Games Design - Level 3 (Extended Diploma)

The UK is well known for its cutting edge games development companies and this course provides the first step onto the games development career ladder. The learning adopts a hands-on approach to skills development by exploring subjects within a range of computing environments.

You will have the opportunity to explore a range of platforms and use your creativity to design and develop your own ideas. This will allow you to develop your understanding of what makes games playable and exciting as well as understanding the rigorous processes required to develop games software.

The focus of the course is to provide you with the skills to set you on a path to working in the computer games industry as well as sufficient knowledge to support work in other digital media industries if this is where you decide to specialise.

Please visit computingdept.cwa.ac.uk/games.html for more in-depth information, and check the social media feeds @cwagamesdesign on Twitter and Facebook for up-to-date information on external projects, business partners and commissions that students are working on.

Units you will be studying include:

Year One

• Media Representations (assessed via online exam)
• Pre-Production Portfolio
• Media Campaign
• Responding to a Commission (externally assessed)
• Digital Games Production
• Film Production (for games)

Year Two

• Working in the Games Industry
• Digital Media Skills (externally assessed)
• Specialist Subject Investigation (externally assessed)
• App Production (Hybrid and Native Apps) or 3D Modelling Games * Engine Scripting
• 3D Environments with VR
• Coding for Web-based Media (Client-Side Scripting) or 3D Animation

Modules are subject to change and should be used as a guide only.

You will need:

• 5 or more GCSEs at grade 4 or higher, including English and maths, and a portfolio.

Or:

• A Merit or higher in a full level 2 qualification in computing studied at CWA or another further education provider. This does not include level 2 courses studied at school alongside GCSEs.
• GCSEs at grade 4 or above in English and maths and a portfolio

You will be invited to an interview to help us ensure the course is right for you.

You will also be required to bring a portfolio of evidence (drawings and artwork - visual/digital) to induction week. This should include examples of work comprising some or all of concept art, 3D models, script mods, levels from level editors, level design sketches, storyboards, simple 2D/3D games already developed. We are interested in the creative thinking and amount of time invested in building games or games content. In other words, your portfolio should be sufficient to show us you are committed to games development rather than just playing games. It isn't about how good you are at this point, we want to see a passion for games development and evidence that you are able to work independently.

How long is this course?

2 years

When does this course start?

02/09/2025

How many hours / days per week is this course?

Full-time courses at CWA are generally 3 - 4 days per week (though you may be in for an extra day if you are resitting English and / or Maths). The college day is typically longer than a day at school and students will need to plan their individual study in their free time (including individual study hours which are recorded at college in the Learning Resource Centre or other study areas). Work experience will be a key component of your course and most students will complete a minimum of 60 hours per academic year (on top of their college hours), depending on the course they are studying. CWA has a dedicated team of work placement co-ordinators to support you with this.

Age	Cost
16-18	Free*
19+	£7,350

* Some of our courses may have additional costs to cover trips, unform and equipment. These costs will be confirmed to you at enrolment.

Fee information

Though this course is free for those aged 16-18, there may be additional costs related to the programme, such as additional equipment and uniform, educational trips and work placement costs. Full details will be sent to applicants before enrolment.

Find all the information you need about course fees and financial help below.

Information on Fees and Financial Help

Adult (19+) learners

Depending on your age, course, educational history and personal circumstances, there may be options available for you to receive a course fully-funded by the government. Our fee calculator will help give you an idea on whether you'll be able to have your course fee waived or covered by an Advanced Learner Loan.

Complete our fee calculator

Learners with an active Education, Health & Care Plan

If you are aged 19 - 24 at the start of your course and have an active Education, Health & Care Plan (EHCP), any course up to and including level 3 will be fully-funded by the government. This means you will not have a course fee to pay and any equipment considered essential to complete your course will be provided by the college.

What qualification will I achieve?

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma in Creative Digital Media Production (Digital Games route)

How is my course assessed?

There will be modules that are externally assessed by Pearson and internally by your course lecturers. 2 Modules in the first year are externally assessed 1 with an on-screen exam and the other being a practical assessment under exam conditions. The rest of the course will be internally assessed through practical assignments, written coursework and some other assessment methods. You will be graded Pass, Merit or Distinction and all grades will count towards your final grade at the end of each year.

How many UCAS points will I achieve on this course?

Our level 3 vocational courses qualify for UCAS tariff points to apply for university in the same way as A-Levels. This course is an extended diploma which is delivered over two years and you could achieve up to 168 UCAS points (which is equivalent to three A* grades at A-Level).

BTEC extended diplomas are graded as a pass, merit, distinction or distinction star (with distinction star being the highest grade) with the overall grade being a combination of three grades which represent an aggregation of your performance on mandatory and optional units on the course.

The following table gives some examples on the amount of UCAS points you can achieve on a BTEC extended diploma:

BTEC grade	UCAS Points
3x D*	168
2x D*, D	160
D*DD	152
DDD	144
DDM	128
DMM	112
MMM	96
MMP	80
MPP	64
PPP	48

Depending on your circumstances, you may study a smaller qualification, such as a subsidiary diploma (for example, if you only complete one year) or general diploma which may carry less UCAS tariff points.

You can find more details and examples on the UCAS tariff points calculator here.