BSc (Hons) Game and Interactive Audio
London, United Kingdom
BSc
DURATION
3 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2027
TUITION FEES
EUR 17,000 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* non-EU/EEA/swiss students 2-year accelarated programme
Key Summary
About: SAE’s BSc (Hons) Game and Interactive Audio trains you to create immersive, adaptive audio for games, VR, AR and XR. You’ll study sound design, game engines, audio middleware and adaptive music systems using Unreal Engine, FMOD, Wwise and DAWs like Reaper and Ableton Live. Hands-on studio modules and a Major Project build a portfolio.
Career Outcomes: Graduates pursue roles in game audio, sound and immersive media. Career opportunities include Game Sound Designer, Technical Sound Designer, Game Audio Programmer, Interactive Sound Artist, XR/VR Audio Designer, Games and Interactive Media Composer, Creative Technologist and Audio Integration Specialist, and related creative roles.
If your goal is to create vibrant, immersive audio experiences across today’s evolving extended reality and games landscape, SAE’s BSc (Hons) Game and Interactive Audio is the course for you. This industry-focused degree blends sound design, game engines, audio middleware and adaptive systems, giving you the tools to design, implement and optimise audio for interactive environments.
What you can expect from your degree
As games, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and extended reality (XR) continue to advance, so too does the demand for specialists who can create immersive, responsive and dynamic audio experiences. SAE’s BSc (Hons) Game and Interactive Audio course has been built for the next generation of sound designers and audio developers, equipping you with the creative mindset, industry connections and technical know-how to meet that demand.
Whether your goal is to work on games, immersive installations or experimental interactive experiences, this course is your launchpad. During your time at SAE, you’ll dive into every aspect of interactive audio – from sound design and game engines to audio middleware, adaptive music systems and real-time implementation. You’ll also explore industry-standard tools like Unreal Engine, FMOD and Wwise, while working with DAWs such as Reaper and Ableton Live.
With guidance from SAE’s expert tutors, plus a host of real-world industry input, you’ll gain vital industry knowledge and experience across team-based projects on this game and interactive audio course. Through a series of hands-on, interdisciplinary projects in modules including Creative Studio 1 and 2, you’ll collaborate regularly with your fellow course mates, as well as SAE and ICMP students from other creative disciplines like Audio Software Engineering, Games Programming, Film, Animation and Music Production. You’ll compose audio across rich, multimedia environments as you turn theory into practice and take your creative experimentation to new levels.
By the time you complete your Major Project in an area of your choosing – which could involve building an audio plugin, games soundtrack, music app or something else entirely – you’ll have compiled a compelling portfolio to present to industry for the next stage of your audio for games career. Upon graduation, you’ll have discovered your own unique voice in the world of interactive sound, as well as the skills and confidence to launch a long and sustainable career in game audio or interactive sound design. Whichever creative path you choose next, you’ll have the connections and motivation to make it a success – as you hit the ground running to shape the future of sound.
1st Trimester
At the beginning of your degree in game and interactive audio, you’ll learn core technical skills that will serve as a strong foundation for the rest of your course.
- Principles of Audio
- Game Audio, Engines and Middleware
2nd Trimester
As you continue the sound for games course, you’ll explore the theory behind the practice, developing your technical skills and applying your newfound knowledge across practical projects to grow your creative portfolio.
- Designing Sound
- Adaptive Composition
3rd Trimester
Across Stage 2, you’ll work in a highly creative environment building your teamwork skills and taking part in real-world interdisciplinary project briefs in the field of game and interactive audio. SAE’s popular Creative Studio approach ensures you undertake assessment activities that reflect current industry trends and practices.
- Creative Studio 1
4th Trimester
In Trimester 4, you’ll work in teams to build your collaborative and communication skills. You’ll explore the professional workflows used across the creative industries as you develop your portfolio and improve your theoretical and practical knowledge.
- Creative Studio 2
5th Trimester
As you approach the final modules of your accelerated game and interactive audio degree, you’ll consolidate your learning, selecting areas of specific professional interest to concentrate on. This allows for a much deeper understanding of your chosen fields.
- Advanced Specialised Project
6th Trimester
In the final module of your degree in game and interactive audio, you’ll showcase your practical and academic skills to deliver an exciting high-level industry project.
- BSc Major Project (Game and Interactive Audio)
What you'll learn
By the end of your game and interactive audio degree, you’ll have:
- Learned the core principles of sound theory, game audio pipelines and interactive audio design.
- Explored real-time implementation techniques using Unreal Engine, FMOD, Wwise and Pure Data.
- Developed advanced skills in adaptive music systems and generative composition.
- Created immersive multichannel and spatial audio for games, VR, AR and XR.
- Collaborated with students from other SAE and ICMP creative courses to complete real-world briefs.
- Built a portfolio showcasing your interactive audio skills, creative vision and technical proficiency.
- Graduated career-ready with a BSc (Hons) from one of the world’s most respected creative education institutions.
- Interactive audio for games courses begin in January and September.
What jobs will this course lead to?
The BSs (Hons) Game and Interactive Audio degree has been developed in collaboration with key players across the creative industries. Jobs you’ll be suited to once you graduate include:
- Game Sound Designer
- Technical Sound Designer
- Game Audio Programmer
- Interactive Sound Artist
- XR/VR Audio Designer
- Games and Interactive Media Composer
- Creative Technologist
- Audio Integration Specialist
Accelerated learning
Finish your accelerated game and interactive audio degree in just 2 years, so you can join the job market sooner and save on course and living costs.
Future Focused
Explore immersive sound, AI and other emerging trends to stay on top of the fast-moving audio industry.
Expert tuition
Learn from SAE’s sound engineer, game audio and interactive audio specialist tutors for an impressive start to your industry career.
Creative community
Collaborate with our extensive network of creative individuals such as game developers, musicians, animators and filmmakers to bring your ideas to life.
The BSc (Hons) Game and Interactive Audio is an accelerated two-year degree taught over 6 trimesters. The audio for games course structure follows 3 distinct stages – each designed to
help you develop specific technical, creative and professional skills. Dividing it this way means you graduate as a well-rounded audio professional with a thorough understanding of the entire games and interactive audio process.
- Stage 1 (T1 and T2) provides a foundation of core technical knowledge across games and interactive audio.
- Stage 2 (T3 and T4) broadens your skills, exploring new areas in games and interactive audio.
- Stage 3 (T5 and T6) is all-encompassing, covering every aspect of games and interactive audio from conception to completion, including self-directed industry and research projects.