Full Sail University

Motto	If you're serious about your dream, we'll take your dream seriously
Type	Privatefor-profit university[1]
Established	1979
Accreditation	ACCSC
Chair	James W. "Bill" Heavener, Co-chairman & CEO[2][3][4]
President	Garry Jones
Students	26,737[5]
Undergraduates	25,532[6]
Location	Winter Park , Florida , United States 28°35′41″N81°18′11″W / 28.59472°N 81.30306°W /28.59472; -81.30306
Mascot	Douglas DC-3 airplane
Website	fullsail.edu

Full Sail University is aprivatefor-profit university inWinter Park, Florida.^[7] It was formerly arecording studio in Dayton,Ohio namedFull Sail Productions^[8] andFull Sail Center for the Recording Arts.^[9] The school moved to Florida in 1980, began offeringbachelor's degrees in 2005,^[10] and began offering online degrees in 2007.^[11] The following year, the school was granteduniversity status by theFlorida Department of Education.^[12]

Full Sail isaccredited by theAccrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges to awardassociate,bachelor's, andmaster's degrees inaudio,design,computer animation andbusiness administration.^[13][14]

Full Sail University was founded by Jon Phelps in Dayton,Ohio, in 1979.^[15] Its curriculum was centered on recording arts and offered courses inaudio engineering.^[16] It relocated toOrlando, Florida, in 1980 and added new courses to its core recording arts program. In 1989, Full Sail moved to its current location at Winter Park, Florida;^[16] the following year, it was accredited to grant specializedassociate degrees.^[17]

Enrollment doubled between 1989 and 1991 at a time of increased interest in film and media studies.^[18] The university had financial difficulties in 1992 and its growth slowed.^[19] Between 1995 and 1999, it began offering associate degrees in computer animation, digital media, game design and development, and show production and touring; these were later expanded into full bachelor's degree programs.^[17]

In 2005, the school offered its first bachelor's degree program, a Bachelor of Science degree in entertainment business.^[20] In 2007, the first master's degree program—also in the entertainment industry—was offered.^[21] Online degree programs began in 2007, the first of which was an online adaptation of the existing Entertainment Business Master of Science.^[21]

The additions of the master's degree programs, among other factors, led to the school being recognized as a university by the state of Florida.^[22] In 2008 it changed its name from Full Sail Real World Education to Full Sail University after attaining university status from theFlorida Department of Education's Commission for Independent Education.^[22]

The curriculum and degree programs were broadened between 2006 and 2011,^[23] adding programs such as a Bachelor of Science in sports marketing and media,^[24] and a Master of Science degree in game design.^[25]

In 2012,WWE began filming episodes of itsinternet television showWWE NXT at Full Sail University.^[26][27][28] In June 2015, the school began hosting theWWE Tough Enough series.^[29][30][31] As part of the partnership between Full Sail and WWE, students have the opportunity to produceWWE NXT tapings, during which merchandise and tickets sales contribute to a scholarship fund for students enrolled at the university.^[32][33] As of January 2018, the partnership had resulted in $385,000 in scholarships.^[34][35][36] In September 2019, WWE and Full Sail University announced the expansion of their partnership. In 2020, it was announced that WWE NXT would stop taping at Full Sail University.^[37]

In 2015, the university announced a partnership withWargaming and completed building auser experience lab for conducting research projects.^[38][39][40]

Full Sail University's Dan Patrick School of Sportscasting was established in 2017, with a sportscasting degree program and instruction provided by sportscaster and radio personality Dan Patrick.^[41][42][43]

The university moved to Winter Park in 1989.^[44] Full Sail University's approximately 200-acre (81-hectare) campus is located 8.6 miles (13.8 kilometers) northeast of downtownOrlando. The campus hassoundstages, a film backlot, and 110 studios.^[45] An office building for teaching staff for the online degree program was leased in 2009.^[46]

In 2010, a new game studio was named "Blackmoor" (after a campaign inDungeons & Dragons) in honor ofDave Arneson, who taught game design at the school from 1999 to 2008.^[47] In November 2010, in partnership withESPN, the school opened a new laboratory for research and development in studio technologies.^[48] Two months later, approximately 200 Full Sail Online employees moved into the Gateway Center in Downtown Orlando.^[49] Also in 2011, the university announced plans to construct an 86,000-square-foot (8,000 m²) educational building to house 475 faculty and staff, additional film and television soundstages and classrooms; it was scheduled for completion in early 2012.^[50] In July 2011, Full Sail acquired Lakeview Office Park in Orlando.^[51]

In October 2018, Full Sail announced plans to construct anesports arena called "The Fortress".^[52] The 11,200-square-foot venue opened in May 2019, serves as home of Full Sail University's esports team, Armada.^[53][54][55]

In 2020, The Fortress was named a top-10 collegiate esports facility.^[56] It was also named one of the "15 Most Elite Universities for Pursuing Esports Careers in North America" in 2020.^[57][58] The Virtual Production Studio opened on the main campus in March 2022.^[59][60]

Two emerging technology labs opened on campus in 2025. The Spatial Computing Innovation Lab provides an immersive environment for exploring video and spatial computing technologies, including devices such as the Apple Vision Pro^[61] and Blackmagic’s immersive camera systems.^[62] The Drone Innovation Center offers an indoor space for instruction in drone technology, featuring controlled airspace, fabrication pods, and workstations for simulation and programming.^[63]

Full Sail's academic degree programs are primarily focused on audio, film and media production,^[64] video game design,^[65] animation^[66] and other studies related to the media and entertainment industries.^[67] Full Sail began offering coursework in creatingaugmented reality (AR) andvirtual reality (VR) projects in 2016, housed in the campus's Fabrication Lab.^{[68][69][70][71]}

Full Sail isaccredited by theAccrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC).^[13][72] In 2007 and 2011, the college was subject to criticism regarding limited transferability of credits.^[73][74][75]

According to theCollege Scorecard, as of July 2024, Full Sail has a 47% graduation rate.^[76] Academic year prices for full-time, first-time undergrad students in the 2023–2024 period was $26,947.^[77]

In 1989, 1990, and 1991, the Full Sail Center for the Recording Arts wonMix magazine's outstanding institutional achievement award for recording schools.^[78]

In 2005,Rolling Stone called Full Sail "one of the five best music programs in the country".^[79]

The college was named FAPSC School/College of the Year (an award for which only career colleges in Florida were eligible) by the Florida Association of Postsecondary Schools and Colleges (FAPSC) in 2008, 2011,^[80] and 2014.^[81] Full Sail was recognized for its 21st-century best practices in distance learning by the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) in 2011,^[82] and was the recipient ofNew Media Consortium Center for Excellence Award in 2011 and 2015.^[83][84]

Full Sail's Game Design master's degree has been ranked in The Princeton Review's Top 25 Graduate Program for Video Game Design since 2014.^[85][86][87] Full Sail also ranked in the top 50 in The Princeton Review's list of undergraduate programs for game design in 2021.^[88][89]TheWrap ranked Full Sail last place in their 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 lists of the "Top 50 Film Schools".^[90][91][92] In 2018,College Magazine ranked Full Sail number five in their list of the top 10 colleges for video game design.^[93] In January 2020, Animation Career Review ranked Full Sail University number 19 in their list of Top 50 Animation Schools in the US.^[94]

Instructors at who have taught at Full Sail includeDungeons & Dragons co-creatorDave Arneson (game design),^[140] andOprah Winfrey's domestic partner,Stedman Graham.^[141][142] Other notable instructors includeJames Neihouse, cinematographer and lifetime member of theAcademy, a 6,000-member group that votes on Oscar nominees. Oscar-winning sound engineerBill W. Benton teaches in the Film Production MFA program,^[143] and former wrestlerEd Ferrera teaches the creative writing program.^[144][145]

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