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Online courses to learn Wwise, FMOD Studio, Unreal 5, Pure Data and Unity are the five courses currently offered at the School of Video Game Audio (SoVGA). Hundreds of students from 64 different countries have joined the school since 2012 and our 370 student demo reels currently have 243,000 views on YouTube and Vimeo. Learn more about us by joining our community of 19,000 on LinkedIn, Bluesky, YouTube, Discord, Mastodon, X, and SoundCloud.

The demo reel courses involve professional game audio training and mentoring for a playable game. Students learn the process of creating and implementing audio for a video game and illustrative examples of gameplay are edited together to create a professional demo reel. For employed students taking the course as professional development, extra time can be spent on advanced topics instead of creating a demo reel. The quality of the each demo reel will be evaluated by Leonard Paul (MSc Game Audio), the school's principal instructor, who has 30 years of experience in the video game industry and 20 years of experience teaching game audio.

See more of our featured grad videos

Join our SoVGA grads at Electronic Arts, Team Audio, A Shell in the Pit, Formosa Interactive, Ninja Theory, PitStop Productions, Unlock Audio, Wabi Sabi Sound, Hexany Audio, Jagex, Ubisoft, Bungie, Tencent Games, Massive Entertainment, Microsoft, Mojang, Blizzard, Warner Bros Games, Skywalker Sound, Studio Gobo, CD Projekt Red, IO Interactive, The Chinese Room, Behaviour Interactive, Crytek, Halfbrick, Junkfish, Infold Games, Retro Studios & more studios around the world!

Courses are designed to fit within dynamic schedules. Our entire school is asynchronous so there are no set times that you need to be online and you can do class work any time that you have available. This also means that there are no real-time webinars, presentations, chats, video calls, or similar real-time communication available. All courses support both Mac and Windows. We are able to provide invoices on request.

NOTE: Next deadline is before or on December 19, 2024 to book our January 2025 courses and they are filled until they sell out on a first-come, first-served basis as there are limited spaces in each term.

Request further information via form.

Course Details:

Courses are available on a first-come first-served basis so it is best to apply early. The next deadline for our upcoming January 2025 courses is December 19, 2024 which has a default two month enrolment of January 1, 2025 until March 1, 2025. Students can continue as long as they would like for $75 CAD for each additional month of enrolment. Courses are offered every two months, being January, March, May, July, September & November.

The total course cost is currently $850 CAD and is set to increase to $875 CAD in 2025. We have a flexible refund policy so that if a student withdraws before the full cost course starts then they will be refunded $750, $550 before the second week, $350 before the third week, and starting from January 15th, 2025 the student will be ineligible for a refund for our January 2025 term courses.

No knowledge of computer programming or coding is required for any of the courses but it is offered as an option for those students who want to learn. The Unity course mentors students on the use of C#. The Unreal course focuses on blueprints and metasounds for audio implementation using latest audio engine but does not cover C++. There are no additional costs to purchase required books, software (all middleware taught is free) or other materials but a portable digital recorder is recommended. It is difficult to estimate, but for students with little game audio experience, we recommend dedicating a minimum of 120 hours to the course while students with previous game audio experience can consider a minimum of 100 hours in total to complete a course.

We do not offer any types of guarantees, grades, certifications or quantitative evaluations but what we do offer is individual personalized feedback in an effort to make students more employable in the industry. We are happy to act as a reference for our students who fully complete their reel to accurately reflect their work done at the school to potential employers. Each term will feature a previously completed project and that student will receive a 50% rebate on their course cost. See our grads page to see previous featured students: http://SoVGA.com/grads.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us by email.

Example screenshots of all of our courses in Wwise, Unity, Unreal, Pure Data and FMOD Studio:

Testimonials:

• "I'll be one of 7 people working on all of the asset creation for spells, monsters, and environment sfx! As well as implementation using their custom software. It was awesome being able to send them my Wwise demo reel, I think it really helped. Nervous but so excited!" - Andrew Holscher - World of Warcraft - Blizzard Entertainment - @Noctem_Audio
• "Before I took the Wwise class, I didn't have a clear understanding how the audio we create "talks" to a game engine. Once I read the descriptions of what SoVGA offered, I was excited to have found an opportunity to learn. Working under the structure of a course and having a deadline is my preferred method of learning, so I was able to help bridge my gaps of knowledge to my established understanding of audio and parlay that new combination into future projects." George Hufnagl - Sound Design, Music, Dialogue Editing - Battle Chef Brigade - @grhufnagl
• "The school made me very excited about working in Wwise as it introduced me to a whole new world of possibilities within sound. I’m especially interested in delving deeper into adaptive music and to add a whole new level of depth and complexity to my composition. I thank the School of Video Game Audio for their help, inspiration and encouragement." - Paul van der Walt - @PaulvdWalt
• "This was actually my second class with the SoVGA-- I took the Wwise class a little over a year ago, and the resulting reel helped me get hired at my current job as an in-house audio designer. The SoVGA is an excellent resource, whether you're a beginner who wants to learn the basics of audio implementation, or a game audio professional who wants to add another skill to your resume. Plus, the demo reel you end up with at the end is invaluable if you're looking to show off your skills to potential clients and collaborators!" - Emily Meo - Sound designer, composer and game audio implementation - Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Everi.
• "I recently got hired as a Junior Sound Designer at Eidos-Montréal. Knowing that there is somebody out there available to answer to all your questions is invaluable. It's really reassuring to have a second opinion on your work and helps you move forward twice as fast. The demo reel I made during my time at the school definitely helped me get the job. Skills in implementation will be as important as the skills in asset creation for my new job and I feel that my time at the school gave me a strong foundation in the process of implementation. Hurray! Now it's time to continue learning and making great sounds!" - Emmanuel Daneau - Composer/Sound Designer/Game Audio Implementation - @manudaneau
• "I never expected that 6 months after graduating from SoVGA I would be standing on the BAFTA stage accepting an award for Among The Stones! Leonard's encouragement and support have been incredibly valuable to me and spurred me on! SoVGA is an invaluable springboard into an exciting professional world!" - Ashton Mills - Sound Designer - RuneScape - Jagex
[+ View 40+ More Testimonials]

"I started this course with the feeling that Wwise was insanely complex and would require years of programming education. I was very happy with the support I received from the instructors, and within a very short span of time, I was on my way toward developing a rich understanding of the program and its capabilities. I recommend this course to anyone looking to further their understanding of video game audio." - Andrew Avitabile - Audio Director/Composer/Sound Designer/Engineer
"I highly recommend the School Of Video Game Audio for anyone who is serious about a career in game audio. Leonard has a commitment to his students that is apparent from his first feedback on your work. I cannot thank the school enough." - Frank Lubsey - @JamSonicAudio
"I’m always looking to expand my audio skills and game audio was something that I've always felt attracted to. It is always hard to find the right mentor or institution that is worth the time and money. I’m glad I came across your website, checking the final reels from previous students totally convinced me to take this course. Thanks to the School Of Video Game Audio I was able to achieve a very professional demo that will be usable for applying for jobs in the game audio industry. Thanks for all your support, I really appreciate it!" - Sebastian Apolinario - Audio Engineer/Sound Designer/Composer - @sebastian.apolinario
"The Wwise demo reel course was very useful for me as I'm just getting started in the game industry. Along with the course program I discovered a lots of aspects about industry thanks to Leonard. I'll definitely take more another courses, and recommend it to others." - Boris Nikiforov - Sound designer, mixing and game audio engineer
"I've used the demo reel created in the class as an important part of my portfolio and it has been instrumental in my career in sound design as well as useful in my work as a music production instructor. I have also been told by professionals in game audio that my reel was above and beyond the expected skills of an entry level sound designer. I have used my reel as part of my application to graduate studies in composition and found that it has impressed my professors as well. I can't recommend this course enough." - Jared Selter - Composer/Sound Designer/Re-recording Mixer/Teacher
"Since graduating in December 2014, I’ve been offered the opportunity to work with artist Matt Nava and composer Austin Wintory for Giant Squid Studios on the game Abzû.
"Leonard’s talks, advice, and feedback through The School of Video Game Audio helped me grasp a strong knowledge of both FMOD Studio and Wwise. His school helped me get into an in house sound designer position with a firm grasp of the workflow and techniques desired of me from the industry. Leonard will always be among my highest recommendations for help and encouragement in this field; he shares so much knowledge with so many people." - Steve Green, Sound Designer – Giant Squid Studios
"The best resource I can recommend is also how I learned, and it's a course that Leonard Paul offers at his School of Video Game Audio. He offers a Pd course that covers everything you need to know to get Pd working with Unity. Plus Leonard himself is a great teacher and is always willing to go into the greatest level of detail (he was basically my Mr. Miyagi). He also provides you with an audio engine that he built in Pd that you can breakdown and see how it all works together." - Eric Houchin - Game audio implementation, composition and sound design - @AudioHouchin
"I recently started my first full-time job in game audio and I'm quite happy enjoying this new adventure! I'm using a proprietary in-house sound engine but I'm finding that what I learned in the Wwise and FMOD Studio course are very useful in my daily work! Thanks for your help." - Raffaele Presciutti - Sound Designer - Goodgame Studios
"Shortly after I completed the School of Video Game Audio's FMOD Studio and Wwise courses I was offered a full-time position as a sound designer and composer for a company specialising in mobile games for online casinos. The experience and knowledge I gained with the school directly helped towards me getting the job, and the skills I learnt are proving to be priceless. I'd highly recommend the School of Video Game Audio to anyone looking to pursue game audio as career." - Russell M. Harmon - Sound Designer & Composer - InTouch Games
"I felt my process for SFX and resulting assets improved greatly during my time at SoVGA, and I was really excited about most of the monster and weapon sounds I created. I’ve done some SFX work for short films in the past, and always dreaded it and rushed through it. Now I really enjoy the process and approach it more like writing music." - Ralph D'Ignacio - Composer, sound designer and game audio
"Thank you very much Leonard, for all your patience, your advice, your tricks... for everything! I'm very glad to take part of your course. It was an incredible experience and, the most important, very useful." - Pablo
"After completing my Wwise course at the School of Video Game Audio I decided to put a cherry on top and get Wwise certified.I breezed through the certification course and finished the exam in under an hour. I can't wait to carve out some time in my schedule and take their Pure Data course too." - Adam Axbey - Sound designer, composer, re-recording engineer and recordist.
"As a sound designer starting out in the game audio world, the course was really helpful to understand the process of pre-production, recording, design and implementation of audio for video games. The concepts covered in the course also helped me to learn Unreal Engine 4 on my own in a much faster way, and apply my skills to lead the audio design with the indie team I’m working with at the moment." - Eric Lehmann
"I really enjoyed the course. I am exciting about using Wwise and continuing to learn more of its diverse functions. It certainly has sparked me into wanting to use it on the games I work on." - Blain
"Wish I'd taken your class sooner!" - Will
"One of the stand out advantages of taking a course with SoVGA is the fact there is a real instructor behind it all! After receiving so much advice and guidance from Leonard, I finished the course satisfied, and immediately received better responses from potential employers. The amount I learnt from the course could have easily taken me much longer if I decided not to enrol. I would highly recommend this SoVGA course to anyone interested in game audio." - Suleman Hussain
"Thoroughly enjoyed this course, very recommended to those interested in #GameAudio." - Diego Bocanegra
"I've been working in the music business for about 15 years as a composer, audio mixer, producer, guitar player and singer. During this period I had the opportunity to work with Roy Cicala (sound engineer and producer of artists like John Lennon, ACDC, Frank Sinatra, and many others) as well as with some top Brazilian artists. After the course I simply felt that I had something new and fresh to provide my customers, and just started to sell this new service, that they normally wouldn't expect, which lead me to found my own game audio and music company. I can only thank Leonard Paul for his commitment and professionalism, as well as for his support even after the course finished." - Frederico Inglez - Game Audio Sound Designer
"I ended up getting a job as a graduate sound designer in a games development company about a week before the course started so it's been invaluable in helping me get up to speed on the implementation process quickly." - Ross
"I am incredibly proud of the knowledge I gained while taking your course, and I feel I am ten times as prepared to get into working on games than I was only three months ago. Thank you very much Leonard, I can honestly say this was one of the best decisions I've made in a long time. I will be back to take some Wwise and Unity classes as soon as I get the chance." - Cole
"I got a job as an in-house sound designer and your FMOD Studio course helped me a lot on achieving this, thank you a ton!" - Renato Martinho, Sound Designer - Bigmoon Studios, Portugal
"Thanks very much to Leonard for all his advice about working with Wwise for my demo level and reel. The School of Video Game Audio gave me a goal to aim for whilst learning this tool, without which I would have still been working through tutorials. The extra features that are available in Cube through the school also help make a more flexible game to work with for presentation. I'd recommend their Wwise course to anyone who wants to get a head start in implementing audio for games." - Paul McArthur – Game Audio Trailers Dubbing at Savalas - Scotland's largest sound-post facility (Credits: Grey Goo, Carmageddon Reincarnation, Fable: Legends, Halo 4: Spartan Ops)
"By steering my demo reel in the right direction I was able to get noticed with my job applications and eventually get hired. I would recommend his program to anyone amateur or experienced in game audio as it is such an outstanding value." - Rick
"I really enjoyed the course. I am exciting about using Wwise and continuing to learn more of it’s diverse functions. It certainly has sparked me into wanting to use it on the games I work on." - Blain
"A key quality of our most recent intern hire was that he'd shown the initiative to pursue his studies at the School of Video Game Audio. After a few days with us it was clear that the course had given him a broad knowledge of game audio design and implementation, and we look forward to interviewing more candidates with this experience on their CV." Rebellion Audio Department - (Credits: Sniper Elite, Rogue Trooper & Aliens vs. Predator)
"Thank you so much, I love learning all these things and its incredibly hard to find this information unless you meet the right people! - Roberto
"In summary, if you are thinking about signing up to one of the courses, stop thinking and start doing. It's worth the money just to get feedback on your work by an industry professional such as Leonard Paul." - Fraser Strachan, Audio Designer, Playground Games
"I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to attend the SoVGA course, and I'm sure that my professional future will be strongly influenced by all the things that I learnt spending hours implementing audio, as well as by your comments and feedback on my works." - Paolo
"The School of Video Game Audio has really helped me get gigs in the game audio industry as a freelance composer and sound designer. The school was a great way for me to take my game audio skills to the next level." - Nicolas Diteriks, composer and sound designer for Lords of Xulima
"I've actually taken a job as an audio designer working in Wwise, and thanks to your class I have a much better understanding of its functionality." - Paden
"My heart felt appreciation for your quick response & care for students." - Bala
"It's great because I'm in a structured program and that helps me focus on learning all the small steps thoroughly." - Willem
Reddit - "All things considered, I am quite pleased with my progress in learning Wwise and have come out knowing much more about implementation than before I started." - George
Game Audio Forum - "..I can tell you that it was a great move, the instructors are good, and the lessons clear enough, also the dialogue with them or other course members is easy and quick, everytime I've got difficulties, I received a helpful feedback in 24 hours." - Roberto
"Human tutoring is essential to the learning process, and by merging the human and online realms, The School of Video Game Audio finally pioneers at democratizing game audio as a tool for creative expression. It's really something everyone has needed for a long time." - Francisco
"The course has been great! Learning Wwise by myself would've taken me a lot longer without the help and resources you provided... I feel inspired to further my game audio knowledge and to continue improving my skill set with the aim of making this my career, whether it's designing and implementing sound for a small time indie devs or a large company producing AAA titles." - Jack
"Both your courses and instruction have been great. These are deep subjects but I've got a great basis to build from now and I feel comfortable with what I've learned from both programs. You really put a lot into communicating with the students, this is very noticeable being a student and very appreciated." - James
"It felt more like a school than other online courses. Very helpful, always critical and honest." - Oliver

Course Sign-Up:

Class

Wwise Course (2 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $850.00 CAD FMOD Studio Course (2 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $850.00 CAD Unreal Course (2 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $850.00 CAD Unity Course (2 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $850.00 CAD Pure Data Course (2 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $850.00 CAD Wwise Course (4 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $1,000.00 CAD FMOD StudioCourse (4 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $1,000.00 CAD Unreal Course (4 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $1,000.00 CAD Unity Course (4 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $1,000.00 CAD Pure Data Course (4 month enrolment) - Jan 2025 $1,000.00 CAD

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• You can use PayPal OR a credit card (MasterCard / Visa / AmEx / Discover) OR Bitcoin OR Interac (Canada only) OR ACH (USA only) OR Bank Wire Transfer (All Countries) to pay.
• To book courses with us just use the PayPal cart above. For each additional course you enrol in after the first, you will receive a transferable rebate worth $75 towards any full course.
• If the course is available in the PayPal cart above then there are currently spots available in the course.
• The 4 month course is the same as the 2 month but with additional enrolment time to spread out the course work over more time.
• For Canadian students we are offering a $25 discount on Interac purchases.
• We are also offering a $25 discount on Bitcoin purchases - Email for details.
• There is an additional $25 fee to cover bank wire transfers and refunds are not possible due to the cost of the transfer - Email for details.
• Offers cannot be combined. All information gathered will be considered strictly private and will not be shared with anyone outside of the administration of the School of Video Game Audio.

Optional: Course Add-ons:

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Coding $175.00 CAD Sound Design $175.00 CAD Interactive Music $175.00 CAD Dynamic Dialogue $175.00 CAD Add a month of enrolment $75.00 CAD

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