DigiPen To Boost Local Digital Media Industry With First Overseas Campus In Singapore

DigiPen To Boost Local Digital Media Industry With First Overseas Campus In Singapore

Date: 01/04/2007
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The US-based computer animation and programming school's Asian campus will get S$3.3 million in funding, with R&D in curriculum and software development as part of education initiative.

The US-based computer animation and programming school's Asian campus will get S$3.3 million in funding, with R&D in curriculum and software development as part of education initiative.


DigiPen Institute of Technology is a renowned, leading educational institution specialising in computer graphics and computer simulation that offers degree programnes in computer science, computer engineering and fine arts related to the field of digital interactive simulation and entertainment. Based in Redmond near Seattle, Washington in the US, the school, in the words of Claude Comair, CEO of DigiPen, "was borne from the industry and any academic bureaucracy" - and that "industry" was computer simulation, 3D computer animation, computer and video games.

To foster this industry in Singapore, DigiPen announced in February 2007 that it will set up an Asian campus in Singapore - the school's first and only campus outside of the US, representing the first institution in the Republic to offer specialised degree-level courses for game development.

The S$19.9 million (US$13 million) DigiPen Singapore's campus will offer undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses in 3D animation, real-time interactive simulation and games development.

The S$19.9 million (US$13 million) DigiPen Singapore's campus will offer undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses in 3D animation, real-time interactive simulation and games development.


INDUSTRY MILESTONE

The S$19.9 million (US$13 million) DigiPen Singapore's campus will offer undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses in 3D animation, real-time interactive simulation and games development. It intends to begin classes later this year in September with about 30 students; a number similar to the inaugural class at the U.S. campus back in 1998, which currently has an enrolment of about 900 students. DigiPen Singapore plans to increase enrolment by 100 to 150 students per year, and by 2016, anticipates an enrolment of about 1,000 students.

The campus will be housed at PIXEL (Place of Interaction, eXchange, Education and Learning) @ one-north, an education facility that will cluster related and specialised institutions to create synergies with the digital media industries in the nearby Fusionopolis.

And the time is right for such a school, believes Lai Yeow Hin, Director of Education Services, Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), as the popularity of gaming has spread like wild fire. Lai also foresees a demand for stories with a blend of Eastern and Western elements that Singapore can meet. In fact, S$3.3 million (US$2.2 million) has been set aside for the Asian campus, which will also focus on R&D work in curriculum and software development.

For DigiPen, Singapore's strict regulation of intellectual property laws was a key draw. "When someone brings in a production studio to Singapore, they can feel confident that their intellectual property is being protected and will not be copied easily," says Jason Chu, Chief Operating Officer, DigiPen Singapore. "The environment is more conducive and more production studios will be opening here. That translates to more placement opportunities for our graduates."

Ultimately, by attracting the world's best students, and fostering creativity and diversity in the process, DigiPen Singapore's presence will boost the Republic's status as a global education hub.