HD in Game - Design is a higher diploma in Digital Media & Game Development programme offered by Mohawk College in Hamilton, Canada. The programme runs for 3 years, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition for international students is CAD 16,358 per year (CAD 3,296 per year for local students).
At a glance
Degree:Higher Diploma
Field:Digital Media & Game Development
Duration: 3 years
Delivery: On Campus
Language: English
Local tuition: CAD 3,296 / year
International tuition: CAD 16,358 / year
Information for the 2027/28 academic year · Last reviewed September 2026 ·
Program details
Overview
Explore design thinking and design building as it relates to the development of physical and digital games Mohawk College's new Game Design Advanced Diploma program will prepare you for a career in the games industry and beyond by developing a wide range of skills needed for creating unique interactive systems, dynamic worlds, and engaging levels. The program focuses on game design, the hidden craft behind engaging interaction, and combines it with the technical and artistic skills required in game production. Program Highlights Join a rapidly growing industry with a need for highly skilled labour.Learn from professionals with deep connections to the games industry.Network with Hamilton's growing game industry and beyond.Benefit from smaller class sizes where you will receive more focused attention from faculty.Build a professional portfolio and network with studio representatives.Experience a program that models equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) by examining ethical questions about content creation and workplace interactions. What you'll learnStudy game design to create impactful, immersive experiences.Learn the breadth of skills used in the games industry: 2D and 3D visual arts, visual effects, audio, programming, game engines, game writing and more.Learn design in-depth, from key concepts in game design and design thinking, to advanced topics in user experience, psychology, game systems, and game economies.Use industry-standard software and development hardware.Develop functional games and game prototypes.Discover new and diverse applications of game design, including education, training, entertainment and social work.Explore opportunities to develop pathways and connections with various Mohawk College programs.Explore opportunities to develop pathways and connections with various Mohawk College programs. Program Length3 academic years (6 semesters)Fast Track allows students to complete the three-year advanced diploma program in 28 months. Students will start in January and be in school for four (4) continuous semesters: winter, spring/summer, fall and winter. Students will then be off during the spring/summer and return for the final two (2) semesters of education.Academic YearSemesterFall IntakeWinter IntakeYear 1FallSemester 1 WinterSemester 2Semester 1Summer Semester 2Year 2FallSemester 3WinterSemester 4Summer Year 3FallSemester 5WinterSemester 6Summer
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Mohawk states the same academic requirements for domestic and international applicants.
ACADEMIC ENTRY: an OSSD or its equivalent (Mohawk Academic Upgrading or GED) including Grade 12 English at the C or U level or equivalent. Mohawk also publishes a mature-applicant route for people without the school credits.
GAME DESIGN ACTIVITY - optional, not required. After submitting the ontariocolleges.ca application you may complete a short design activity linked from the program page. Mohawk describes it as a way to show how you follow instructions and how you solve problems, including an equity-and-inclusion angle on design, and says it also gives applicants a feel for the kind of work the program involves.
ENGLISH, where it is not your first language (Mohawk lists these as stand-ins for the Grade 12 English credit, and they apply to domestic and international applicants alike): IELTS Academic 6.0 overall with no band under 5.5; or TOEFL iBT 80 (paper-based 550); or Duolingo 105-110 with no band under 100; or finishing Mohawk’s General Arts and Science - English for Academic Purposes program (478).
Application Details
Start Date:Starts Mohawk lists on this program’s own page, checked 6 September 2026. Domestic applicants: September 2026 at Fennell Campus (FF); January 2027 at Fennell Campus (FF). International applicants: September intake. The two lists differ, so check the intake you want is open to your applicant type before applying. Mohawk runs a Fall term from September, a Winter term from January and a Spring/Summer term from May; not every program runs every term, and the seat status shown beside a start (open, waitlist, closed) moves as intakes fill.
Application Deadline:Mohawk publishes no deadline unique to this program; the dates below are the college-wide ones.
DOMESTIC APPLICANTS (Canadian citizens and permanent residents) apply through ontariocolleges.ca. Equal consideration date: 1 February for a September start; 1 June for a January start. Applications that reach Ontario Colleges by then are read together in the first round of offers. Applying afterwards is still allowed, but remaining seats go first-come, first-served, and a competitive program is usually full by that point. Where a program draws more qualified applicants than it has seats, Mohawk ranks them on the average of their highest senior-level final grades in the required courses, and offers go to Ontario permanent residents first, then residents of other Canadian provinces and territories, then international applicants.
INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS (citizens of another country without Canadian permanent residence) do not use the equal consideration dates. They apply through the OCAS International Application Service, which sets a separate deadline for each intake rather than one annual date; the current list is on Mohawk’s international apply page. Files arriving after a deadline are judged on remaining program capacity, visa status and study-permit processing time for the applicant’s region, and Mohawk states it may cap applications or impose deadlines by region. The CAD 100 application fee is non-refundable and covers up to two program choices starting in the same August-to-July academic year.
