Entertainment Technology Center

Entertainment Technology Center Work
“A lot of people want a shortcut. The goal is to provide students with the best opportunities to develop as professionals.

“We’re not really like any master’s degree you’ve ever seen.” — ETC co-founder Randy Pausch

Carnegie Mellon University's Entertainment Technology Center is the premiere professional graduate program for interactive entertainment. Learn
Students at the ETC are taught in a cross-cultural, inquiry-based, inventive, team-oriented environment rooted in communication & cooperation through applied resea

rch projects. I find the best shortcut is the long way, which is basically two words: work hard.” ― Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture

The ETC is a production-focused program emphasizing industry schedules and delivery of tangible artifacts with little compromise. Hard work is built into the ethos of the ETC, allowing the students to reach their fullest potential while being supported by the community around them. Play
Play is fundamental to the ETC. The school was founded on the idea that together the arts and technology can be used to create fascinating, immersive experiences which communicate complex ideas to any audience. We believe play is a pivotal aspect to the future of learning and working in the twenty-first century.

09/03/2026

Don’t worry, we promise our second-years don’t bite 😉

Last weekend our first-year students headed across the state for this year’s Adventure Module, a two-day team building e...
08/31/2026

Last weekend our first-year students headed across the state for this year’s Adventure Module, a two-day team building experience where they take a trip together to learn more about each other and the industry they’re entering.

This year, we took them to the new Netflix House right outside of Philadelphia! Netflix House is one of the company’s new location-based entertainment venues, and students spent the day exploring the space and trying out the different experiences there. They also had a chance to explore the area before enjoying games and dinner at — where else? — Dave and Busters.

Students got back to Pittsburgh Saturday night, ready for everything the Immersion Semester has in store for them 💪

Before classes start next week, we asked 5 second-year ETC students to tell us about their summers. Whether they were de...
08/21/2026

Before classes start next week, we asked 5 second-year ETC students to tell us about their summers.

Whether they were developing interactive location-based experiences at Deeplocal to helping create memorable attractions for children and families at Give Kids The World to exploring new ways to visualize scientific research through our Creative Good Fund, they spent the past few months booked and busy.

➡ Learn more: https://etc.cmu.edu/about/news-events/summer-internship-recap

08/17/2026

Second-year ETC student Aidan Terry spent his summer working with Assistant Teaching Professor Mo Mahler on pre-production for Mahler's next short film.

The opportunity to work on Mo's film came about through the ETC's new Summer Research Fund, which provided support for Mahler's project and for students like Terry who work with him on it.

Terry came to the ETC with experience as an animator, having contributed to two Academy Award-winning animated shorts before working in education where he taught character design, drawing, painting, and sculpting.

"This is my first time storyboarding, so it's been an education," Terry said. "I've really enjoyed it."

Help us bring the Monsters of Appalachia to SXSW EDU!ETC Director of Outreach, Extension, and Engagement John Balash — a...
08/11/2026

Help us bring the Monsters of Appalachia to SXSW EDU!

ETC Director of Outreach, Extension, and Engagement John Balash — alongside friends from Remake Learning and KnowledgeWorks Foundation — want to host a workshop where participants will take part in Center for Transformational Play's Appalachian-inspired roleplaying experience and learn how to create their own resilient learning ecosystems.

But they need your vote for their proposal to get them there.

So go ahead and hit the ❤ at this link: https://participate.sxsw.com/flow/sxsw/sxsw27/community-voting-edu/page/community-voting/session/1784846200311001HJcj

07/30/2026

ETC alum and The Alice Project director Melanie Lam was a guest on Carnegie Mellon University's podcast, Where What If Becomes What's Next, a few weeks ago!

She talked to host Randy Scott about how Randy Pausch created Alice, the program's history, and where it's heading in the future 🚀

➡ Read some of the highlights from the interview here: https://etc.cmu.edu/about/news-events/alice-computer-science

07/28/2026

Second year ETC student Agnes Zhang is spending her summer working as a Creative Design Intern at Deeplocal, a Pittsburgh-based creative technology and experience design company.

“At Deeplocal, I’ve been able to contribute not only to the early creative thinking, but also to figuring out how an idea actually looks, works, and gets built,” she said. “I really enjoy that combination of creativity and problem-solving, especially when a project moves between digital and physical design.”

Thanks Agnes for taking us along with you for a day ✨🤳

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