DigiPen Institute of Technology is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

for-profit university in

Redmond, Washington Redmond is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located east of Seattle. The population was 73,256 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Redmond is best known as the home of Microsoft and Nintendo of America. The city h ...

. It also has campuses in

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

and

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

, Spain. DigiPen offers bachelor's and master's degree programs.

History

In 1988, DigiPen was founded by Claude Comair in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, British Columbia, Canada as a research and development institute for computer science and animation. Comair continues to be the President and CEO to the present day. In 1990, DigiPen began offering its first dedicated educational program in the subject of 3D computer animation through the

Vancouver Film School Vancouver Film School (VFS) is a private entertainment arts school located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Founded in 1987, it has achieved international recognition. The Vancouver Film School has campus locations around Downtown Vancouve ...

. In 1990, DigiPen began offering a 3D animation program and began collaborating with

Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles. The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...

of America to create a post-secondary program for video game programming. With Nintendo's support, DigiPen Applied Computer Graphics School accepted its first class of video game programming students in 1994. In 1996, the Washington State Higher Education Coordinating Board granted DigiPen the authorization to award degrees in the United States. DigiPen's first offered degree program was the Bachelor of Science in Real-Time Interactive Simulation. In 1998, DigiPen Institute of Technology opened its campus in

as a joint campus between DigiPen and

Nintendo Software Technology Nintendo Software Technology Corporation, doing business as Nintendo Software Technology (NST), is an American video game developer. NST was created by Nintendo as a first-party developer to create games for the North American market, though thei ...

. In 2002, DigiPen received national accreditation from the ACCSC. DigiPen began offering its first Masters program, a Masters of Science in Computer Science. DigiPen graduated its last classes in its Associate programs, and only offered Undergraduate and Postgraduate programs. In 2008, DigiPen Institute of Technology opened its campus in Singapore in conjunction with Singapore's

Economic Development Board The Economic Development Board (EDB) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of the government of Singapore that plans and executes strategies to sustain Singapore as a leading global hub for business and investment. H ...

. Also in 2008, DigiPen's Research & Development arm created an

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is the capability of computer, computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making. It is a field of re ...

system regarding human behavioral modeling and simulation, titled B-HIVE, for

Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...

and their Phantom Works division. B-HIVE and its associated patents were commended as Boeing's "Supplier Technology of the Year" in 2008. In 2010, DigiPen relocated its main campus to an independent location, still in Redmond, Washington. DigiPen Institute of Technology Singapore joined the

Singapore Institute of Technology The Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT or Singaporetech) is a public autonomous university in Singapore. The university offers industry-focused, applied degree programmes; it confers its own degree programmes as well as specialised degree ...

. In 2011, DigiPen Institute of Technology opened its campus in the

Greater Bilbao Greater Bilbao (Basque language, Basque: ''Bilboaldea'', Spanish language, Spanish: ''Gran Bilbao'') is an administrative division of the province of Biscay, in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, Spain. It is one of the se ...

area, in the municipality of Zierbena. In 2015, DigiPen's Singapore campus moved to the

Singapore Polytechnic Singapore Polytechnic (SP) is a post-secondary education institution and statutory board under the purview of the Ministry of Education in Singapore. Established in 1954, SP is the first and oldest polytechnic in Singapore, and is renowned for ...

campus, while

’s joint campus began development. DigiPen's Bachelor of Science in

Computer Engineering Computer engineering (CE, CoE, or CpE) is a branch of engineering specialized in developing computer hardware and software. It integrates several fields of electrical engineering, electronics engineering and computer science. Computer engi ...

received

ABET ABET (pronounced A-bet), formerly known as the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc., is a non-governmental accreditation organization for post-secondary programs in engineering, engineering technology, computing, and applied ...

accreditation.

Campuses

Redmond, Washington, United States

DigiPen's main campus is located in Redmond on 9931 Willows Road. It offers 9 undergraduate and 2 postgraduate degree programs. It has approximately 1200 full-time students with a faculty-to-student ratio of 1:11 and an average class size of 22. International students make up 13% of the total student population. 24% of students are women. There are approximately 50 student run organizations on campus.

Singapore

DigiPen opened its Singapore campus in conjunction with Singapore's

in 2008. DigiPen's Singapore campus arranges courses forSingapore Institute of Technology students, and does not enroll students directly or issue undergraduate certificates independently. DigiPen's Singapore campus offers 5 undergraduate degree programs, including a Bachelor of Engineering with Honours in ElectroMechanical Systems which is not offered in any other campus. Moreover, this campus regularly offers unaccredited Specialist Diploma Programs jointly with Workforce Singapore. DigiPen's Singapore campus has approximately 900 full-time students from Singapore Institute of Technology.

Bilbao, Spain

DigiPen's Europe campus is located in Ribera de Zorrotzaurre, 2 in the city of

. It offers 2 undergraduate degree programs, with approximately 200 full-time students.

International university partnerships

* Keimyung University in

Daegu Daegu (; ), formerly spelled Taegu and officially Daegu Metropolitan City (), is a city in southeastern South Korea. It is the third-largest urban agglomeration in South Korea after Seoul and Busan; the fourth-largest List of provincial-level ci ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

and DigiPen Institute of Technology have a collaboration where students local to South Korea have the option to spend a program's first 5 semesters in

, taught by DigiPen Faculty members, and the remaining semesters in Redmond. *

Thammasat University Thammasat University (TU; ; , ) is a public university, public research university in Thailand with campuses in the Tha Phra Chan area of Bangkok, Rangsit, Pattaya and Lampang Province. , Thammasat University has over 39,000 students enrolled in ...

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

and DigiPen Institute of Technology have a collaboration where students local to Thailand have the option to spend a program's first 2-4 semesters in Bangkok and the remaining semesters in Redmond.

Accreditation

DigiPen is accredited by the

Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges The Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC) is a private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the United States that provides national accreditation to Private school, private post-secondary educational institutions. It is re ...

. DigiPen's Bachelor of Science in Computer Science in Real-Time Interactive Simulation and Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering are accredited by the

Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology ABET (pronounced A-bet), formerly known as the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc., is a non-governmental accreditation organization for post-secondary programs in engineering, engineering technology, computing, and appli ...

Research and development

DigiPen Research & Development is active in the research in

Formula 1 Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

and

INDYCAR IndyCar, LLC (stylized as INDYCAR), is an auto racing sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The organization sanctions two racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with the Indianapolis ...

, and is technical sponsor of

Renault Renault S.A., commonly referred to as Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English), is a French Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company curr ...

F1 (2008–present) and

Andretti Autosport Andretti Global is an American motorsports organization with teams competing in the IndyCar Series, Indy NXT, Formula E, and joint entries in IMSA and the Australian Supercars Championship. Starting in 2026, Andretti will also operate the Cad ...

(2015–present).

Criticism

* DigiPen has been criticized for asserting ownership over the copyright of work performed by their students. *In a 2021 video entitled "DigiPen: The College That Teaches Crunch Culture", gaming journalist and YouTuber James Stephanie Sterling, citing a series of anonymous interviews they had conducted with former DigiPen students, accused the school of conditioning students into the crunch culture of the larger video game industry and criticized practices such as overburdening students with impossible workloads and class requirements, failure to communicate grades and academic standing with students, and hiring and maintaining professors with outdated industry experience who reportedly engaged in yelling, intimidation, and other abusive behavior towards students. According to Sterling, DigiPen was reached out to for comment a week before the video's release (during the college's winter break closure) and did not respond.

Notable faculty

* Ellen Beeman – fantasy and science fiction author, television screenwriter, and computer game designer/producer Beeman is a Senior Lecturer of Game Software Design and Production at DigiPen. *

Mike Pondsmith Michael Alyn Pondsmith is an American Role-playing game, roleplaying, Board game, board, and video game designer. He founded the publisher R. Talsorian Games in 1982, where he developed a majority of the company's role-playing game lines. Pondsm ...

– roleplaying, board, and video game designer

Notable alumni

* Nate Martin – "Founding Father of Escape Rooms", co-founder and CEO of Puzzle Break * Kim Swift – designer on the '' Portal'' team * Aubrey Edwards – video game developer and professional wrestling referee * Jon Everist – video game composer and audio designer for ''

BattleTech ''BattleTech'' is a wargaming and military science fiction franchise launched by FASA Corporation in 1984, acquired by WizKids in 2001, which was in turn acquired by Topps in 2003; and published since 2007 by Catalyst Game Labs. The trademark ...

'', ''

Necropolis A necropolis (: necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'' (). The term usually implies a separate burial site at a distan ...

'', and '' Shadowrun: Hong Kong'' *

Howard Wang Howard Wang (born April 28, 1993) is an American voice actor, known for his work in anime dubs. Prior to pursuing voice acting, Wang used to work at Riot Games Riot Games, Inc. is an American video game developer, publisher, and esports ...

– voice actor

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:DigiPen Institute Of Technology Engineering universities and colleges in Washington (state) Private universities and colleges in Washington (state) Video game universities Educational institutions established in 1988 For-profit universities and colleges in the United States Universities and colleges in King County, Washington Education in Redmond, Washington 1988 establishments in Washington (state)