May 13, 2019
Top Chinese universities introduce UE4 courses to meet global education market demands
Shanghai Jiao Tong University introduces for-credit Unreal Engine course
Last fall, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), a major research university in China, introduced its new Unreal Engine 4 elective course “Unreal Engine Program Development and Practice.” This course happens to be one of the first for-credit courses specifically focused on Unreal Engine in China.The Epic-approved curriculum concentrates on teaching basic game-development concepts and provides a hands-on experience to instill the core fundamentals of Unreal Engine, including how to learn Blueprints, Unreal’s node-based visual scripting language.
When Shanghai Jiao Tong University debuted their Unreal Engine program, “the class reached maximum enrollment as soon as it became available in the university online system,” says Tianmin Xie, business director of sales for Epic Games China.
With the success of the first fall course, SJTU launched its second Unreal Engine spring course this past March.
Central Academy of Fine Arts combines UE4 with art design
Central Academy of Fine Arts, known for being one of the top 30 design schools in the world, debuted an Unreal Engine obligatory course this past March. The course includes basic knowledge of Unreal Engine, Blueprints, gameplay and materials, animation, and UI.The students in this course create their own VR project with Unreal Engine in just seven weeks. The Vice Dean Jinjun of Central Academy of Fine Arts thinks it’s a “fabulous idea to mix Unreal Engine technology with art design.” He’s encouraging more teachers to expand and include Unreal in their courses.
UE4 makes its debut at the Beijing Film Academy
Unreal Engine continues to spark curiosity in the film industry due to its hyper-efficient virtual production pipeline. Beijing Film Academy opened up an Unreal Engine obligatory course this past March. Moving forward, the academy will also be offering a class to postgraduates to learn Unreal Engine.Shanghai Vancouver Film Academy has also jumped into the world of real-time — they recently opened a Blueprints course and launched an Unreal Engine C++ course this semester.
At Epic, we are excited about the increased adoption of real-time technology in educational institutions around the world. The demand for real-time and Unreal Engine skills continues to grow and is significant not only in game development, but also in other disciplines such as architecture, TV/film, industrial design, and computer science. We’re continually partnering with universities to integrate real-time technology more broadly across multiple disciplines to prepare students for careers in these industries.
Are you looking to incorporate Unreal Engine into your teaching curriculum? We have free, Epic-approved instructor guides available for download here.