Every student is required to take a total of 54 units of core courses as a part of their MSTCI degree requirements and is usually recommended to plan to take 1-2 core courses (6-12 units) per semester during the first three semesters. See sample schedule on
MSTCI Curriculum page.

Focus on learning skills that develop leadership, teamwork, innovation, and positive social impact. Throughout the semester, EIC faculty and industry professionals will provide historical context for entertainment innovation. Students have the opportunity to begin shaping their ideas for Capstone projects and learn how to put together a project proposal for an interdisciplinary project, present and defend their ideas and business in front of a panel of faculty members and industry experts and get real feedback from mock pitches.

Taught concurrently with Building Virtual Worlds, Improvisational Acting fosters team building, exercises spontaneity, sharpens focus, and increases listening skills. Students learn to solve problems on the fly, build from scratch, stretch their imaginations, overcome inhibitions when communicating publicly, and working with others.

A semester-long class that is taught simultaneously with Building Virtual Worlds. Students work in teams to write, produce, shoot and edit several visual story assignments. This class teaches essential skills for becoming a creative technological storytelling – how to think visually and aurally, as well as aspects of mine-en-scene, classical continuity-style coverage, trans media, and temporal and spatial montage theory.

Create a new world in just two weeks! Building Virtual Worlds (BVW) challenges students to work quickly, creatively and collaboratively. Part of the immersion semester, BVW gives small teams of students two weeks to create a virtual world and/or explore productions and projects in various mediums in entertainment. It all culminates in a public festival to hundreds of spectators – and an incredible sense of accomplishment. In fact, many BVW ideas go on to become full-time research projects, student spin-offs and commercial successes.