Edinburgh Napier university dev course backed by Creative Skillset

Edinburgh Napier’s Games Development bachelor’s degree has been accredited by Creative Skillset.

The Scottish university is only the seventh educational institution to be approved by the creative industries organisation and receive the Creative Skillset Tick.

Ticks are awarded after courses and apprenticeships have been assessed against a set of criteria and are applicable for six years, with the university’s eligibility being checked yearly.

Napier’s programme covers both the general skills needed to established a career in development, as well as techniques and technology specific to the world of games.

It was previously awarded with Sony’s PlayStation First label, as well as being recognised by Nvidia as one of its GPU Education Centres.

Among the staff taking the course is Disney UK research chief Kenny Mitchell, who worked on games including Split Second, Boom Blox and the Harry Potter spin-offs.

Napier also offers a Masters course in Game Technologies.

“This is something we have been working for since we created the course a little over five years ago, and is a testament to our ambition to support students into the computer games industry,” said Dr Kevin Chalmers, senior lecturer in Napier’s school of computing.

Nicole Hay, senior accreditation and quality manager for Creative Skillset, added: “The industry panel were very impressed with Edinburgh Napier’s BSc Hons Games Development programme.

“In particular the experienced staff, the emphasis on team work and the strong curriculum which focuses on preparing students to have the technical and maths skills employers are looking for. We are very excited to welcome the course in to the Tick family at Creative Skillset.”