The top-ranked name among game design schools near Tampa isn't in Tampa, and Ringling College of Art and Design is 42 miles away in Sarasota and graduates 132 animation students a year, while the University of Tampa, 2 miles from the center, is a small program ranked 75 of 82. Florida Southern College, 33 miles away in Lakeland, has the only ranked game design degree. All three are private, and there's no public college in range at all.
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
1Ranked Game Design Bachelor's Nearbyranked, within 50 miles; plus 2 animationOur ranking
The University of Tampa leads the metro at 44.7.One ranked program sits inside the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro. Completion is a strength at 63%, above the 59% median, but its $35,975 net price is $9,825 more than the median ranked program's.The Ranking ›
Software developers earn $130,450 here.The U.S. median for the same job is $135,980. About 14,230 people work as software developers in the metro, close to the national share. In Tampa, web and digital interface designers, where bls counts game designers, earn $82,480, which is 21% under the national median of $104,000.Pay ›
160 software and game publishers in the metro.Concentration 0.94, where 1.00 matches the U.S. Those publishers employ 8,782 people. The metro also has 887 custom programming studios and 140 film, video and animation production companies.Employers ›
Every program nearby is at a private college.There's no in-state rate to qualify for within 50 miles.Costs ›
A one-bedroom rents for $1,573 a month.The U.S. median one-bedroom is $1,301. Rent is the big cost in the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro: the median is $1,776 a month, $289 over the U.S. median. The lowest on-campus room and board nearby is $12,676 a year at The University of Tampa.Living Costs ›
Ranked in Tampa
The Best Game Design Schools in Tampa, FL for 2027
The University of Tampa is the one ranked program inside the metro. Its animation program scores 44.6 and graduates 5 a year, and published tuition is $32,096. School-wide, net price averages $35,975 and 63% of students complete.
That's a small program with a hefty bill. It's a convenient option if you live in Tampa and want to stay home, but it isn't one that our scoring puts near the top, so compare it with Ringling before you commit.
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 Tampa.
Tampa, FL · Private nonprofit · Animation program · 2 miles
44.7
#75 of 82 in animation
2 miles from Tampa
Animation
Private
The University of Tampa is 2 miles from downtown Tampa, which lets animation students live in the city or stay close to it. The B.F.A. in Animation is a professional degree accredited by NASAD, and it focuses on 2D and 3D computer animation, motion effects, CGI and advanced software. Topics of study include stop frame animation, visual effects, Maya, motion capture, animation for interactivity and gaming, rotoscoping, sound design, creative coding and physical computing. A junior portfolio review and a senior capstone mark the progress through the major, and graduates head for roles as creative artists in the animation industry or for M.F.A. study.
Tuition is $32,096 for all students, and aided first-years pay a net price of $35,975. Only about 5 students finish the degree in a typical year. Across the university, 11,433 students are enrolled, 40% of applicants are admitted and 63% complete within eight years. Earnings ten years out are $59,436 across all majors.
The rest of the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL metro and the nearby areas are covered on the Florida page.
StateFlorida4 ranked game bachelor's · 13 programs in allView the Florida guide ›
Pay in Tampa
What Game Jobs Pay in Tampa
Tampa's game pay tracks Florida's and runs behind the nation. Software developers earn $130,450 at the median, $5,530 under the national median and $530 under the state's, with 14,230 people employed.
Graphic designersWhere many art and UI graduates start
$62,900
$48,760–$79,070$49k–$79k$48,760 to $79,070
1,870
$61,660
$62,960
Computer programmersProgramming roles outside software development
$100,140
$64,560–$124,630$65k–$125k$64,560 to $124,630
830
$93,180
$100,390
Art directorsSenior art leads; rarely a first job
$90,360
$75,090–$119,880$75k–$120k$75,090 to $119,880
310
$99,660
$114,850
Annual wages, BLS OEWS May 2025, for the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL 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 Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro in the current release.
On the art and design side the gap widens. Web and digital interface designers earn $82,480, ahead of the state by $4,750 but $21,520 short of the nation. Animators earn $74,140, about 100 are counted, and the state median is $85,870. Computer programmers earn $100,140, only $250 short of the national figure. Art directors reach $90,360, and graphic designers sit at $62,900.
Housing is the pressure point. Metro prices sit at 100.9 where the national average is 100, and housing prices at 125.8. A design salary here has to cover rent that runs a quarter above the national norm.
About 14,230 people work as software developers in the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro, close to the national share. In Tampa, web and digital interface designers, where bls counts game designers, earn $82,480, which is 21% under the national median of $104,000. BEA's index puts prices in the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro near the U.S. average, at 100.9.
Tampa's game-related job base is mixed. Software and game publishers are close to even with the nation, at 94% of the national concentration across 160 businesses. Custom programming studios do better, at 1.5 times the national concentration with 14,172 employees. Studios don't have their own Census code. Most are counted with software publishers, which makes that first row the nearest stand-in.
Industry
What it covers
Businesses
Employees
Concentration
Software and game publishers
Software publishers (game publishers and studios are filed here)
160
8,782
0.94
Custom programming studios
Custom computer programming services (contract and co-development studios)
887
14,172
1.52
Film, video and animation production
Motion picture and video production (animation and VFX studios)
140
349
0.24
Graphic design firms
Graphic design services
171
451
0.99
Establishments and March payroll employees in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL 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.
The creative side is lighter. On the animation side, film, video and animation production reaches only 24% of the national concentration, and special effects artists and animators have a location quotient of 0.51. Art directors are at 0.62, while software developers sit closer to even at 0.91. Graphic designers are the exception, at 1.01.
In plain terms, a programmer is better placed for local contract work than an animator. An animator should plan on remote work or relocation.
How Common Game-Adjacent Jobs Are in Tampa
Occupation
Jobs per 1,000
Location quotient
Software developers
9.84
0.91
Special effects artists and animators
0.07
0.51
Graphic designers
1.29
1.01
Computer programmers
0.58
0.97
Art directors
0.21
0.62
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 Tampa Produces
Every one of the 139 game-related graduates a year within 50 miles holds a bachelor's degree. Only 5 of them come from a college inside the metro, against 14,330 core jobs, a share of under 0.1% of those jobs. The pipeline is concentrated in one place outside the metro: Ringling College of Art and Design alone produces 132 of them a year in animation and related fields, while The University of Tampa adds 5 and Florida Southern College adds 2.
The 3 largest game-related programs within 50 miles of central Tampa by graduates a year, IPEDS completions averaged 2022 to 2024:
That share says colleges inside the metro supply very few graduates against a large job base, and the local job market is mostly filled by people trained elsewhere. The core jobs are mostly general software and interface positions, not game positions, and Ringling is 42 miles from the city center. Graduates also move on. Use the figure to see which school feeds the region, not to forecast your odds.
Cost near Tampa
Paying for School in Tampa
No public college within 50 miles of Tampa has a game program, so there's no in-state and out-of-state tuition comparison to draw. All three schools above are private nonprofits, and their sticker tuitions of $32,096, $42,900 and $52,600 apply to Floridians and visitors alike. Net price after aid is what separates them, from $30,462 at Florida Southern College to $60,362 at Ringling.
Florida's state aid is Bright Futures, administered through the Florida Department of Education, Office of Student Financial Assistance. There's no undergraduate regional tuition exchange for Florida.
State Aid in Florida
Florida's main merit program for undergraduates is the Bright Futures, run by the Florida Department of Education, Office of Student Financial Assistance. In its own words: "The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program establishes lottery-funded scholarships to reward Florida high school graduates for high academic achievement." The Florida page covers state aid and public college costs in more detail.
Tuition Exchanges
Florida takes part in the Academic Common Market (ACM) only at the graduate level, so undergraduates pay full nonresident tuition at public schools in other states unless the school offers its own award.
Living costs
Living in Tampa as a Student
Rent in Tampa runs above the national figure. Median rent of $1,776 is $289 over the $1,487 U.S. median, and a one-bedroom averages $1,573 monthly, $18,876 across the year. Housing prices run at 125.8 against a national level of 100, while overall metro prices are just above average at 100.9.
Monthly rent
Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro
U.S.
All rentals, median
$1,776
$1,487
One bedroom, median
$1,573
$1,301
Two bedrooms, median
$1,764
$1,490
Median gross rent (rent plus utilities the tenant pays), American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates, tables B25064 and B25031.
A shared two-bedroom at $1,764 comes to $882 each. All three nearby colleges have on-campus housing. The University of Tampa is the cheapest at $12,676 for room and board, Florida Southern College is $13,800 and Ringling College of Art and Design is $17,850. Living on campus keeps you out of the rental market while you build a portfolio.
Rent is the big cost in the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro: the median is $1,776 a month, $289 over the U.S. median.
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.
Look at the mix first. One ranked game design program and two animation programs, and nothing a game programming program or simulation. A student who wants to code should plan on computer science, and a student who wants art has two animation choices with very different scale: 5 graduates a year at one and 132 at the other.
Public against private doesn't apply, because every ranked option is private. The comparison is cost against cohort. Florida Southern College has the lowest net price of the three, $30,462, but graduates 2 a year in game design. The University of Tampa is $35,975, and Ringling College of Art and Design is $60,362 with the strongest animation ranking.
Commuting works for one school. The University of Tampa is 2 miles from the center, so you can live at home. Florida Southern College at 33 miles and Ringling at 42 miles are straight-line figures.
The one college on this page isn't open admission; The University of Tampa admitted 40% of applicants for fall 2024. None requires SAT or ACT scores.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Game Design School Near Tampa Is Best?
The University of Tampa has the top-ranked program near Tampa, an animation bachelor's scoring 44.7. Completion is a strength at 63%, above the 59% median, but its $35,975 net price is $9,825 more than the median ranked program's. It is small, about 5 graduates a year, which can mean closer faculty contact but fewer electives each term. It is the only ranked game bachelor's in the metro. See the ranked programs.
What Does a Game Job Pay in the Tampa Area?
Software developers, the BLS occupation that counts game programmers, earn a median of $130,450 in the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro, against $135,980 nationally (BLS May 2025). In the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro, web and digital interface designers, where game designers are counted, earn $82,480, which is 21% under the national median of $104,000. BEA's index puts prices in the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro near the U.S. average, at 100.9. See what game jobs pay in Tampa.
How Far Is Ringling College From Tampa?
1 ranked program sit inside the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro. The University of Tampa scores highest, at 44.7. The top program is 2 miles from central Tampa, close enough to commute if housing nearby is out of reach. 1 game-related program sits within 25 miles of central Tampa and 3 within 50, counting every level. The rest of the metro and the nearby areas are on the Florida page. See the ranked programs.
What Does Rent Cost Near Tampa Game Design Schools?
Median rent in the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater metro was $1,776 a month in 2024, $289 above the U.S. median of $1,487 (Census ACS). A one-bedroom runs $1,573. On-campus room and board at nearby colleges starts at $12,676 a year at The University of Tampa, which bundles meals and avoids a lease. Housing is the expensive part: BEA puts it at 125.8 against a U.S. average of 100. See living in Tampa as a student.
How Selective Is the University of Tampa?
The University of Tampa has an average net price of $35,975 a year for aided first-year students (IPEDS), the price after grants rather than the published one. Published tuition is $32,096 for every student, in state or not. It is 2 miles from central Tampa, with a school-wide completion rate of 63%. It is small, about 5 graduates a year, which can mean closer faculty contact but fewer electives each term. See the ranked programs.
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.
