Feb. 4, 2025
Ferris State partners with Gen Con to offer Game Design Certificate at summer convention, preparing students for careers in growing field
People interested in careers designing board games and table-top games can earn credits at Ferris State University by participating in a new Game Design Certificate Program offered this summer at Gen Con, North America’s largest and longest-running tabletop gaming convention.
Gen Con runs July 30 through Aug. 3, 2025, in Indianapolis and typically attracts about 120,000 attendees.
The Game Design Certificate program emphasizes practical learning combined with expert insights, aimed at aspiring game designers, educators, and enthusiasts who wish to enhance their knowledge of game-based learning and design methodologies.
Participants will engage with industry leaders, experienced educators, and distinguished game designers within a collaborative and interactive setting.
Dr. Andrew Peterson, a Ferris State adjunct professor and lead developer of the program, said people completing the Game Design Academy can transfer three credits at Ferris State, taking the place of Digital Animation and Game Design 150 class.
“We’re combining the creativity and community associated with Gen Con with the structure and rigor that characterize an academic learning experience,” said Peterson, who will be one of the instructors at the event. “This certificate bridges the gap between game design as a hobby and a viable professional career.”
The Game Design Certificate program is structured to provide academic credit equivalence for participants interested in transferring their experience to their chosen higher education institution, with an articulation agreement in place with Ferris State.
The degree in Digital Animation and Game Design is intended to open doors to a wide-range of career options. DAGD grads work for game studios, film companies, software firms and in the automotive, health care, product design and many other industries. It's a visual world, and no one is better positioned to create those visuals than Ferris DAGD graduates.
This innovative partnership ensures the certificate is a badge of accomplishment and a step toward academic and professional growth.
Fortune Business Insights, a business research organization, projects significant growth in the board game field. The market size is expected to grow from $14.37 billion in 2024 to nearly $16 billion this year, and $32 billion in 2032.
Spaces for the program are limited, and registration opens at noon on Feb 9.
Information about the Gen Con Game Design Academy and the Game Design Certificate program, and securing a spot is available on the Gen Con website here.
Gen Con is North America's largest, and longest-running annual event devoted to tabletop gaming culture.
The convention, which began in 1968, takes place each summer in Indianapolis. During the convention, attendees shop and demo games from hundreds of exhibiting companies and choose from thousands of ticketed events representing a wide array of board games, card games, roleplaying games, seminars, entertainment events, and more.