A question on education: IT or Game Course?

A question that's been floating around for many years. Please keep in mind my statements are purely opinionated and represent no one else's point of view.

There is no simple answer to this. And it's ultimately up to personal taste and to what speed in which you wish to get into the industry. It also depends on what avenue of game development he/she wishes to get into, whether it be design, art or programming.

Courses that are focused around game development pitch to teach you skills and knowledge that is the most direct and relevant to our industry. If this industry is the only industry that the student wants to consider then it would make sense to approach one of these institutions, whether it be Quantem, AIE or somewhere else. Some of these institutions are privately owned so check out their fees and payment options before making a final decision.

The big plus of these institutions is student placement. If the student is passionate about games and shows it through their work then there's a chance a studio will see that and pick them up.

Then there are more broader University courses like a computer science bachelors. These courses are more generalised but that doesn't mean they are any worse off then direct courses. It does however mean that the student will have to put in extra time in their own projects and self promotion directed at the game industry. But in the end they leave with a more broader knowledge of that discipline and similar disciplines.

The big plus of Uni courses like these is their broadness. If the student ends up not liking the game industry. They'll have some accreditation that could help them in similar industries.

Generally a bachelors is looked upon best. Especially later on in life if the person wishes to travel abroad. Most immigration centres for America, Canada and Europe assume a accredited bachelors is required to pass as a skilled worker, unless the candidate is of a lead position of their industry. which is around 6+ years of experience in the workplace.

The first thing he needs to do is pick a discipline. There are many areas - programming, art, animation, design, QA, production - each requiring their own specific skill sets. And the best way to get a job in the industry is pick one of those and stick to it. Don't become a "jack of all trades". Employers want exceptional talent in one area, not someone who has average talent in multiple areas. Whatever education he chooses, he needs to keep that in mind. If he wants to be a programmer, do a programming course. If he wants to be an animator, do an animation course etc...

Personally, I don't think much of those game specific courses at all, but I do know a few guys that have gone through courses at QANTUM and AIE and have managed to land jobs. I think the major factor is excelling in your showing field, and showing something that really makes you stand out from the crowd.

As somebody who is directly involved in hiring here at Infinite Interactive, I answer emails like this from both students and parents on a semi-regular basis.


My answer is always BACHELOR DEGREE FROM A GOOD UNIVERSITY


While it's true that Infinite hires as many people from Games Courses as from regular Uni Bachelor Degrees, the B.Sc. guys have the following advantages:
1. If they change their mind about their future career mid-course, then their degree is more flexible
2. They can more easily move industries if they burn out on games, and this industry DOES burn people
3. Their degree is more flexible if they are working overseas
4. A regular Uni degree gives broader experience and better Software Engineering skills. I find that the most important subjects they ever cover in any tertiary degree are the Software Engineering ones - they are certainly the ones we quiz juniors about the most in an interview.


In my experience, *nobody* is really prepared to make a commercial game whatever course they come from. We tend to give preference to Uni graduates for our hardcore programming positions, while Game-course people tend to land in the more creative gameplay roles.


Cheers

Steve Fawkner
Infinite Interactive

Another thing people rarely consider is teaching yourself. I can only speak from my perspective as an artist and biz guy, but I never went to university or studied art/business outside of reading books, trawling the internet, talking to people who have been there, and practicing. I understand university has its place and in many cases probably gets people hired where if they had no degree they would have no chance, still, I have a thing against uni. You spend 3-4 years and rack up a massive debt, and I know so many people who change their mind half way through or talk about how useless their degree was in their chosen field. I often think how much they could have gotten done on their own in those 4 years without spending all that money.

I got a job from my portfolio, which I worked on through highschool. I would personally hire anyone regardless of their education if they have a great folio.

Thinking even further outside the traditional box, consider that you don't have to go looking for a job, you can work for yourself. Contracting or starting your own business. Flash games are a great way to get into developing games, and are simple enough that you can see whether you have a preference for art or code, or you may like both.

Jobs are not very secure, especially in games, and especially with the GFC. When Ratbag closed I was pretty happy I had spent 3-4 years on Hyperfocal Design, and was much more secure with that income.

I realise this wasn't really the question, but I suppose I felt like ranting, since people never seem to consider these options :)

Cheers,
Jay Weston

Another consideration is that it can be hard to get into the Games Industry. I worked a regular programming job for about a year and a half before I was able to make the change.

Having a solid, well rounded education and a respected, general degree will help either ensuring a decent job while he waits for his big break to come or even providing new opportunities if he later decides that the games industry isn't where he wants to be work the rest of his life (yes, it really does happen, even to people who've spent their whole lives wanting to work on games).