After completing my education at Coleg Gwent I need to make a decision about where I should go from that point. Will I carry on with my education and go to University or will I immediately look for work? In order to make an informed decision I will take this opportunity to research both options and their merits.
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University
If I do go to university, I want to get into a Games Design course because I enjoy working in Maya and Unreal 4. I might want to take a Game Art course if the Design courses haven’t got room for me but I am keen to take the Design course. A university course is ideal because I can further improve my skills to get a greater chance of being employed. Some courses even offer a “sandwich” where I can train in an actual company for a year of study. This is highly favourable to me because I have heard that this is the most common way students get employed after their education; the companies that host the student can sometimes reserve a spot on their workforce for said student when they get their degree. I can also learn to live independently if I decide to go for student accommodation or move out into a place of my own.
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However there are some issues with going to University; for example the expenses involved could be catastrophic to my funds/savings. The average cost of a Games Design course is £9,000, the cost of student accommodation can be approximately £260 – £730 per month (depending on resource usage, providers, etc.); if I decide not to move and just travel I could either spend £30 on a card for 16-25 year-old travelers that gives me a 1/3 off on all tickets (tickets usually cost £4.50-£7) or get a season ticket that lasts for an entire year that costs £948… every year… for potentially 3+ years… basically my piggy bank will starve for a long time no matter what I choose. Family matters are an issue too as most members are adamant that I cannot go to any university except for the only one that is closest to my home, to the point I cannot have any conversation with them that doesn’t end up in, “you are going to (university name) because I said so!” – blatantly disregarding the fact that different universities have different opportunities, and that I’m the one who wants to go to university; I have to stick with the consequences of this decision. I may not be even considered as a possible student, my grades and qualifications may not be good enough for the course providers.
Pros:
- Further education to get higher level jobs
- Better improve my skills
- Easy access to the industry
- Living independently
Cons:
- Relatives are restrictive about where I should go
- The time used studying could instead be used to get work and earn money
- Expensive to attend
- Travel costs
- May not be qualified enough to attend
Employment
Another option for myself is to develop my portfolio this year to go into a job; immediately earning money to support myself independently. This would be an amazing opportunity for me since I want to be financially independent and sustain my livelihood. I wish to be a 3D modeller or a 3D environment builder since I enjoy creating assets/characters in Maya/Sculptris and building levels in Unreal 4. I will go into the working world regardless of what I decide to do after my studies; the question is do I start now or do I go into University and work when I have more educational experience?
If I leave college and go straight to work there are quite a few obvious benefits, I can start earning money as soon as I am employed, support myself, gain workplace experience, and so onward from there. I have looked into a few jobs via Artstation.com and, while most are either far away in other countries, found a few positions based in the UK that I could apply for. Even the companies that are over in Europe or across the pond offer places for people outside their home nation by letting them work from home or giving them the opportunity to emigrate and live in the company’s country.
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The downsides to going into employment direct from college are… plentiful, for lack of a better word. For starters, I may not be able to get into the job I applied for, leading to the position I desire staying closed for either a few months or even years! I may not be as qualified to join companies as someone who does have a Uni degree in that subject area. Some places that might be available could be with companies overseas who don’t offer the same chances as the examples I have mentioned in the previous paragraph; while a good majority of organisations do allow employees to work from home, big name teams like Naughty Dog, Insomniac Games, Riot Games, Ubisoft Montreal, or Blizzard are more likely to offer relocation services. I highly doubt famous groups like them would be interested in someone fresh out of college with no professional work experience. I’d prefer to work directly with my employers in a workplace/studio setting as I would be more productive in that scenario than I would be working from home.
I’m also going to be blunt here, I’m autistic. I may not be able to land a job because I failed an interview; thanks to either my own social anxieties or my low ability to recognise certain boundaries I should never even mention, let alone cross. I feel confident that this is just all in my head and this is just me worrying for the sake of worrying but I still feel that this could be a potential obstacle. There is also the worry that I may not be properly accommodated or just blatantly taken advantage of; with people like Alex St. John (one of the three men who created DirectX, founder of WildTangent) writing an article on game development which included – among other questionable things – how much of a holy grail “the Aspergers engineer” is because they “work like machines, don’t engage in politics, don’t develop attitudes and never change jobs” [Sources here and here]. That is so dehumanising to autistic people and autistic developers I can’t even begin to explain how horrid that statement is! But what if he isn’t alone in his… ideology? What if this is genuinely how most of the people in charge of game development studios feel about people like me?
Back onto the original topic, I’m not too sure I am ready to go into the real world just yet. I do crave the independence wholeheartedly but now that I’m on the cusp of being legally considered an adult, I feel like I’m having second thoughts about how soon I want to start acting like a responsible adult. I am aware that this is unavoidable, that no matter how much I protest I do need to grow up, but I feel overwhelmed by the pace and goals in place.
Pros:
- Gain working/life experience (much more valuable to bigger name employers)
- Earn money for myself
- Immediate independence
Cons:
- There may not be positions available for me
- I may fail the application/interview process
- If I work from home, I may not be as productive as I can be
- At first, it would feel so alien and disorienting being moved to another country for work
- May not be qualified enough for the employers
- How will my disability be accommodated/perceived?
My Decision
Taking the choices – their possible merits and their potential set backs – into account, I believe I should stay in education for a few years longer to gain a degree and more skills that would be beneficial to my portfolio and CV. I want to make myself as professional as possible so I make a good first impression when I get my portfolio out there and show employers what I can do. I am proud of how far I have come and what I have learned, but I don’t believe I have unlocked my full potential and that there is still so much I want to learn – which can’t really be learned in my college career, I need to go further than this level of education. So no matter what I will work, but I need more time to prove myself worthy of anyone’s attention; Indie, AAA, or otherwise.
What skills will I need?
The relevant skills I will need would be Presentation, Project Management, Self Management, Creativity, and IT Skills.
Presentation can help me with:
- Clearly displaying my abilities
- Confidence in showing my work to potential employers
Project Management can help me with:
- Working as a part of a team which will count on me to do my part as much as I will depend on them for theirs
- Becoming a better negotiator and debater when unwelcome situations arise
Self Management can help me with:
- Keeping myself disciplined and focused
- Keeping to deadlines
- Avoiding procrastination and distraction
Creativity can help me with:
- Getting into the industry as it is, while not immediately made so, easier when you exhibit creative talents
- Getting my name out there by making my work different from most of the artists in the industry
IT Skills can help me with:
- Getting into the industry because video games only exist because of technology
- Showcasing my talent and passion for creating 3D Models
How does this compare with my skills audit? What do I need to work on?
When I revisited my audit from the end of the last academic year, I completely disagreed with it so I had adjusted it to suit what I best feel. Since the start of this academic year I felt no drive to get working even though this is the most important year of my college career! I am aware of my deadlines and that I should be dedicating my time to my portfolio and University applications but I just… can’t… I will try harder but this is so awkward trying to get into a new routine. I am also easily distracted by everything; socialising, video games, drama in the video game industry, and generally existing.
My Tutor’s thoughts?
After having a one-to-one discussion with my tutor we have both agreed that aiming for university and trying to improve my portfolio; working on my self management and confidence. I will start by immediately working on my portfolio as soon as I go home from walking my relative’s pet, stop playing video games (unless it is to celebrate finishing a good amount of my work), and take whatever opportunity to further my skills comes my way.
Rhianydd Jenkins 