Unreal Engine - Blueprints (Online)

Unreal Engine is a game engine developed by Epic Games (creators of Fortnite). The real-time 3D platform enables users to create advanced, top quality content and impressive interactive experiences.

One of Unreal Engine's core strengths is the visual scripting API called Blueprints. It can be leveraged to create tools, small gameplay interactions or even entire games! This course is designed to give you a strong foundation in visual scripting within Unreal Engine. The course will teach you the fundamentals of programming within a node network and challenge you to think creatively on how to leverage the visual scripting API.

Sneak peek - have a taste for how we teach Blueprints at Escape Studios with this tutorial by our tutor for the course, Unreal Engine Authorized Instructor and Technical Artist at Framestore, Juriaan van Váli.

Location: Online
Start date: TBC
Tuition fees: £895
Mode of study: Part time
Programme duration: 10 weeks (3 hours of video content and 9 hours of self-study and practice per week)
Entry requirements: Aged 18 or over, a good understanding of written and spoken English. Plus, knowledge of Unreal Engine fundamentals.

Make an enquiry

Online course requirement

Check out Unreal Engine's website for software and hardware requirements on using and running Unreal Engine on your personal computer.
It is recommended to have some basic understanding of Unreal Engine before starting this course. If you are unsure about the Unreal Engine basics then check out our Unreal Engine Fundamentals online course!
This course requires you to have Unreal Engine 4.26 installed on your computer.
The course will be hosted on Smashcut. In order for the platform to work properly, you must use the Chrome web browser on a desktop or laptop computer.
To get the most out of the course you'll need a webcam and microphone.

Why choose this course

We are an Unreal Authorized Training Center and have a good relationship with Epic Games.
Our tutors are Authorized Unreal Engine Instructors and have many years of experience in teaching Unreal Engine, including providing training direct to industry. It is the only Engine we use here at Escape Studios.
You will build your knowledge over four key projects that will enable you to establish a great foundation in your visual scripting knowledge.
Our course is very thorough, and we cover a lot of topics, which makes it a unique opportunity to learn and develop your skills. You will get a broad foundation of the visual scripting API allowing you to explore and take your knowledge further after the course has been completed.
The course is developed by practicing working professionals that use the software on a daily basis!
Each week you will be assigned a project that will help you apply and take in the content previously covered. This is a chance for you to prove to yourself and your tutor that you understand the course materials and can apply it practically.
We will host a live Q&A session in the last week, which will address the next steps after completing this course. It will give you the opportunity to raise any concerns or ask any questions. The session will also be recorded and available for anyone who was unable to attend.
Unreal Engine is becoming increasingly popular in different industries including automotive, film and VR stimulation, so we’ve designed a course that will enable you to understand how to leverage Unreal Engine’s Blueprints system to aid your needs on whatever project required.
All content required to work on the projects will be supplied.

Module information

Week 1 and 2: Introduction to Visual Scripting

Introduction
Setting up your project
Under the Hood
Intro to Blueprints
Variables and logic flow
Triggers and debugging
Triggering lights
Timelines
Animations
Assignment

By the end of this module, you should feel comfortable using the Unreal Engine 4's Blueprint interface.

You will also understand the basics of visual scripting, how it works under the hood and leverage some basic techniques.

Week 3 and 4: Visual scripting Core Knowledge

Introduction
Flow control
Customisation
Loops and arrays
Functions and macros
Inheritance
Custom events
Blueprint Communication
Spawning Blueprints
Assignment

By the end of this module, you should feel comfortable using some of the core techniques in object-oriented programming. You will have seen how to make your Blueprints adjustable within the engine and have a broader knowledge to produce more complex content.

Week 5 and 6: Leveraging important visual scripting techniques

Introduction
Material communication
Line traces: functionality
Line traces: practical
Timer by function name
Creating splines
Splines continued
Distributing actors over spline
Assignment

By the end of this module, you will have knowledge of some core techniques used within Blueprints in Unreal Engine. These techniques are often used for quick set-dressing and more complex interactions. Combined with the previous weeks you will have a broad knowledge to tackle some basic blueprint tools and gameplay interactions.

Week 7, 8 and 9: Final project

You will combine all the knowledge you have learned through previous projects over the past weeks in one final project. It will challenge you to think creatively and problem solve.

Week 10: Live Q&A

This will be a live Q&A session, where you can ask questions about your next steps. You will simply need to submit your questions at the beginning of the week and your tutor will answer them in the live session.

Software

Teaching and learning

This course is based on independent learning and will take ten weeks (3-4 hours of video content and 9 hours of self-study and practice per week) to complete.
The course consists of engaging video demonstrations and there will be no slides.
We will evaluate your work with a practical assessment. This involves submitting your projects, questions, strengths and challenges each week to your tutor to be assessed. This encourages a dialogue between you and your tutor and helps for you to receive more structured feedback.
You will receive an asynchronous video feedback each week, which may also include annotations of the video, to ensure you understand the comments.
On the Smashcut platform, you will have access to discussion forums where you can speak to a studio assistant or other students on the course.
Juriaan van Váli, Unreal Engine Authorised Tutor at Escape Studios and Technical Artist at Framestore, will be your tutor for the duration of the course. Juriaan has 5 years of industry experience, of which 2.5 years as a tutor.

How to apply

Entry requirements

We welcome and encourage applications from students with a variety of backgrounds, experiences and perspectives.

To study an Escape Studios short course, you must:

Be over 18
Have a good understanding of written and spoken English
Feel comfortable using a computer and have knowledge of Unreal Engine fundamentals.

Apply

Online courses can be purchased directly via our online shop - just click the Buy Now button at the top of the page.

Alternatively, you can:

Call our Admissions Advisors on +44 (0)203 441 1303
Email us at admissions@escapestudios.com
Reach us on LiveChat Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Following your application, you will need to agree to our terms and conditions before your place on the course can be secured.

Fees and funding

Fees: £895

Payment plans

We offer a range of payment plan options for all courses, including up to five instalments following the initial deposit. Depending on the length of the course, we ask that the initial deposit be paid when registering for the course, and the final payment prior to the end date of the course.

Following the deposit, your chosen payment plan will break down your remaining instalments equally. Please speak to a member of our Admissions team on +44 (0)203 441 1303 or admissions@escapestudios.com to determine the dates of those payments.

Contact our Finance team to discuss your options on +44 (0)203 441 1303 or finance@escapestudios.com prior to purchasing the course on our online shop.

Funding for UK students

You may be able to get funding to help cover the cost of the course. For independent advice, and to find out more about your options, visit gov.uk or call the National Careers Service on 0800 100 900.

Funding for international students

We recommend you visit the UK Council for International Student Affairs website. The Council doesn’t provide funding directly, but it will give you all the information you need about studying and living in the UK, including visas and funding.

We do our best to find funding solutions for overseas students. For example:

If you’re from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh or Burma, you may be able to get funding from the Charles Wallace Trust, to help towards your living costs and educational development in the UK. Find out more at wallace-trusts.org.uk.

Get in touch

We can help with any problems or questions you have with course fees and funding. Speak to one of our Applicant Advisors via phone or email today! Call us on +44 (0)203 441 1303 or email admissions@escapestudios.com.

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Why Escape Studios?

Learn industry-relevant techniques from the experts, in a studio-like environment.

Studio-experienced tutors. Our tutors have worked at studios including DNEG, Walt Disney Animation, EA, Rebellion and Framestore and their credits include Captain America, Black Mirror and Bond: Spectre. They speak at international conferences, like B’Ars (Spain) and VIEW Conference (Italy), write for industry-recognised blog Befores&Afters, and are authorised trainers for software like Unreal Engine, Autodesk or Houdini.
Industry-standard facilities. Our central London campus is surrounded by world-leading studios and fully equipped with high-end hardware and the latest software.
Industry partners. Our studio partners, including DNEG, Framestore and PlayStation London Studio, help design and develop our courses to make sure that what we teach is relevant to the current industry practices. You’ll also have access to events and webinars ran by our Student Experience team with industry speakers.

Unreal Engine - Blueprints (Online)

See also

Week 1 and 2: Introduction to Visual Scripting

Week 3 and 4: Visual scripting Core Knowledge

Week 5 and 6: Leveraging important visual scripting techniques

Week 7, 8 and 9: Final project

Week 10: Live Q&A

Next steps

Open Events

Taster sessions

Meet the team

Why Escape Studios?

Escape Studios prospectus

Pearson Business School prospectus

Contact us

Study with us

Stay in touch

Legal

Unreal Engine - Blueprints (Online)

See also

Next steps

Open Events

Taster sessions

Meet the team

Why Escape Studios?

Escape Studios prospectus

Pearson Business School prospectus

Escape Studios Socials

Pearson College London Socials

Contact us

Study with us

Stay in touch

Legal