Get degree ideas using our A level explorer tool

Games Programming with Foundation Year

Entry requirements


UCAS Tariff

64-80

About this course


This course has alternative study modes. Contact the university to find out how the information below might vary.

Course option

4years

Full-time including foundation year | 2024

Other options

5 years | Sandwich including foundation year | 2024

Subject

Computer games programming

**Course overview**: This course includes a foundation year - ideal if you need additional preparation or if you don't have sufficient grades to join Year 1. This degree is one of the UK’s leading games programming courses and is well respected by the industry. You have the opportunity to study on this specialist course taught by experienced developers and internationally recognised researchers. Learn to apply software engineering and problem-solving skills to develop games from 2D games developed from scratch, to polished 3D games with massive development teams.

Games programmers build games from the creative vision of designers and artists. Our course gives you the essential industry skills to do this. Games-specific modules take you beyond traditional software development, providing a head start for your future career. Each year culminates in producing a complete game demo, whether as a personal project using middleware, in a team of programmers working to a game design document or in a multidisciplinary team of artists, animators and designers. You will become a talented software engineer, technically skilled and an excellent problem solver with games-industry-specific knowledge and experience.

**Top reasons to study this course**

1. British Computer Society (BCS) academic membership: get free BCS membership to accelerate your career path with CV builder tools, e-learning courses, mentorships programmes, jobs boards and volunteering opportunities.
2. Industry links: take part in Animex, our annual international animation and games festival featuring experts from Rockstar, Pixar, Disney and Sony.
3. Real-world experience: enter GameJam events, take part in industry competitions and Beta test upcoming games before they are released.
4. Career-ready: our ExpoSeries of events allow you to showcase your skills to industry professionals who are seeking to recruit new and rising talent.
5. Start-up business support: we support you to develop your own business in games through our innovative Power UP Indie Games Accelerator.
6. Professional accreditation: This degree has been accredited by the British Computer Society (BCS), The Chartered Institute for IT. This course is recognised by ScreenSkills, the skills body for the UK’s screen-based industries. You are prepared for a career in the screen industries having completed a course carrying the ScreenSkills Select quality mark.

**After the course**: You are ideally suited for employment in the games development industry and similar creative industries. A variety of programming roles exist within these industries such as gameplay programmer, tools programmer, middleware developer and mobile application programmer. The course gives you a strong foundation in computer programming, also allowing for a career in mainstream software development. Our graduates are highly sought after in the games industry securing roles in AAA studios across the country and the globe including Accenture, HMRC, Zerolight, Ubisoft, Creative Assembly, Double 11, Microsoft, Traveller's Tales and many more.

Modules

Access course information through Teesside University’s website using the course page link provided (or visit www.tees.ac.uk).

Assessment methods

Access assessment information through Teesside University’s website using the course page link provided (or visit www.tees.ac.uk).

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

England
£9,250
per year
EU
£17,000
per year
International
£17,000
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Teesside University

Department:

Computing

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

85%
Computer games programming

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Computer games and animation

Teaching and learning

87%
Staff make the subject interesting
91%
Staff are good at explaining things
86%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
91%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

84%
Library resources
76%
IT resources
86%
Course specific equipment and facilities
69%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

95%
UK students
5%
International students
89%
Male students
11%
Female students
86%
2:1 or above
14%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
A
B

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Computer games and animation

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£18,000
low
Average annual salary
88%
low
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

59%
Information technology and telecommunications professionals
7%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
6%
Information technology technicians

This is a relatively new subject area for this kind of data, so we don’t currently have very much information to display or analyse yet. Gaming is a growing industry, and if it continues to grow we should see the rather high unemployment rate coming down over the next few years. Much the most common jobs for graduates who do get work after six months are in programming roles - but as things stand, be aware that jobs in the field are very competitive and personal contacts - either through family, friends or via specialist employment agencies - are a crucial way into the industry so be prepared to talk as well as code!

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Computer games and animation

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£20k

£20k

£22k

£22k

£24k

£24k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Explore these similar courses...

Higher entry requirements
Teesside University, Middlesbrough | Middlesbrough
Games Development
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2024
UCAS Points: 96-112
Lower entry requirements
Staffordshire University | Stoke-on-Trent
Computer Games Programming (with a foundation year)
BSc (Hons) 4 Years Full-time including foundation year 2024
UCAS Points: 48-64
Nearby University
University of Sunderland | Sunderland
Game Development
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2024
UCAS Points: 112-117
Same University
Teesside University, Middlesbrough | Middlesbrough
Games Programming
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2024
UCAS Points: 96-112

Share this page

This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here