TECH HORIZON > SIMULATION

DeVry to Offer Bachelor's Program in Game and Simulation Programming

IRVING, Texas--March 6, 2006--With the Dallas Metroplex home to some of the world's hottest PC and console video game developers, DeVry University will begin offering the region’s first bachelor’s degree program in game and simulation programming at its Irving campus beginning in July.

Although the video game industry is roughly 30 years old, computer game technologies as an academic specialty are relatively young, according to a DeVry announcement. As the popularity of video game software sales has grown -- software sales reaped $7.3 billion in 2004 and are expected to reach $42 billion by 2010 -- the need for qualified game developers and programmers has increased.

According to Bill Van Zwol, president of DeVry University's Irving campus, the Dallas area is a video game development hub, with local companies creating some of the world's hottest selling games, including the Doom, Quake and Age of Empire series.

“There is a tremendous demand in the Metroplex for educational programs in game and simulation programming,” said Van Zwol. “DeVry's program [will] provide students with the knowledge and skills to bring new and innovative video games to life."

Graduates of the program, who might find positions such as programmers, software engineers and project coordinators, will also be qualified for jobs in fields beyond the game industry, where integrated competencies of game and simulation design and programming come together. Examples include military tactical and strategic simulations and training, automotive design and testing, training for health care workers, crime scene reconstruction, flight simulation and any other industry that does design and prototyping work.

“Simulation technologies are having an impact on the way private sector businesses and public sector entities train their employees or safely evaluate the outcome of an untested situation,” said Van Zwol. He said he expects both trends to continue, creating strong demand for professionals who have formal educational backgrounds in simulation.

DeVry University 's applications-oriented game and simulation programming degree program provides preparation in the math and physics of games, programming fundamentals, game design, modifications (MOD), massively multiplayer online game programming (MMOG), two- and three-dimensional graphics programming, and simulation and game engine design.

www.devry.edu/PRinfo

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