It was announced that Warren Spector, the developer who brought us Deus Ex and Epic Mickey, will personally work with Blizzard Entertainment's Chief Operations Office, Paul Sams, in order to oversee a gaming program at the University of Texas, Austin. This isn't just a normal game development class, folks. Students who graduate will receive a postbaccalaureate certificate rather than a graduate degree which has less restrictions and what I assume would be additional bragging rights and win-points.

The curriculum will include a 12-month extensive program where students will make the game themselves, from start to finish. Might I mention there are only 20 spots for this prestigious program so even with the one-year time frame, it still seems like a ton of hard, but well-earned, work.

"The Denius-Sams Gaming Academy will create the most intense program of its kind, in which aspiring professionals enlist in an all-in adventure, rather than complete mere credit hours," said Roderick P. Hart, dean of the College of Communication. "The program will prepare students to become creative team leaders who will drive the creation of games in the future and ensure the vitality of the gaming industry."

Both international and U.S. students are allowed to be selected. There are no specifics regarding age so i'm guessing this is open to students who are just leaving High School as well. With only 20 spots, you got to have one heck of a resume. Award winning iphone app anyone?

Personally, I think this is an amazing opportunity for those selected, as well as what this could do for the future. I hear a lot of stories from my colleagues who are in video game creation courses and they say they learn a lot of mechanics rather than what to expect. Not that the technicalities are a bad thing of course. I just thing it's really cool when you can go beyond the text book and learn from industry veterans. Something like this is far from uncommon in film courses, where the top-tier sponsors of the school are generally industry alumni who actually come and talk to the aspiring directors and film editors.

It's one thing to take a course in game development and it's another thing to say Warren Spector was your college professor. What do you guys think of this action? Do you want to see more like this?