Worried about my graduate prospects

tr3mor

ringo_24601 wrote: »

If you are serious about getting a job in a games company, make some working demos. Something innovative would be best, something to show how good you are.

I'll echo this. Make your own portfolio of games.

They only have to be concepts, so don't go overboard with stories and stuff. Something with fancy lighting or particle effects should go down well. If you really want to get into games design then you want to be spending all of your spare time coding.

Companies want to see nice clean efficient C++. Lots of comments and make sure there are no memory leaks!

Ytaya

My ex-partner is in the video game industry, albeit in the US. Based on his experience, I'd recommend a) you put together a portfolio of your games/projects on a website for potential employers to look at and b) find a summer placement in the industry. A placement doesn't even have to be in the UK, although you may have left it a little late to get an overseas visa for this summer.

And finally, most importantly, c) network, network, network. Go to the exhibitions and conferences, take business cards with you (and put your portfolio website on it!), talk to people, get your name and face known.

Ultimately, a future employer wants to see that you're competent (at worst - at best, they want to see that you excel). Work experience and a good portfolio will mean more than the name of the university you went to.

Daisies

I don't think it matters for some subjects where you did your degree. The league tables are based on all the courses (some might be appalling, some really good) and your course might be the one that Lincoln is renowned for! (I have no idea if that's true, but I've heard it about other particular courses at other unis). It's not like a History degree (which I did) where you can do variations on the same theme at virtually any uni and so where you went does matter more.

Also - what professional links does your dept have? Do they have opportunities for arranging work experience or contacts you could use for a project etc? They must have to produce some kind of data about where their graduates have ended up.

If you can also produce some relevant work experience etc by the end of your degree most employers would look really favourably on that.

djhworld

Wow, I never expected such encouraging replies, thanks to everyone that has done so!

The advice shared in here is very interesting and I'm taking it all into account, especially on the portfolio front, I'm capable of whipping a few things together and I do have a few websites out there.

Concerning the 'you should have researched!' point, which is perfectly valid, my answer to that is; I did research! I wanted to get into a course that involved computer games and Lincoln was the one that seemed to stand out.

There's no official league table for it either (as it's such a unique branch of computer science) so I couldn't really differentiate between others.

The reason why I posted this thread in the first place was because of comments in The Times and this BBC documentary that seemed to laugh off any course that isn't 'traditional' or from a 'traditional' university.

It was a bit disconcerting to hear such words and even though this could be considered elitist, it still got me a bit worried.

I'm pretty eager to get into the games industry, or anything to do with programming really, be it games or just general computer software.

Reading the comments on here made me realise that perhaps my skills could be in demand and I'm just worrying because of a league table printed in a newspaper.

Again, thanks to all those that have replied.

melancholly

glad to hear that you're more upbeat!

with the games industry, they really just want someone who can program well! so if you can demonstrate that, that's the main thing. it isn't like more general graduate intake jobs where english/history/languages/biology all stand you in good stead. you may find that your degree might (and i only say might) give you a lower starting salary, but with the number of people wanting to do games programming, it's not the industry for those interested in making lots and lots money!

also - see if you can get any experience over this summer, even if it's unpaid work. that would help your cv stand out.

Daisies

Good luck!

ka7e

Off on a tangent, but you might like to check out Future Publishing who produce many of the popular Gaming mags. They offer work experience and placements and also advertise for freelance writers.

RunningRach

Remember that your degree is not necessarily the be-all-and-end-all of your career. I graduated with a 2.1 in geology in 1998 and went straight into a grad position with a logistics/distribution company. I have since worked in software development, training, telecoms and now am back working for a large IT outsourcing company - none have yet had any geological connection! In my travels I have worked with biology grads who now programme, marketing grads who test software, engineering grads who are IT trainers, and linguists who are now IT service managers. What employers are looking for are 'transferrable skills' to show that you are a bright, articulate person capable of learning, developing yourself and adding value to their business. A decent degree shows you have the capacity to work hard, if you want to go into gaming then a lot of the advice above looks sensible, if you decide that is not the career for you in the end (like me and geology) don't worry - just focus on what you want to do and the skills you have got and you'll get there!

Best of luck!

Feanor

hey,

I graduated from the University of Lincoln last year. I did Fashion design, so i felt a little like you as it wasn't "the london college of fashion" etc etc..

But its all about what YOU want to achieve. I gained a 1st class honours, and got my first job in fashion buying the easter before i left uni! No one even cared what uni i had gone to or even asked me what result i was likely to get!

Anyway, my boyfriend is a software developer, was VERY keen on getting into the games industry when he first left uni...every recruitment agency wanted a very technical full blown demo alongside their CV, and usually interviews have quite a few programming tests. There are quite alot of jobs though, especially in London where we are now.

My boyfriend now works as a C#.Net developer, and he is constantly head hunted and in demand. He gets calls from recruitment agencies minimum twice a week! So if the gaming thing doesn't come off, if you can do other programming aswell then you'll be absolutely fine.

Good luck !

bmouthboyo

Obviously universities such as oxford and cambridge stand out above the rest but you have to realise nowerdays having a degree does not guarentee you a job it keeps you in the running.

I hear so many people who left school at 16 or 18 saying "everyone has a degree nowerdays there worthless" and i simply say "well if everyone has a degree and you dont how does that make you look?" lol.

So you have a degree and that automatically makes you stand above those who dont.

So then its up to you, employers dont just take your degree into considerations personality, drive, ambition etc are just as important. If they feel you fit there image then they would pick you above someone from a higher league university.

Dont worry, you get were you want