Bachelor of Science in Game Design and Simulation Engineering
Games are the largest entertainment industry on earth and the most demanding consumer of real time engineering skill, and the same engine and simulation competence sells directly into training, defence, mining, aviation, health and educatio...
Employment thesis
What this programme is designed to produce
Forward publishes the destination of every programme before you enrol. If the thesis stops holding, the programme is reviewed and, where necessary, retired. Next review: 2031.
Roles
- Gameplay and engine programmer
- simulation engineer
- technical designer
- game designer
- tools programmer
- serious games developer
- interactive systems developer
- independent studio founder.
Employer types
- Games studios internationally, substantially through remote and contract work
- simulation and training providers in aviation, mining, health and defence
- education technology companies
- advertising and interactive agencies
- research groups
- and student founded studios.
Target outcomes we hold ourselves to
- A global remote accessible engineering market with strong pay, plus institutional simulation demand that is growing regionally.
Compulsory · The Forward Core
How the Core works →Every Forward programme, including this one, carries the same five cross-cutting requirements. They are graded, not optional.
- AI Fluency
- Quantitative Reasoning
- Ethics and African Context
- Human-Advantage Skills
- Enterprise
Includes 12 months paid work-integrated learning
Am I eligible?
Check yourself against the published requirements
7 questions written specifically for Bachelor of Science in Game Design and Simulation Engineering. Every answer is checked against a requirement Forward has published, and the result tells you which page that requirement comes from. Indicative only, the admissions office decides on your full file.
What is the highest qualification you hold or are completing?
Curriculum structure
The same degree, in both pathways
Every Forward programme is published in both pathways: Path One, the term plan of two six-month terms, and Path Two, the block sequence of twelve four-week blocks. Same competencies, same assessments, same award. Toggle to see this programme in each.
Path One term plan shown
Path One · The Term Model
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 101 | AI Fluency I: How Intelligent Systems Work Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| CTM 110 | Programming for Interactive Systems Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| CTM 111 | Game Design Fundamentals and Systems Thinking Performance | 5 | 1-0-8 |
| CTM 112 | Mathematics for Games and Simulation Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| CTM 113 | Digital Asset Production for Real Time Performance | 4 | 1-0-6 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 102 | Quantitative Reasoning and Evidence Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| CTM 130 | Engine Programming and Architecture Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| CTM 131 | Physics and Simulation Programming Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| CTM 132 | Level, Encounter and Experience Design Performance | 5 | 1-0-8 |
| CTM 133 | Data Structures and Algorithms for Real Time Performance | 4 | 1-2-4 |
| COP 190 | Workplace Immersion (4 weeks, recess term) Performance | 0 | 0-0-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 201 | Ethics, Society and the African Context Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| CTM 210 | Artificial Intelligence for Games and Agents Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| CTM 211 | Production Studio I: Vertical Slice Performance | 5 | 1-0-8 |
| CTM 212 | Graphics Programming and Rendering Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| CTM 213 | Audio, Feel and Player Experience Performance | 3 | 1-0-4 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 202 | Human Advantage: Argument, Writing and Teams Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| COP 290 | Co-operative Education Placement I (6 months) Performance | 10 | 0-0-0 |
| CTM 230 | Studio Placement or Contract Practicum Performance | 5 | 0-0-0 |
| CTM 231 | Networking, Multiplayer and Live Operations Performance | 3 | 1-0-4 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 301 | AI Fluency II: Building, Evaluating and Auditing Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| COP 390 | Co-operative Education Placement II (6 months) Performance | 10 | 0-0-0 |
| CTM 310 | Serious Games, Training Simulation and Learning Transfer Performance | 5 | 1-0-8 |
| CTM 311 | Performance Profiling, Testing and Quality Performance | 3 | 1-0-4 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 302 | Enterprise, Employability and Financial Literacy Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| FDC 401 | AI Fluency III: Domain Deployment, Governance and Assurance Both | 3 | 1-2-0 |
| FDC 402 | Capability Portfolio and Day One Preparation Both | 3 | 1-2-0 |
| CTM 330 | Games Capstone: Shipped Title or Delivered Simulation Performance | 8 | 0-2-14 |
| CTM 331 | Games Business, Publishing and Live Monetisation Ethics Both | 4 | 2-2-2 |
Total credit units: 134
Curriculum source
Forward University Curriculum Compendium
Assessment
Coursework + project + integrated exam
Work-integrated learning
12 months paid co-operative education
Your week at Forward
A typical week on Bachelor of Science in Game Design and Simulation Engineering
Path One, the Term Model: your own pace across a six-month term, one live session a week, short flexible lessons, and assessment on demand.
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Curriculum explorer
Drill into the degree, step by step
Choose a study path, then a year, then a term or block, then a course. Credit totals add up as you go, and every course shows what comes before it and what it unlocks.
Step 1, choose a year
Step 2, choose a term
TERM 1 (SIX MONTHS) | FORMERLY YEAR 1, SEMESTER 1
Year 1 · this step is worth 23 CU
Cumulative
23
Programme total
132
23 CU of 132 CU completed by the end of this step (17%)
Step 3, choose a course
Pick a course to see the detail
Credits, assessment, prerequisites and what each course unlocks later.
The twelve Forward capabilities
What this programme develops in you
Every Forward degree develops the same twelve cross-cutting capabilities. The profile below is the level this programme is designed to develop and verify by graduation, on the four-level scale in Part B2 of the Curriculum Compendium. Every claim above Level 2 is verified by someone other than the teaching lecturer.
- C1Intelligent Systems Fluency CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C2Quantitative and Evidential ReasoningLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C3Ethical and Contextual JudgementLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C4Communication and PersuasionLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C5Disciplinary MasteryLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C6Technical Production and Craft CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C7Problem Framing and Systems Thinking CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C8Collaboration and Multidisciplinary TeamingLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C9Enterprise, Value and Commercial Literacy CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C10Professional Conduct and Workplace PerformanceLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C11Learning to Learn and Adaptive CapacityLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C12Stewardship and Public ContributionLevel 3 of 4, Independent
Critical capabilities for this programme: Intelligent Systems Fluency · Technical Production and Craft · Problem Framing and Systems Thinking · Enterprise, Value and Commercial Literacy. A graduate cannot pass out of this programme below the stated level on any capability marked critical.
Programme Learning Outcomes
What you will be able to do
Each outcome is assessed, and each is tagged with the Forward capabilities it is verified against.
- PLO 1Program interactive real time systems with attention to performance and memory.
- PLO 2Design and balance systems and mechanics against measurable player or learner outcomes.
- PLO 3Build simulations with defensible physical or behavioural models.
- PLO 4Apply artificial intelligence techniques to agent behaviour and procedural content.
- PLO 5Test, profile, debug and ship a stable interactive product.
- PLO 6Work in a multidisciplinary production team under version control and milestones.
- PLO 7Design and evaluate serious games where learning transfer must be proven.
Why this programme exists
Games are the largest entertainment industry on earth and the most demanding consumer of real time engineering skill, and the same engine and simulation competence sells directly into training, defence, mining, aviation, health and educatio...
Admission requirements
UACE with two principal passes including Mathematics, Physics, Computer Studies, Economics or a science subject, plus UCE with five passes including Mathematics and English. Alternative pathways: Foundation Year, diploma entry with advanced standing, mature age entry and recognition of prior learning, all governed by Part A5 and Part G. Online applicants additionally complete the compulsory Digital Readiness orientation under Part D6.
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