The standout among game design schools near Lansing is Michigan State University, ranked 10 of 89, just 5 miles from the city center in East Lansing. It's a public university with a school-wide completion rate of 83% and 49 graduates a year in the program. Baker College adds a programming option 27 miles out, and Kellogg Community College offers an associate program 41 miles away. Pay is where Lansing lags, so read the salary section before you plan a career here.
Kevin ToFounder & EditorB.S. in Computer Science, Temple UniversityUpdated
1Game Program Within 25 Milesgame design, programming, simulation and animation, all levelsIPEDS locations
3Game Programs Within 50 Milesat 3 collegesIPEDS locations
2Ranked Game Design Bachelor's Programs Nearbyranked, within 50 milesOur ranking
Michigan State University leads the metro at 79.0.One ranked program sits inside the Lansing and East Lansing metro. It beats the ranking's medians on both counts: 83% of its students finish, against 59%, and aided first-year students pay $24,630, against $26,150.The Ranking ›
Software developers earn $97,120 here.The U.S. median for the same job is $135,980. About 3,020 people work as software developers in the metro, a heavier concentration than the country as a whole (location quotient 1.28). In Lansing, web and digital interface designers, where bls counts game designers, earn $67,770, which is 35% under the national median of $104,000.Pay ›
17 software and game publishers in the metro.Concentration 0.82, where 1.00 matches the U.S. Those publishers employ 1,028 people. The metro also has 68 custom programming studios and 14 film, video and animation production companies.Employers ›
In-state tuition starts at $5,450.2 public colleges nearby offer a game-related program. The highest in-state tuition nearby is $17,739, so where you enroll changes the bill a lot.Costs ›
A one-bedroom rents for $931 a month.The U.S. median one-bedroom is $1,301. Rent helps here, at a $1,111 monthly median in the Lansing and East Lansing metro, $376 under the national figure. The lowest on-campus room and board nearby is $7,600 a year at Baker College.Living Costs ›
Ranked in Lansing
The Best Game Design Schools in Lansing, MI for 2027
Michigan State University is the only ranked program inside the Lansing-East Lansing metro. It scores 78.9, a game design program, and graduates 49 students a year, a larger cohort than the 11 at Baker College. The sticker price is $17,739 for Michigan residents and $44,510 for everyone else, with a school-wide net price of $24,630.
That net price is a school-wide figure, not the program's, so use it as a guide rather than a quote. For a Michigan resident, the published tuition of $17,739 is well under the $44,510 charged to everyone else.
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 Lansing.
East Lansing, MI · Public · Game design program · 5 miles
79.0
#10 of 89 nationally
5 miles from Lansing
Public
The East Lansing campus is 5 miles from Lansing, so a student from the capital can live at home or in a residence and be in class within minutes. The Games and Interactive Media degree works with game studios on coursework and collects student work into a portfolio of team projects.
Alumni listed on the program page work at Activision Blizzard, Bungie, Insomniac, Rockstar and Ubisoft. Michigan residents pay $17,739 in tuition, versus $44,510 for out-of-state students. The program graduates about 49 students a year, and school-wide net price for aided first-years is $24,630.
Cost of attendance before aid is $34,240, and the university enrolls 52,089 students. Across the university, 83% of entering students complete within eight years, and graduates of all majors earn $67,253 ten years after entry.
The rest of the Lansing-East Lansing, MI metro and the nearby areas are covered on the Michigan page.
StateMichigan3 ranked game bachelor's · 10 programs in allView the Michigan guide ›
More ways in
Other Game Programs in Lansing
One more program inside the Lansing and East Lansing metro offers 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).
Lansing's pay is the weak spot. Game programmers and engine developers fall under software developers, who earn a metro median of $97,120, which is $28,450 below the Michigan median and $38,860 below the national median. About 3,020 people hold those jobs here.
Graphic designersWhere many art and UI graduates start
$59,990
$46,780–$68,050$47k–$68k$46,780 to $68,050
320
$57,350
$62,960
Computer programmersProgramming roles outside software development
$74,110
$58,850–$97,430$59k–$97k$58,850 to $97,430
130
$65,860
$100,390
Art directorsSenior art leads; rarely a first job
$81,500
$61,980–$117,380$62k–$117k$61,980 to $117,380
60
$86,660
$114,850
BLS doesn't publish special effects artists and animators pay for the Lansing and East Lansing metro. Nationally, the median is $102,030. See animator salary › Annual wages, BLS OEWS May 2025, for the Lansing-East Lansing, MI metropolitan area. The middle half earns between the 25th and 75th percentile.
Design roles are lower still. Web and digital interface designers earn $67,770, or $13,240 below the state median, and art directors earn $81,500. Two numbers do beat the state: graphic designers at $59,990 and computer programmers at $74,110. BLS publishes no metro median for animators.
Living costs soften part of the gap, since the overall price level is 95 and housing is 83.5 on a scale where the national average is 100.
About 3,020 people work as software developers in the Lansing and East Lansing metro, a heavier concentration than the country as a whole (location quotient 1.28). In Lansing, web and digital interface designers, where bls counts game designers, earn $67,770, which is 35% under the national median of $104,000. Living costs work in your favor in the Lansing and East Lansing metro: BEA puts prices 5.0% below the U.S. average, so a paycheck or a student budget goes further.
The Lansing area doesn't have a game industry to speak of, and Census shows it. The metro has only 172,407 payroll employees. Software and game publishers are at 82% of the national concentration, custom programming studios at 68%, graphic design firms at 63% and film, video and animation production at 18%. Census files most game studios under software publishers instead of counting them separately, so the first row is the one to watch, and it's below the national level.
Industry
What it covers
Businesses
Employees
Concentration
Software and game publishers
Software publishers (game publishers and studios are filed here)
17
1,028
0.82
Custom programming studios
Custom computer programming services (contract and co-development studios)
68
852
0.68
Film, video and animation production
Motion picture and video production (animation and VFX studios)
14
36
0.18
Graphic design firms
Graphic design services
12
38
0.63
Establishments and March payroll employees in the Lansing-East Lansing, MI metro, County Business Patterns 2023. Concentration is the industry's share of metro employees divided by its share nationally: 1.00 matches the U.S., 2.00 is twice as concentrated.
Some roles do show up at above-average rates. Developers score 1.28 on location quotient and graphic designers 1.17, both more common than nationally. Computer programmers are at 0.97 and art directors at 0.78, close to the U.S. level or slightly below, and web and digital interface designers fall to 0.54.
So a developer can find work here more easily than an animator or art director can. If your goal is a studio job, plan to move or work remotely, and treat the cheap rent as an advantage while you build a portfolio.
How Common Game-Adjacent Jobs Are in Lansing
Occupation
Jobs per 1,000
Location quotient
Software developers
13.91
1.28
Web and digital interface designers
0.39
0.54
Graphic designers
1.49
1.17
Computer programmers
0.58
0.97
Art directors
0.27
0.78
BLS OEWS May 2025. Jobs per 1,000 of all metro jobs; a location quotient above 1.00 means the occupation is more common in the metro than nationally.
Talent pipeline
How Many Game Graduates Lansing Produces
Colleges within 50 miles turn out 63 game-related graduates annually, 60 of them with bachelor's degrees. Inside the metro the count is 49 a year, so the ratio to the 3,100 core jobs is 1.6%. Michigan State University produces 49 of them in game and interactive media design. Baker College adds 11 in computer game programming, but it sits 27 miles out, beyond the metro, and Kellogg Community College adds 4 associate graduates 41 miles out.
The 3 largest game-related programs within 50 miles of central Lansing by graduates a year, IPEDS completions averaged 2022 to 2024:
The ratio is high mostly because the job base is so small, not because Lansing graduates are crowding anyone out. Core jobs here are overwhelmingly outside games, and graduates drift to bigger markets. Read it as a sign that Michigan State is the school to look at, and that most of its game graduates won't be finding local game jobs.
Cost near Lansing
Paying for School in Lansing
Two public colleges are within 50 miles, and both are Michigan schools. Michigan State University charges Michigan residents $17,739 and others $44,510, a premium of $26,771. Kellogg Community College charges $5,450 for Michigan residents and $7,634 for everyone else, with a school-wide net price of $4,977.
The public colleges within 50 miles that offer a game-related program, all in Michigan. 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).
Michigan residents can look at the Michigan Achievement Scholarship, offered through the Michigan Department of Treasury, MI Student Aid. No undergraduate regional tuition exchange covers this area, so the $26,771 premium at Michigan State University is a real cost for anyone from out of state.
State Aid in Michigan
Michigan's main need program for undergraduates is the Michigan Achievement Scholarship, run by the Michigan Department of Treasury, MI Student Aid. In its own words: "The Michigan Achievement Scholarship is designed to help recent high school graduates in Michigan receive funds for continuing education." The Michigan page covers state aid and public college costs in more detail.
Tuition Exchanges
No regional undergraduate tuition exchange covers Michigan, so public schools in other states charge their full nonresident rate.
Living costs
Living in Lansing as a Student
Lansing is cheap to rent in. Renters here pay a median of $1,111, a full $376 under the $1,487 national figure. Plan on $931 monthly for a one-bedroom, which is $11,172 across the year, compared with $1,301 for the U.S. one-bedroom. Housing prices sit at 83.5 against a national level of 100.
Monthly rent
Lansing and East Lansing metro
U.S.
All rentals, median
$1,111
$1,487
One bedroom, median
$931
$1,301
Two bedrooms, median
$1,140
$1,490
Median gross rent (rent plus utilities the tenant pays), American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates, tables B25064 and B25031.
Sharing a two-bedroom at $1,140 comes to $570 each. Two colleges report on-campus room and board: Baker College is the cheapest at $7,600 and Michigan State University costs $11,754. Kellogg Community College has no campus housing and lists an off-campus estimate of $5,470. Between the rent and the dorm prices, living costs are unlikely to be your biggest expense here.
Rent helps here, at a $1,111 monthly median in the Lansing and East Lansing metro, $376 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.
Your mix covers game design and programming. Michigan State University leans toward game design, while Baker College's program is a game programming program. There's no animation bachelor's within 50 miles, so artists should look at the 57 to 82 mile ring.
Public versus private is easy to settle. Michigan State University is public and scores highest, and Baker College is private with a lower net price of $14,743. For a Michigan resident, the public option wins on score and the cohort size, and it also offers the better odds of finishing, going by the school-wide rates.
At 5 miles, Michigan State University is a commute from home. Baker College at 27 miles is a daily trip only if you don't mind the distance. These are straight-line figures, so check the real route.
The one college on this page isn't open admission; Michigan State University admitted 85% of applicants for fall 2024. None requires SAT or ACT scores.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Game Design Programs Are Closest to Lansing?
Michigan State University is the top-ranked game design school near Lansing, scoring 79.0 and ranked 10 of 89 nationally. It beats the ranking's medians on both counts: 83% of its students finish, against 59%, and aided first-year students pay $24,630, against $26,150. With about 49 graduates a year, it is one of the larger programs in the ranking, so expect big cohorts and several sections of core courses. It is the only ranked game bachelor's in the metro. See the ranked programs.
Is It Hard to Earn a Good Game Salary in Lansing?
Software developers, the BLS occupation that counts game programmers, earn a median of $97,120 in the Lansing and East Lansing metro, against $135,980 nationally (BLS May 2025). In the Lansing and East Lansing metro, web and digital interface designers, where game designers are counted, earn $67,770, which is 35% under the national median of $104,000. Living costs work in your favor in the Lansing and East Lansing metro: BEA puts prices 5.0% below the U.S. average, so a paycheck or a student budget goes further. See what game jobs pay in Lansing.
What Would Michigan State University Cost a Michigan Resident?
Michigan State University has an average net price of $24,630 a year for aided first-year students (IPEDS), the price after grants rather than the published one. Published tuition is $17,739 for in-state students and $44,510 out of state. It is 5 miles from central Lansing, ranked 10 of 89 nationally, with a school-wide completion rate of 83%. With about 49 graduates a year, it is one of the larger programs in the ranking, so expect big cohorts and several sections of core courses. See the ranked programs.
How Far Is Baker College From Lansing?
1 ranked program sit inside the Lansing and East Lansing metro, and 1 associate, graduate or certificate program adds other ways in. Michigan State University scores highest, at 79.0. The top program is 5 miles from central Lansing, close enough to commute if housing nearby is out of reach. 1 game-related program sits within 25 miles of central Lansing and 3 within 50, counting every level. The rest of the metro and the nearby areas are on the Michigan page. See the ranked programs.
Is Lansing Cheap for College Students?
In-state tuition at public colleges near Lansing starts at $5,450 a year, at Kellogg Community College, and runs up to $17,739 at Michigan State University. Nonresidents pay $7,634 at Kellogg Community College. 2 public colleges within 50 miles offer a game-related program, and private colleges charge every student the same tuition. After grants, Kellogg Community College has the lowest average net price nearby, $4,977, under the $13,240 public average in the median state. See paying for school in Lansing.
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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.
