for evidence of your English language ability, please chcek the level of English language required:
Don't meet the international entry requirements or English language requirements?
You may be able to enter the course through the following entry pathways:
Apply now
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