DigiPen Institute of Technology

DigiPen Institute of Technology
Established	1988
Type	for-profit
President	Claude Comair
Academic staff	77
Undergraduates	964
Postgraduates	91
Location	Redmond, Washington
Campus	Suburban
Website	digipen.edu

DigiPen Institute of Technology is a for-profit college located in Redmond, Washington. DigiPen has campuses in Redmond, Washington, in Singapore, and near Bilbao, Spain. DigiPen offers bachelor's and master's degree programs, which require students to apply their learning in computer science, computer engineering, art, game design, music, and sound design to the creation of video games. DigiPen also offers summer programs for students in grades k-12, as well as online courses and year-long high school programs.

History

• DigiPen Institute of Technology was founded in 1988 by Claude Comair in Vancouver, B.C., Canada as DigiPen Corporation, a computer simulation and animation company.

• In 1990, DigiPen began offering a 3D animation program and began collaborating with Nintendo of America to create a post-secondary program for video game programming. With Nintendo's support, DigiPen Applied Computer Graphics School accepted its first class of video game programming students in 1994.

• In May 1996 the Washington State Higher Education Coordinating Board granted DigiPen the ability to award Associate and Bachelor of Science Degrees in Real-Time Interactive Simulation (R.T.I.S) and Associate of Applied Arts Degrees in 3D Computer Animation. This made DigiPen the first university in the world dedicated to computer and video game development.

• The school relocated to Redmond, Washington, U.S. in January 1998.

• The school offered its first Associate of Applied Arts in 3D Computer Animation degrees in 1999.

• In 2000, DigiPen awarded the first class of R.T.I.S. graduates. The R.T.I.S. program, renowned for the highly skilled game programmers that the intensive program creates, proceeded to be DigiPen's flagship program.

• The school added the Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering, Bachelor of Fine Arts in Production Animation and Master of Science in Computer Science programs in 2004.

• In 2008, the BS.c in Game Design and BF.a in Game Design programs were added.

• A branch campus in Singapore started in 2008 and another in 2010 in Bilbao (Spain)

Campus

Main Campus

As of August 2010, DigiPen has moved both computer science and art students to a new, integrated campus in North Redmond, at 9931 Willows Rd. NE. This new campus has over 100,000 square feet (9,300 m²), allowing the school to increase the size of the student body by up to 300 students. It features many amenities, such as art and computer labs, a cafeteria with a professional kitchen, and a general store. DigiPen was previously located in a rented upstairs area of the Nintendo Software Technology building.

Branch Campuses

• Singapore

Started in 2008, DigiPen's main campus at PIXEL Building, One-North 10 Central Exchange Green, Singapore, occupies the first two levels of a 3-story building. All faculty are held under the same building. The current campus is a five-minute walk from Fusionopolis, which also houses Ubisoft Singapore.

DigiPen Singapore is recognized by the Singapore Ministry of Education as a foreign specialized institution. Courses include Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts programs, ProjectFUN Workshops, Continuing Education and Tech Academy.

As of 2010, DigiPen Singapore started a collaboration with the Singapore Institute of Technology with the DigiPen Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science programs. The school received the first batch of joint students in Fall 2010.

• Bilbao (Spain)

Established 2010.

Education

DigiPen has three primary educational paths: Real Time Interactive Simulation (Game/Software Development & Programming), Computer Engineering, and Applied/Fine Arts. Compared to a standard computer science curriculum, students start a very rigorous course with C, advance to object oriented programming with C++, and all take 2D Windows GUI, 3D graphics and sockets networking. Many students build robotic vehicles as projects. The art programs are taught from a computer-oriented perspective, though many art students do not intend to work in the game industry and attend DigiPen for its unique curriculum and businesslike atmosphere. RTIS students are taught aspects of development including programming, design, and marketing. Though there are liberal arts classes also in the curriculum, all required courses are pertinent to game development. Starting in the fall of 2008, DigiPen began offering a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Game Design. DigiPen also offers a master's degree in computer science, and Comair plans to add a Ph.D. program as well.

Students

DigiPen is the only educational institution whose students have been nominated in the professional category at the Independent Games Festival. Additionally, DigiPen students have placed the largest number of student projects in the Independent Games Festival student showcase every year since it began, with a seven-year total of 24 awards given to 23 winning game projects. The next three closest institutions have placed five, four and three games in the showcase over six years.

Other student run commissions include SAPR, DigiPen's student-run Public Relations committee and the CEC, the Campus Entertainment Committee. The CEC handles tournaments, movies, and other activities.

Student Life

The academic year commences in late August, with 3 academic semester each. Each term is 15 weeks long, including a mid-term exam week and a final term exam week. Term 1 generally runs from late August to early December, while Term 2 begins in January and ends in April. Term 3 begins in May and ends in July. In most courses, students are assessed on the level of their class participation, a group project, a mid-term test, and possibly, an exam at the end of the term.

In style with game studio, the environment in DigiPen is very casual. The Professors and Lecturers have no problems with having the students calling them by name. The relatively small size of each class also ensures that the Professors and Lecturers knows the student names by heart. Students who require assistance in understanding course material can walk into the Academic Support Center where Teaching Assistants are stationed.

Student Work (Games)

Each year RTIS students are formed into teams ranging from 4-8 developers. Art students are not required to work on the game projects but are awarded credit for participating in Junior level or higher projects. Starting in 2004, Freshman year DigiPen students work with an in-house integrated development environment (IDE) called the ProjectFUN Editor to develop a 2D graphical game. Second semester developing a text-based game over the course of the semester. Sophomore year, students game teams develop graphical games. Junior year requires that games feature 3D Rendering, and often serve as the first real experimentation with physics, artificial intelligence, and networking. Senior year students are significantly less restricted to allow for more artistic control, essentially allowing the students to focus on their specialization or the game's design.

The games are owned and copyrighted by DigiPen and are available for download.

Awards won by student games include:

Year	Award	Game
2012	indiePub 2012 Winner	Deity
2012	PAX 10 Winner	Deity
2012	Indie Game Challenge Finalist and Gamer's Choice Award Winner	Nitronic Rush
2012	Indie Game Challenge Finalist	The Fourth Wall
2012	Honorable Mention, Technical Excellence Award, professional category, IGF	Nitronic Rush
2012	IGF Student Showcase Honorable Mention	Nitronic Rush
2012	IGF Student Showcase	Pixi
2012	IGF Student Showcase	Nous
2011	PC Gamer The top 10 free PC games of 2011 #2	Nous
2011	Gamasutra Best Of 2011: Top 10 Indie Games #9	Dig-N-Rig
2011	Gamasutra Best Of 2011: Top 10 Indie Games Honorable Mention	Nitronic Rush
2011	Inside Gaming Awards 2011 Best Indie Game Nominee	Nitronic Rush
2011	Indie Game Magazine Best Free Indie Game Nominee	Nitronic Rush
2011	IGF China Best Student Game	Void
2011	IGF China Student Competition Finalist	Pixi
2011	IGF China Student Competition Finalist	Terra
2011	Tokyo Game Show's Sense of Wonder Night Presenter	Solstice
2011	PAX 10 Winner	A Flipping Good Time
2011	Extra Credits Innovation Awards Nominee	A Flipping Good Time
2011	IGF Student Showcase	Solace
2011	Indie Game Challenge Finalist	Solace
2011	Indie Game Challenge Finalist	Subsonic
2010	IndieCade Finalist	Solace
2010	PAX 10 Winner	Solace
2010	Indie Game Challenge Non-Professional Finalist and Grand Prize	Gear
2010	Indie Game Challenge Finalist	Dreamside Maroon
2010	IGF Student Showcase	Dreamside Maroon
2010	IGF Student Showcase	Igneous
2010	IGF Student Showcase Honorable Mention	Gear
2009	IndieCade Top 10 Finalist	Sowlar
2009	IGF Best Student Game	The Power of Paint (Link)
2008	Finalist, Excellence in Visual Art Award, professional category, IGF	Synaesthete
2008	IGF Best Student Game	Synaesthete (Link)
2008	IGF Student Showcase	Empyreal Nocturne
2007	Finalist, Design Innovation Award, professional category, IGF	Toblo
2007	IGF Best Student Game	Toblo
2007	Slamdance Finalist	Toblo
2007	Slamdance Finalist	Base Invaders
2007	IGF Student Showcase	Base Invaders
2007	IGF Student Showcase	Gelatin Joe
2006	Intel's Best Game on the Go	Toblo
2006	Northwest Games Festival Audience Award	Toblo
2006	Finalist, innovation in game design, professional category, IGF	RumbleBox
2006	Slamdance Physics Award	RumbleBox
2006	IGF Student Showcase Winner	Narbacular Drop
2006	Slamdance Guerilla Gamemaker Competition Finalist	Narbacular Drop
2006	GameShadow Innovation In Games Festival & Awards Nomination	Narbacular Drop
2006	Game Informer The Top 10 Games You've Never Heard Of	Narbacular Drop
2006	Edge Internet Game of The Month	Narbacular Drop
2006	Gamasutra Quantum Leap Awards: Most Important Games "Honorable Mention"	Narbacular Drop (Link)
2006	IGF Student Showcase	Orblitz
2006	IGF Student Showcase	Sea of Chaos
2005	IGF Student Showcase	Scavenger Hunt
2005	Slamdance Audience Award	Scavenger Hunt
2005	IGF Student Showcase	Rock Station
2005	Finalist, professional category, IGF	Kisses
2004	Winner, innovation in game design, professional category, IGF	Bontãgo
2004	IGF Student Showcase	Ice Wars
2004	IGF Student Showcase	Scrapped
2003	IGF Student Showcase	Vektor Space
2003	IGF Student Showcase	Crazy Cross
2003	IGF Student Showcase	Valence
2003	IGF Student Showcase	Mall Monster
2002	IGF Student Showcase	Commando Attack Sub
2002	IGF Student Showcase	T.H.U.G.S.
2001	IGF Student Showcase	MatrixAttack
2001	IGF Student Showcase	GenJox

It should also be noted that the Narbacular Drop team was hired by Valve straight out of school to rebuild the game in the Source engine, thus creating Portal. The team that developed Tag: The Power of Paint was also hired by Valve, leading to the paints in Portal 2.

Notable Staff

• Claude Comair
  • Founder & President of DigiPen Institute of Technology
  • Co-Founder of Nintendo Software Technology
• Xin Li, Ph.D
  • Dean of Faculty and Academic Affairs
  • Director of Education
• Prasanna Ghali
  • Chief Technology Officer - Asia Pacific
  • Professor, Department of Computer Science
  • Vice President of Engineering at Nintendo Software Technology Corporation(1998–2002)

Faculties

Art and Animation

• Master of Fine Arts in Digital Arts
• Bachelor of Fine Arts in Digital Art and Animation
• Bachelor of Arts in Game Design

Mathematics, Science, and Engineering

• Master of Science in Computer Science
• Bachelor of Science in Computer Science in Real-Time Interactive Simulation
• Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering
• Bachelor of Science in Engineering and Sound Design
• Bachelor of Science in Game Design

Departments

Different departments in DigiPen focus in different aspect of game development. A wide range of courses is offered to covered for a wholesome education. Each department in DigiPen is normally chaired by a Professor or one who have been in long history in the related topic.

Department of Computer Science

• CS: Computer Science

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

• ECE: Electrical and Computer Engineering

Department of Fine Arts and Animation

• ANI: Animation
• ART: Art
• CG: Computer Graphics
• FLM: Film
• PRJ: Projects

Department of Game Design and Production

• GAM: Game Software Design and Production
• GAT: Game Application Techniques

Department of Humanities and Social Sciences

• COM: Communications
• ECN: Economics
• ENG: English
• HIS: History
• JPN: Japanese
• LAW: Law
• MGT: Management
• PHL: Philosophy
• PSY: Psychology
• SOS: Social Sciences

Department of Life Sciences

• BIO: Biology Courses

Department of Mathematics

• MAT: Mathematics Courses

Department of Physics

• PHY: Physics Courses

Summer camps

There are several facilities which host DigiPen Advanced Computer Science classes for high school students to take during their regular school day. These same courses are available to everyone to take during the summer for a fee.

These courses, intended for grades 1 and up, include Game Programming, Art & Multimedia Production, Game Design, and Engineering. These classes focus on hands-on teaching philosophies. Each student is always working via a personal computer during class, and there is a “low student to teacher ratio.” Additionally, the summer courses provide students with the tools and environment to experience the gaming industry for themselves. There are frequent guest speakers from the gaming industry that come to speak to the students.

Ranking

• DigiPen was ranked tied 5900th out of around 20000 world colleges and universities by Webometrics in Jan 2011.
• The Princeton Review ranked DigiPen the Second Highest-Ranked Colleges for Game Design in 2010.

See also

• Institute of Technology (United States)

References

• DigiPen Fact Sheet
• IGF Award Winners
• USA Today - DigiPen
• DigiPen facts from GameCareerGuide
• DigiPen moves to larger campus