Games Art BA, Games Design BA, Animation BA and Games Programming BSc Welcome Pack
Welcome to BA Games Art, BA Games Design, BA Animation and BSc Games Programming – September 2026.
We would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to your studies at the University of Northampton. The purpose of this document is to help you prepare for coming to study with us and give you an opportunity to meet members of your programme team as well as other students who’ve chosen the same course. We want to make sure that you are inspired, anchored, prepared, and enabled to succeed.
It gives me great pleasure to welcome you onto the games and animation provision at the University of Northampton. The following guide is designed to provide you with some essential information about your courses, and how you can make the best of your time while studying with us.
As a team, we have worked hard to develop the courses we offer into qualifications that are industry relevant and attractive to potential employers. Our fundamental aim is to provide you with the employability skills that are needed to obtain a career within these creative industries.
As a challenging, yet highly rewarding course selection, I am confident that with the required commitment and work ethic, you will enjoy the material presented throughout your time as a student at the University of Northampton.
Good luck with all your studies.
Your Course Leaders
Games Art BA (Hons)
Dan McCaul
Senior Lecturer in Games Art
Daniel.McCaul@northampton.ac.uk
Games Design BA (Hons)
David Nicholls
Lecturer in Games Programming
David.Nicholls@northampton.ac.uk
Animation BA (Hons)
Lewis Sanderson
Senior Lecturer in Computer Games Development
Lewis.Sanderson@northampton.ac.uk
Games Programming BSc (Hons)
Dr Anastasios Bakaoukas
Senior Lecturer in Games Programming
Anastasios.Bakaoukas@northampton.ac.uk
Course leaders can help with information about modules you will be studying, feedback on your academic achievement, and the Personal Academic Tutor (PAT) role at UON.
Additional staff
- Paddy Costelloe, Technical Demonstrator.
- Joseph Casey, Lecturer in Games Design
- Rob Kavanagh, Lecturer in Games Art
- Andrew Debus, Senior Lecturer in Games Art
- Raghad Zenki, Lecturer in Games Programming
Your Welcome Week course timetable
When you arrive at the University of Northampton, there’s plenty to get involved with during Welcome Week. However, there are specific sessions taking place as part of your course induction that’ll help you settle in and prepare for teaching to start the following week:
This is your induction timetable. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact Dan McCaul Daniel.McCaul@northampton.ac.uk
Tuesday 22 September
Session: Meet the Course Staff and Personal Tutor meetings (compulsory)
- Time: 10 – 10.45am
- Location: LH017, Learning Hub, Waterside campus
This will be a face-to-face session that gives new students an opportunity to ask general questions about their course and study here at UON, as well as meet staff and fellow students.
Also, we will be hosting our first Personal Academic Tutor Meeting of the year during this session.
Session: Library Quest Challenge (compulsory)
- Time: 1 – 2pm (BST)
- Location: Drop-In-Area, 2nd floor of the Learning Hub, Waterside campus
Friday 25 September
Session: How to Login to University Systems: This is a session to provide help to enrolled students in using university computers, OneDrive cloud storage, external hard drives, and other basic technology for study (compulsory)
- Times:
- Games Art and Animation: 10-11am (BST)
- Games Design 11am-12pm (BST)
- Games Programming: 12-1pm (BST)
- Location: Creative Hub, CH120, Waterside campus
Equipment
Your module teaching will take place in up-to-date Windows/PC based computer studios. Whilst it is possible to complete assignments using only the university facilities, in reality much of your practical portfolio development will need to be done outside of timetabled sessions in order to achieve a professional standard and a good degree. We recommend all students have access to an up-to date PC at home that meets the minimum specification of the software we use, for example:
Components
- CPU
- Minimum Specification* – AMD Ryzen 5 or Intel Core i5 9th Gen or later
- Recommended Specifications – AMD Ryzen 7 series or Intel i7 @ 12th Gen
- GPU***
- Minimum Specification* – 660m iGPU or Nvidia 2060 mobile
- Recommended Specifications – RTX 2070 or Radeon RX 5700 XT
- Vram
- Minimum Specification: 4 GB
- Recommended Specification: 8 GB
- RAM
- Minimum Specification* – 16 GB Ram
- Recommended Specifications – 32 GB Ram
- Storage
- Minimum Specification* – 512 GB SSD
- Recommended Specifications – 1 TB SSD
- Portable storage**
- Minimum Specification* – Minimum 1000 MB/s read, 1,000MB/s write. 256 GB portable SSD
- Recommended Specifications – Minimum 3000 MB/s read, 3,000MB/s write. 512 GB portable SSD
Disclaimer
*This is the absolute minimum needed to run individual pieces of software for games development or basic animation at low to medium load. If you want to run multiple programs or heavy render/ shader compilation scenes the recommended spec is needed or use classroom equipment.
**using portable HDD runs a higher risk of data corruption and running lower speeds may cause delays which effect in class work.
*** a discrete GPU is recommended but most software will run on iGPU’s but may be limited in certain functions.
Additionally, Animation and Games Art BA (Hons) students will need some basic drawing materials, i.e. sketchbook, pencils, charcoal, eraser etc.
The University can provide digital drawing tablets for use on campus, but it is also recommended that Animation and Games Art BA (Hons) students consider acquiring their own for home use.
Reading Lists
All our reading list texts, as well as a wide range of other learning materials, are available from our on-campus library.
