An recently posted article on [url="http://www.gamasutra.com"]Gamasutra[/url] delves into resumes, demo reels, and gettinga job in the games industry. I havn't read it all myself, but it looks like a good read students could benefit from.
[url]http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20050711/mcshaffry_01.shtml[/url]
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"Now that you have determined how to best present your work, it?s time to put the content together. The demo should be 2-5 minutes long, and it should begin with your absolute best work. Just as your resume should start with a compelling summary, your demo should begin with the work that will keep the watcher watching. Your demo reel is one of many hundreds that your intended audience will play. Only the demos that stand out, are original, and show incredible skill and talent will be viewed to the end.
Substance over style will get you hired. The strongest reels show a variety of genres and styles, illustrating your well-rounded talents. Animations should show unique moves on organic life forms. If your strengths are in modeling, show your unique models, textured and lighted, if you can. Strong texture artists should present a variety of textures and their uses. An environment artist would want to have a great fly-through of environments. Portraying different art styles is paramount. Save 2D art and stills for the end of your reel, but do show your strongest work there, as well, including life drawings or pencil sketches. Let your reel emphasize that you can do whatever the job needs you to do."
"Engineers should supply sample code and/or working game pieces as part of your submission, or on your personal web site. Show well-organized and well-documented code. Do not submit code that is part of a project that is copyrighted by another company. You should always ask before sending over a code sample. Some companies are very careful about what they receive, so make sure you are only sending what they want to see. Present your samples on CD, following the guidelines above, for a professional presentation.
What Not to Do "