HD in Game - Programming (Optional Co-op) is a higher diploma in Digital Media & Game Development programme offered by Centennial College in Toronto, Canada. The programme runs for 6 semesters, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition for international students is CAD 19,167 per year (CAD 2,775 per year for local students).
This advanced diploma blends core software engineering foundations with specialised expertise in game programming, preparing students to build, test and ship complete, playable games and simulations. The curriculum emphasises real-time graphics, networked gameplay, game mechanics and system architecture, with students contributing to stages such as 3D graphics programming, simulation architecture, multiplayer systems, and object-oriented design and debugging. Training covers tools including Kotlin, TypeScript, Unreal Engine, Unity, Java, Python, C++ and C#, alongside AI frameworks and mobile and web development platforms. A generative AI strand covers procedural content generation, NPC behaviour scripted with large language models, machine-learning-supported testing, and AI-assisted dialogue and prototyping tools. Two capstone projects integrate traditional engineering practice with AI-enhanced techniques to produce complete, playable games and simulations.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Admission requires an Ontario Secondary School Diploma or equivalent, or mature-applicant status at 19 or older, Grade 12 English at the College or University level or a pass on Centennial's own English Admission Test, and Grade 11 Mathematics at the Mixed or University level, or Grade 12 Mathematics at the College or University level, or a pass on the college's Engineering Math Skills Assessment for Admission. The programme page states only that English language proficiency is required, without publishing IELTS, TOEFL or other test scores, so international applicants must consult the college's general language-proficiency page. No portfolio, interview or work-experience requirement applies to this stream.
Application Details
Start Date:January
Application Deadline:Centennial publishes no application deadline for this program; what follows is the Ontario college cycle that governs it. Domestic applicants apply through ontariocolleges.ca: for a program starting in Fall 2027 the equal-consideration date is 1 February 2027, and applications arriving after it are still assessed, but first-come first-served while places remain. Across the Ontario college system the application opened on 26 September 2026, offers may be issued from 1 November 2026, and an offer must be accepted by 1 May 2027. One $150 fee covers up to five program choices. International applicants apply directly to Centennial through its own international application process and are assessed on a rolling basis across the Fall, Winter and Summer intakes; the college publishes no fixed international closing date. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
