Fayetteville's local story is a community college, and anyone searching for game design schools near Fayetteville should start there. Fayetteville Technical Community College sits just 3 miles from downtown and offers an associate program in game and interactive media design. No ranked bachelor's sits within 50 miles, and the closest one, William Peace University, is 52 miles away.
Kevin ToFounder & EditorB.S. in Computer Science, Temple UniversityUpdated
1Game Program Within 25 Milesgame design, programming, simulation and animation, all levelsIPEDS locations
2Game Programs Within 50 Milesat 2 collegesIPEDS locations
0Ranked Game Design Bachelor's Programs Nearbyranked, within 50 milesOur ranking
Game Design Schools Near Fayetteville in 60 Seconds
Nearest top pick: William Peace University, 52 miles out.No ranked program sits inside the Fayetteville metro itself. It scores 60.1. Price is its strength: aided first-year students pay $24,503, $1,647 under the ranking's median, though 46% completion trails the 59% median.Nearby Programs ›
Software developers earn $122,900 here.The U.S. median for the same job is $135,980. Software development is a smaller share of jobs in the metro than nationally (location quotient 0.29), with about 420 people in the occupation.Pay ›
In-state tuition starts at $1,824.2 public colleges nearby offer a game-related program. The highest in-state tuition nearby is $2,432, so where you enroll changes the bill a lot.Costs ›
A one-bedroom rents for $1,138 a month.The U.S. median one-bedroom is $1,301. Rent helps here, at a $1,334 monthly median in the Fayetteville metro, $153 under the national figure.Living Costs ›
Nearest to Fayetteville
The Nearest Ranked Game Design Programs to Fayetteville for 2027
William Peace University leads the 3 ranked programs within 100 miles, with a score of 60.1, a school-wide completion rate of 46% and an average net price of $24,503. Miles are straight-line distance from central Fayetteville.
Game design, game programming, simulation and animation programs are all scored the same way, on completion, net price and program size. On each card, completion is the school's 8-year award rate and net price its average for aided first-year students, both from IPEDS; grads a year is the program's own average, 2022 to 2024. Miles are straight-line from central Fayetteville.
Raleigh, NC · Private nonprofit · Game design program · 52 miles
60.1
#43 of 89 nationally
52 miles from Fayetteville
Private
William Peace University is 52 miles from Fayetteville, close enough for a weekend trip home from its Raleigh campus. The Bachelor of Arts in Simulation and Game Design covers design, 3D modeling and programming, used for video games and for simulation training in military, healthcare, academic and industrial settings.
The program has its own lab, and about 20 students a year graduate with the degree. Tuition is $33,526 for everyone, and the school-wide net price for aided first-years is $24,503. The university enrolls only 722 students, and 46% of entering students across the university complete within eight years.
Students can transfer in up to 90 credit hours from other institutions. The admit rate is 94%, and the sticker cost of attendance is $50,762.
Greensboro, NC · Private nonprofit · Game design program · 83 miles
54.5
#55 of 89 nationally
83 miles from Fayetteville
Lowest net price near Fayetteville
Private
Fayetteville is 83 miles from Greensboro, and Greensboro College has the lowest net price near Fayetteville: $19,783 for aided first-years school-wide. Tuition is $20,900, and as a private college it charges everyone the same.
The Games & Interactive Media major covers project management with Agile and SCRUM, transmedia storytelling and game genres from RPGs to MMORPGs. Students build characters and levels in collaborative projects. The program points to careers in game testing, quality assurance, community management and esports casting. About three students graduate yearly, and the college reports that 100% of its students complete an internship or practicum. Class sizes run from 10 to 30 students, and the college has 967 students overall. Tuition is the same for every student, and 37% finish within eight years.
High Point, NC · Private nonprofit · Game design program · 84 miles
44.0
#76 of 89 nationally
84 miles from Fayetteville
Highest completion near Fayetteville
Largest program near Fayetteville
Private
Students who want to make and modify games, not only play them, will find two clubs at High Point University built around that: a video game club for playing and critiquing, and a game development club that teaches technical skills and holds game jams through the semester. The major sits in the Nido R. Qubein School of Communication and totals 128 credits.
The campus is 84 miles from Fayetteville, so most students from there would live on or near the university in the city of High Point. Across the university, 71% of entering students finish within eight years, and net price for aided first-years is $43,578. About 21 students a year complete this B.A. Tuition is $39,714 with no out-of-state surcharge, and cost of attendance before aid is $67,986.
Admission is open to 75% of applicants, with an SAT midpoint of 1215. Ten years after entry, graduates of all majors earn $61,389 across the university.
The rest of the Fayetteville, NC metro and the nearby areas are covered on the North Carolina page.
StateNorth Carolina3 ranked game bachelor's · 14 programs in allView the North Carolina guide ›
More ways in
Other Game Programs in Fayetteville
3 more programs inside the Fayetteville metro offer a way into game work without a ranked bachelor's. These associate, graduate and certificate programs aren't in the bachelor's ranking, so they carry no score. Grads a year is the program's IPEDS average, 2022 to 2024, and admission is the college's fall 2024 rate (College Scorecard).
Game pay here reflects a small market. Software developers, which is where game programmers and engine developers are counted, earn a metro median of $122,900. That's $11,810 below the North Carolina median and $13,080 below the national median, with 420 people in the category.
$44,420–$96,180$44k–$96k$44,420 to $96,180, May 2024May 2024
30May 2024
$97,990May 2025
$104,000
Graphic designersWhere many art and UI graduates start
$49,160
$36,420–$65,740$36k–$66k$36,420 to $65,740
130
$58,450
$62,960
Computer programmersProgramming roles outside software development
$95,200May 2024
$78,790–$103,540$79k–$104k$78,790 to $103,540, May 2024May 2024
50May 2025
$81,070May 2025
$100,390
BLS doesn't publish pay for these occupations in the Fayetteville metro:
Special effects artists and animators: $102,030 national median. See animator salary ›
Art directors: $114,850 national median.
Annual wages, BLS OEWS May 2025, for the Fayetteville, NC metropolitan area. The middle half earns between the 25th and 75th percentile. Figures tagged May 2024 are from that earlier BLS release, because BLS didn't publish one for the Fayetteville metro in the current release.
Graphic designers, a common first job for art graduates, earn $49,160, or $9,290 below the state median. BLS publishes no Fayetteville median for web and digital interface designers, animators, computer programmers or art directors.
Costs are low. With the overall price level at 92 (100 is the national average) and housing at 73.1, a modest salary covers more than it would in a big metro.
Software development is a smaller share of jobs in the Fayetteville metro than nationally (location quotient 0.29), with about 420 people in the occupation. Living costs work in your favor in the Fayetteville metro: BEA puts prices 8.0% below the U.S. average, so a paycheck or a student budget goes further.
The Census counted no software publishers in the Fayetteville metro in 2023, so game work here mostly means remote roles or a move.
Fayetteville Technical Community College is the only college inside the metro with a game program, and it graduates 6 associate students a year. Against 420 core jobs, that is 1.4%. Within 50 miles the total is 41 a year, and none earns a bachelor's degree. Wake Technical Community College, 42 miles out, produces 35 in game and interactive media design.
The 2 largest game-related programs within 50 miles of central Fayetteville by graduates a year, IPEDS completions averaged 2022 to 2024:
The percentage looks large, but it comes from a tiny job base, not from heavy local hiring. Core jobs here are developers, interface designers and effects animators, and the majority aren't game jobs. Most of the area's game graduates come from colleges in other metros, and many may never work here at all. Treat the share as scale, nothing more.
Cost near Fayetteville
Paying for School in Fayetteville
Both public colleges in range are North Carolina community colleges. Fayetteville Technical Community College charges residents $2,432 and non-residents $8,576, a premium of $6,144, and its school-wide net price is $3,616. Wake Technical Community College charges $1,824 and $6,432, with a net price of $8,493.
The public colleges within 50 miles that offer a game-related program, all in North Carolina. Tuition is the published undergraduate rate for 2023-24 (IPEDS IC), before aid; net price is the school-wide average for aided first-year students, 2022-23 (IPEDS SFA).
North Carolina students can look at the Next NC Scholarship, administered by the North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority. There's no undergraduate regional tuition exchange that applies, so out-of-state students pay the full premium.
State Aid in North Carolina
North Carolina's main need program for undergraduates is the Next NC Scholarship, run by the North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority. In its own words: "The Next NC Scholarship is a financial aid program that helps most North Carolinians from households making $80,000 or less pursue higher education." The North Carolina page covers state aid and public college costs in more detail.
Tuition Exchanges
SREB’s FAQ says that "North Carolina no longer participates in the ACM."
Living costs
Living in Fayetteville as a Student
Low cost is Fayetteville's best argument. Typical rent is $1,334, which is $153 less than the $1,487 U.S. median. Housing prices score 73.1, far below the national 100. A one-bedroom goes for $1,138, which is $13,656 over twelve months, compared with $1,301 nationally.
Monthly rent
Fayetteville metro
U.S.
All rentals, median
$1,334
$1,487
One bedroom, median
$1,138
$1,301
Two bedrooms, median
$1,224
$1,490
Median gross rent (rent plus utilities the tenant pays), American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates, tables B25064 and B25031.
A two-bedroom averages $1,224, so $612 per person split two ways. Neither college reports on-campus room and board, because the two community colleges have no campus housing. Fayetteville Technical Community College lists off-campus room and board at $8,451 and Wake Technical Community College at $10,134.
Rent helps here, at a $1,334 monthly median in the Fayetteville metro, $153 under the national figure.
Each college's own yearly estimates for a full-time undergraduate, 2023-24 (IPEDS IC). Off-campus is for a student not living with family.
Metro prices overall are at a level of 92, below the national average of 100. That low cost matters if you plan to build a portfolio and work remotely.
Choosing
How to Choose a Game Design Program in Fayetteville
Your nearby choices are almost all design, with no animation bachelor's and no game programming program within 50 miles. All of them are game design programs. If you'd rather write code, look at an online program or a computer science degree.
Public versus private is a real contrast here. Fayetteville Technical Community College has a net price of $3,616, while Wake Technical Community College is $8,493. The community college route is cheaper and closer.
At 3 miles, Fayetteville Technical Community College is a daily commute from home. Wake Technical Community College at 42 miles is a straight-line distance and would be a long trip, so most students would move. Ask each school about transfer agreements before you enroll.
Every college on this page admits anyone with a high school diploma, so getting in is not the hurdle here. None requires SAT or ACT scores.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Is There a Ranked Game Design Degree Near Fayetteville?
William Peace University is the top-ranked game design school near Fayetteville, scoring 60.1 and ranked 43 of 89 nationally, 52 miles from the city center. Price is its strength: aided first-year students pay $24,503, $1,647 under the ranking's median, though 46% completion trails the 59% median. About 20 students a year graduate from it, a mid-sized program by the ranking's standards. Greensboro College is next at 54.5, one of 3 ranked programs within 100 miles. The cheapest ranked option within 100 miles is Greensboro College at $19,783, with 37% completion. See the ranked programs.
What Kind of Game Pay Can I Expect Around Fayetteville?
Software developers, the BLS occupation that counts game programmers, earn a median of $122,900 in the Fayetteville metro, against $135,980 nationally (BLS May 2025). Software development is a smaller share of jobs in the Fayetteville metro than nationally (location quotient 0.29), with about 420 people in the occupation. Living costs work in your favor in the Fayetteville metro: BEA puts prices 8.0% below the U.S. average, so a paycheck or a student budget goes further. See what game jobs pay in Fayetteville.
What Does Fayetteville Technical Community College Charge?
Fayetteville Technical Community College is 3 miles from central Fayetteville. Published tuition is $2,432 for in-state students and $8,576 out of state. It offers a game design program at the associate level that our ranking doesn't score. The program graduates about 6 students a year. It admits any high school graduate, so the program is open to you without an application contest. See the ranked programs.
How Cheap Is It to Live in Fayetteville, NC?
Median rent in the Fayetteville metro was $1,334 a month in 2024, $153 below the U.S. median of $1,487 (Census ACS). A one-bedroom runs $1,138. A two-bedroom runs $1,224 a month, so sharing one with a classmate cuts each person's rent to about $612, the usual way students keep housing costs down off campus. Housing is where Fayetteville saves you money, at 73.1 on BEA's index against 100 nationally. See living in Fayetteville as a student.
Can I Get Into a Game Design Program Near Fayetteville?
Every college on this page admits anyone with a high school diploma, so getting in is not the hurdle here. None requires SAT or ACT scores. Starting at an open-admission college and transferring after two years is the most reliable way in. The nearest open-admission option is Fayetteville Technical Community College, 3 miles from central Fayetteville. Each program card shows its college's admission rate where one is reported. See how to choose a program.
Keep exploring
Related Pages
CityRaleigh, NC55 mi from Fayetteville · 4 programs within 50 miles · 1 ranked game bachelor'sView the Raleigh guide ›
CityGreensboro, NC85 mi from Fayetteville · 4 programs within 50 miles · 2 ranked game bachelor'sView the Greensboro guide ›
2NCES, IPEDS Outcome Measures 2023 The completion factor: the share of all entering students, full-time, part-time and transfer, who earned an award within eight years. School-wide.
