Abertay University

Abertay University is based in the heart of beautiful Dundee on Scotland’s east coast. We pride ourselves on a range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses spanning science, tech, art, social sciences and professional disciplines, all aimed at preparing you for the industries and jobs of the modern world. Our research delivers impact for society and is designed to solve real-world problems and fuel innovation-led growth.

Abertay is internationally renowned for video games education and research and a UK leader in cybersecurity.  We were the first university in the world to launch computer games and ethical hacking programmes, and we are ranked top 10 in the world for postgraduate computer games programmes by the prestigious Princeton Review.

We are a National Centre for Excellent in Computer Games Education, with a number of specialist facilities including one of Europe’s largest PlayStation 5 labs, an Emergent Technology Centre and a Visual Production Research Environment (ViPRE). The city of Dundee, thanks in part to our fantastic computer games courses, is an important hub for Scotland’s games industry, and is the birthplace of many hugely influential titles including Grand Theft Auto and Lemmings. Indeed, the creator of both games is an Abertay alumnus. Abertay graduates have gone on to work on many of the world’s biggest games titles, including The Last of Us, Minecraft and many others.

Abertay launched the world’s first degree in Ethical Hacking in 2001 teaching students to be able to think like a hacker and learn the techniques used to break into IT systems. We are Scotland’s only university to have achieved gold level Academic Centre for Excellence in Cyber Security Education status – an accolade awarded by the National Cyber Security Centre which is part of GCHQ.

Dundee is truly a university city, with one in five people students. It’s the UK’s only UNESCO City of Design, with a major national broadsheet newspaper ranking it the best place to live in Scotland. It’s also officially Scotland’s sunniest city.

 

Location;

Dundee, Scotland, UK

 

Schools and Faculty

We offer nearly 50 undergraduate and 20 postgraduate courses across three academic schools: The School of Design and Informatics (SDI), The School of Applied Sciences (SAS), The School of Business, Law and Social Sciences (BLSS):

School of Design and Informatics

  • Division of Cybersecurity
  • Division of Games Technology and Mathematics
  • Division of Games and Arts

School of Applied Sciences

  • Division of Sport and Exercise Sciences
  • Division of Psychology and Forensic Sciences
  • Division of Health Sciences
  • Division of Engineering and Food Science

School of Business, Law and Social Sciences

  • Division of Sociology
  • Division of Law
  • Division of Accounting, Business and Management

Our portfolio spans science, tech, art, social sciences and professional disciplines and we facilitate cross-disciplinary learning and engagement to prepare students for real-life work environments.

We pride ourselves on our ability to get students ready for the world of work. Part of our success is our links with industry, allowing students to get first hand advice form experts in the field – and even work with them during their studies.

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Rankings

Rankings Subjects / Topics Resources
Top 100 Best Universities in the UK The Complete University Guide 2025
Top 11th Game Design Undergraduate Program The Princeton Review 2024
Top 1st Top International Game Design: Undergraduate Program The Princeton Review 2024
Top 10 in the UK Student Satisfaction with Teaching National Student Survey 2023
Top 50 in the World Top Creative Schools Rookies Global School Rankings 2023
Top 20 in the World Game Design & Development Courses Rookies Global School Rankings 2023
Top 20 in the UK Teaching Quality The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022

 

Why this University

With around 4,000 students, we are small and we like it that way! It gives us room to get to know you as a student and provide you with the kind of personal and academic support you won’t find in a larger University.

Around 60 nationalities are represented among our student body and around 16% of our students come from overseas – adding to the cultural diversity of our campus.

Abertay degrees are vocational, which means the skills and knowledge you learn are created in partnership with industry. So we know what they want and we know exactly how to teach it. Whatever you choose to do afterwards, you will be work-ready and able to seize employment opportunities from the very start.