Newark, NJ (population: 279,278) has forty-two game development schools within a 100-mile radius of its city center. University of Pennsylvania, the highest ranked school in this group with a game development program, has a total student population of 24,599. It is the 5th highest ranked school in the USA and the highest in the state of Pennsylvania.
Game Development students from Newark schools who go on to become game developers, game designers, video game designers, software developers, etc. have a good chance at finding employment. For example, there are 3,390 people working as gaming managers alone in the US, and their average annual salary is $74,030.
Newark lies in Essex county, which is one of the 11 counties in New Jersey. Overall, the Newark-Union-PA Metropolitan area has 974,700 total employed workers according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, with a 1.6% unemployment rate, $25.36/hr average worker wage, and a $52,760 average annual salary.
Of the 42 game development schools with a 100-mile radius of Newark, only 13 have a student population over 10k. After taking into account tuition, living expenses, and financial aid, The New School comes out as the most expensive ($39,004/yr) for game development students, with County College of Morris as the lowest, reported at only $4,290/yr.
| Name | State | Population | # of Schools | Avg School Rank | Total Programs | Distance from Newark |
| South Orange | NJ | - | 1 | 63.933 | 113 | 5.2 miles |
| Bayonne | NJ | 57,362 | 0 | - | 0 | 5.2 miles |
| Union | NJ | 56,324 | 6 | 24.8766 | 160 | 5.4 miles |
| Jersey City | NJ | 242,594 | 10 | 25.9195 | 190 | 5.8 miles |
| Bloomfield | NJ | 48,995 | 2 | 17.5636 | 34 | 6.3 miles |
| West Orange | NJ | 49,330 | 0 | - | 0 | 6.8 miles |
| Kenilworth | NJ | - | 2 | 30.2484 | 7 | 7.0 miles |
| Hoboken | NJ | 41,307 | 1 | 72.0499 | 47 | 7.5 miles |
| Montclair | NJ | - | 3 | 25.8703 | 100 | 7.6 miles |
| North Bergen | NJ | 59,771 | 0 | - | 0 | 8.8 miles |
| Livingston | NJ | - | 3 | 17.1946 | 56 | 9.2 miles |
| Staten Island | NY | - | 3 | 40.1655 | 127 | 9.5 miles |
| Clifton | NJ | 78,248 | 4 | 27.5248 | 46 | 9.7 miles |
| Passaic | NJ | 67,055 | 0 | - | 0 | 9.9 miles |
| West New York | NJ | 47,282 | 1 | 33.6373 | 6 | 10.5 miles |
| Long Island City | NY | - | 4 | 18.9499 | 59 | 11.7 miles |
| West Paterson | NJ | - | 1 | 20.7455 | 20 | 11.8 miles |
| Brooklyn | NY | - | 46 | 21.7861 | 571 | 12.5 miles |
| New York City | NY | 8,459,026 | 86 | 26.2632 | 1,528 | 12.5 miles |
| Iselin | NJ | - | 1 | 22.9572 | 8 | 12.8 miles |
| Paterson | NJ | 145,162 | 2 | 18.1967 | 29 | 13.2 miles |
| Hackensack | NJ | 42,824 | 4 | 27.098 | 27 | 13.3 miles |
| Ridgewood | NY | - | 1 | 34.5795 | 2 | 13.9 miles |
| Perth Amboy | NJ | 49,138 | 1 | 20.4079 | 6 | 14.8 miles |
| Plainfield | NJ | 45,854 | 4 | 21.9493 | 28 | 14.8 miles |
| Jackson Heights | NY | - | 1 | 28.2916 | 7 | 15.1 miles |
| Rego Park | NY | - | 1 | 27.7974 | 9 | 16.1 miles |
| Paramus | NJ | - | 3 | 22.7173 | 64 | 16.3 miles |
| Parsippany | NJ | - | 1 | 29.0107 | 9 | 16.5 miles |
| Edison | NJ | 100,524 | 4 | 19.0338 | 62 | 16.8 miles |