Master of Professional Practice in Games Development Orientation Programme

About Abertay University

Abertay University is an innovative, ambitious institution, located in the heart of Dundee, on the east coast of Scotland. Since 1888 we have been educating people with a particular focus on preparing them for the world of work and having an impact on the local and global economy. We are proud to say that 92.8% of our graduates are in work or further study within six months of graduation. Our alumni work for Apple, Google, BBC, Microsoft, Pixar, Rockstar Games, IBM, Coca-Cola, Adidas, Nestle, PayPal, Nissan, PwC, Sky, NCR, NHS, GSK, BP, Shell, Chevron, TOTAL, Sony, and many others.

Abertay University delivers innovative and pioneering degree courses.

We were the first university in the world to offer a computer games-related degree, and are listed in the Princeton Review’s ‘World’s Top 25 Games Universities’. We work with industry to provide a vocationally-relevant curriculum, built-in work placements and business challenges set by real companies. ‘Thinking outside the textbook’ allows our students to choose their own path, giving them the opportunity to apply knowledge to real-world environments.

The School of Design and Informatics (SDI)

The School is home to the first-ever computer games course and the first ethical hacking course. It is the best school of its type in Europe and one of the top 25 in the world.

Degrees focus on game design and development, computing, and ethical hacking. Our link to the Games industry is helped by the fact that Dundee is a very important city for the digital media industry. We also have links with and have graduates working for some of the biggest international companies in the industry, including Microsoft, Ubisoft, Rockstar North, Rave, Sega, Perfect World, The Chinese Room, King and Jagex.

Also, many of our graduates have set up their own successful games companies.

School state-of-the-art facilities include:

The largest Sony Playstation laboratory in Europe.
The £2.5 million White Space – a knowledge hub for staff, students and local businesses, which brings talent together in a way that recreates a real working environment. White Space allows Abertay students from different disciplines to work on projects together and develop their collaboration skills.
The UK's first-ever Centre for Excellence in Computer Games Education. This £3 million facility expands the range of graduates who can make an immediate commercial impact, and helps drive the future success of interactive media and the international computer games industry.

Master of Professional Practice in Games Development Introduction (MProf)

Duration: 1.5 years

Study format: 5-month preparation course in China and 1 year in the UK

Suitable for:

Undergraduate students who are graduating this year or recently who want to study overseas
Those who are interested in making computer games and want to develop a career in this profession
Those who are already working in the games industry and would like to raise their professional qualifications

Pre-Masters Preparation Course: MProf Orientation Programme (MPPOP)

In an exclusive partnership, Perfect World work collaboratively with world-renowned computer games education institute Abertay University to offer Chinese students the Master of Professional Practice in Games Development Orientation Programme (MPPOP), which provides a pathway for entry into the Masters of Professional Practice in Games Development (MProf) programme in Dundee. The aim of MPPOP is to select and nurture students from different disciplines including design, production, arts and programming to work together in development teams, with the help from global experts.

Perfect World Holding Group is a global entertainment company, involving in business segments including digital games, movies & TV, animation, comics, literature, media, education and so on. Its business demonstrates China’s “full industrial chain model” in the creative industries. Since its inception, Perfect World Education has been focusing on digital arts education and Internet entertainment technology research, with an aim to train a large number of cultural and creative workers as well as management personnel to increase the professional level of domestic creative industries and promote the development of digital entertainment industry.

In an exclusive partnership with Perfect World, Abertay University has designed a bespoke programme of preparatory study – the Master of Professional Practice in Games Development Orientation Programme (MPPOP) - that will introduce you to the skills and attitudes characteristic of professional games development in an English language environment, and prepare you for entry into the Masters of Professional Practice in Games Development (MProf) programme in Dundee, without the worry of getting an IELTS test.
The overarching purpose of the MPPOP programme is to promote creative responses to the growing demand for computer games content and innovation in the deployment of games technologies.
During the programme, you will be encouraged to develop independent decision-making strategies in response to games design and development challenges. You will also develop creative problem-solving strategies in the games development contexts, and demonstrate professional behaviours in the performance of these tasks. The programme will offer you the experience of working in interdisciplinary development teams where you will learn to communicate, negotiate and collaborate effectively.

Programme entry requirements

MPPOP programme is open to undergraduates or current students on the final year of University study with a minimum of a Second class (2:2) Bachelors degree (or in average 65%) from a recognised Chinese university in one the following areas: Computer Games Technology, Computer Science, Multimedia Computing Science, Software Engineering, Software Design, Programming, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Arts, Computer Games Design, Games Production, Computer Animation, Fine Art, Drawing, Painting, Graphic Design, 3D Modelling, Music Production, Music Technology, Sound Design. Applicants with appropriate professional experience will be considered on an individual basis.
English standard: As the MPPOP programme is linguistically demanding, you must also have a suitable level of English language: B2 on the Common European Framework (CEFR). Recent Chinese students should hold the College English Test at level 6. We will also consider students with College English Test at level 4 or above on the condition of passing an entry English test. If you have been out of education more than two years, your application will be considered on an individual basis.
Individuals with industry experience but not the academic requirements will be considered separately.
Individuals who have graduated over 2 years will be considered separately.

Successful completion of the MPPOP programme, including passing all necessary assessments at the required level, provides progression to the MProf Games Development programme in Dundee.

Programme components

The MPPOP programme consists of three main elements:

Study skills: MP 1 – Game Development Preparation Module

English: MP 2 – Developing Intercultural Competence

MP 3 – Academic English for the MProf

Practical experience Students will have the opportunity to observe professional games development through placement and work-shadowing opportunities in Perfect World and will receive individual mentorship from discipline experts in the company.

Programme features:

The MPPOP is designed to prepare you for the MProf at Abertay University, in Dundee.
Abertay staff will visit you in Beijing on at least seven occasions during the MPPOP programme. These onsite visits will be supplemented with video conference tutorials, where appropriate.
Your learning will be divided in to a series of four-week study blocks, each being introduced by one or more members of Abertay staff. They will contextualise your study activities and learning objectives, and offer feedback on your project work and progress.
Abertay resident teaching fellow in Beijing will also support you, and facilitate the additional streamed lectures, workshops and masterclasses held at Abertay.

MProf Games Development in the UK

The Scottish Centre for Excellence in Computer Games Education at Abertay University offers a unique postgraduate experience. It is specifically designed in discussion with game industry partners, and has been described by one leading CEO as ‘the course the games industry has been waiting for!’

Entry requirements

A successful completion of all MPPOP modules including English language.

Programme features

As postgraduate students and highly-talented individuals, you will work within games development teams towards the production of innovative computer games solutions.
Working closely with a team of full-time staff who are highly experienced in both the games industry and academic teaching, and under the guidance and mentorship of computer games industry representatives, you will develop professional skills and knowledge relevant to identified development roles within the industry. During the course of your studies, you will be expected to demonstrate applied excellence in your specialist area, as well as professionalism, flexibility, the ability to adapt in team-working situations, creativity and innovation towards product development.
The MProf Games Development programme ultimately prepares you for a career as a game developer. Your exact role in the industry will depend on your chosen area of study, but roles include programmers, artists or producers.
Graduates of the MProf programme have had outstanding success both in gaining employment within the industry and in pursuing their own game development plans.

‘Abertay’s MProf in Games Development was a memorable and unique study experience. It was the place that let me have my first glimpse of an international games development studio’s daily work, and I was given valuable opportunities to learn and practise how to cooperate with other developers in a global team. I was also given the opportunity to undertake design-related part-time jobs, hear presentations from famous games developers and attend Dare to be Digital, Abertay’s indie games festival. A year is not a long time, but in that year I transformed from being a student to a games designer, and got myself ready for the challenges of the games industry.’ Isabella Wang, Chief Designer at FunPlus Games, Mprof Games Development Graduate 2012