CANADA | 2024 TOP game SCHOOLS 


2024 CANADA RANKING: WHAT ARE THE BEST GAME SCHOOLs?

MEGA - MIGS students talk to indie studios

MEGAMIGS (2019)

An attractive country

Canada is home to a thriving video game industry. 

With nearly 30,000 people working there, Canada has become a major industry stronghold over the past 15 years. Montreal especially has a growing number of large and indie studios.

Over 200 studios and 50 schools examined in our rankings

As with the US ranking, Canada required the careful analysis of more than 2,000 alumni profiles from some 50 schools.

The result is a precise overview of their studies and their careers in more than 200 video game studios.

  TOP 5 CANADiAn Game Schools ☆ 

TOP 5 STUDIOs

for hiring young talent in Canada 

game schools top 5 CANADA ☆ 

#1 école NAD-UQAC

Montreal, Quebec


The NAD-UQAC School, Ecole Nationale d'Art Numérique, de l'Animation et du Design, created in 1992 and affiliated with the UQAC, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, since 2008, offers four video game training courses focused on game design and game art.

ACADEMICS:


GAME PROTOTYPES AND COMPETITIONS:


Flickering Shadows (2023). Third-person arcade game in which the player embodies a little girl adventuring in a dark dungeon. 

L'île Archéo (2023). Serious game about ecology and archaeology set on a strange island.

RECRUITMENT:

The main NAD-UQAC recruiters since 2019 are: 


*


Since 2019, the majority of graduates from the NAD-UQAC school who have entered the video game industry hold predominantly artistic roles (82%). Within this group, the most common professions are 3D Artist (23%) and Visual Effects Artist (19%).


#2 Isart digital

Montreal, Quebec

Bachelor 13 550$CAD / year

Master 13 950$CAD / year

 ACADEMICS:



GAME PROTOTYPES AND COMPETITIONS:

Echo (2023). 3D Open World narrative & adventure game in a stylized fantasy universe.  

Prune (2023) 3D narrative Puzzle game,

RECRUITMENT:

The main Isart Digital's recruiters since 2019 are:  


*


Since 2019, the majority of graduates from Isart Digital Montréal who have entered the video game industry hold primarily artistic positions (56%). Among these, the most represented roles are 3D Artist (27%) and Visual Effects Artist (8%).


#3 VFS, Vancouver Film School

Vancouver, BC

Campus of Shanghai-Vancouver Film School in Shanghai since 2014.

The Vancouver Film School (VFS) introduced one of the first game design programs in North America in 2004. Offering one-year post-secondary education with over 1400 hours, these programs are both intensive and comprehensive. 

ACADEMICS:

Among the 12 digital career-focused programs offered by VFS, one is specifically concentrated on Game Design, leading to a diploma in Game Design.


GAME PROTOTYPES AND COMPETITIONS:

With around twenty video game projects published each year, VFS is one of the most productive schools.


OOAngel (2023). Third-person online cover-shooter.  


Red-Road (2023). Third & First Person Cooperative Vehicle-Based Horror-Shooter.

RECRUITMENT:

The main VFS's recruiters since 2019 are:  



VFS graduates who have entered the video game industry since 2019 hold artistic roles in half of the cases (49%). Among these, the most represented professions are 3D Artists (12%) and Visual Effects Artists (7%). The proportion of Sound Designers (25%) is one of the highest encountered in the schools reviewed by GAMEducation.


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#4 Sheridan College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning

Oakville, Ontario

 ACADEMICS:


GAME PROTOTYPES AND COMPETITIONS:

Circuit Breakout (2023). Third-person puzzle game made in Bachelor of Game Design.


Corpobots (2023). Multiplayer action party game for 4 players made in Bachelor of Game Design.

RECRUITMENT:

The main Sheridan College's recruiters since 2019 are:  



Since 2019, half of the graduates from Sheridan College have been occupying artistic roles (50%). Among these, the most represented professions are 3D Artist (11%) and Visual Effects Artist (10%). The proportion of Audio Designers (6%) is notably high compared to other schools.


#5 Uqat, université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue

Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec

 ACADEMICS:


GAME PROTOTYPES AND COMPETITIONS:

Nuclear Rollout (2023). Third-person arcade game. Winner of the Best Game Design and Best Quality of the '3Cs' at the Ubisoft Game Lab Competition 2023.

Soul Shaper (2023). Dynamic arcade game. Winner of the Best Prototype and Creativity and Theme Integration at the Ubisoft Game Lab Competition 2023.

RECRUITMENT:

The main UQAT's recruiters since 2019 are:  



Graduates of UQAT who have entered the video game industry since 2019 predominantly hold artistic positions (55%); among them, the most represented roles are that of 3D Artist (24%) and Visual Effects Artist (8%). 

The proportion of Game Designers remains significant (36%).