Getting a Job in the Videogame Industry

Getting a Job in the Videogame Industry When the video game industry started, back in the days of Pong, Atari, Commodore, and of course, the coin-op arcade, the majority of the developers were hardcore programmers who became game developers because they knew how to work in the language of the machines at the time. It was the generation of the mainframe programmer and the self-taught hobbyist turned pro. As time went on, traditional artists, designers, quality assurance, and other personnel became part of the development process. The concept of game developers being limited to elite coders began to fade, and the term game design became formalized. Beginning as a Tester Testing games for money have been a dream job for countless teens. For a while, testing was a viable path for the industry, although many quickly realized that it wasnt the job they imagined it would be. This path  worked for quite some time, but as game design, development, and publishing grew into a multibillion-dollar industry, the potential game designer needed more formal training and the office became a more professional setting in the times past.  It is still possible to progress from tech support or quality assurance into the development, but doing so without higher level education and training has become a rarity inside the big development companies.   QA and testing were once considered a no-qualification-required or entry-level job, but many publishers and developers have test teams with higher education and even development skills as well. Applying for Development Positions Getting a development position isnt just a matter of having some programming or art classes on your resume. Long, sometimes multi-day interview processes  stand between the aspiring developer and their dreams of making games. Questions you will want to ask yourself: Programmers: What titles have you shipped? If youre still a college student, what was your final project? Have you worked in a collaborative programming environment before? Do you know how to write clean, concise, documented code? Artists: What does your portfolio look like? Do you have a solid command of the tools you use? Can you take direction well? How about the ability to give constructive feedback? Game designers or level designers: What games are out there that youve made? Why did you make the decisions you did about gameplay, level flow, lighting, art style, or anything else that you did to make your game unique? Those are the easy questions. Programming interviews frequently involve having to stand up in front of your potential coworkers at a whiteboard and solve logic or programming efficiency problems. Level designers and artists may have to talk about their work on a video projector in the same sort of environment. Many game companies now check for compatibility with teammates. If youre not able to communicate with your potential peers, you may lose the chance at a job that youd be perfect for. Independent Development The recent rise of independently developed and published games has opened a new path for those looking to get into the game industry- but this is not an easy route by any stretch of the imagination. It requires a significant investment of time, energy, resources, and a drive to face a very competitive market. And most importantly, it requires that you know how to fail, and despite this to get up and move on to the next project until you make it.

Learn About Education and Schools in Virginia

Learn About Education and Schools in Virginia When it comes to education and schools, all states are not created equal. States and local governments possess almost all of the power when it comes to governing education and schools.   Because of this, you will find key differences in education-related policy across all fifty states and the District of Columbia. You will continue to find distinct differences even between neighboring districts thanks to local control. Highly debated educational topics such as the Common Core State Standards, teacher evaluations, school choice, charter schools, and teacher tenure are handled differently by almost every state.   These and other key educational issues typically fall along controlling political party lines. This ensures that a student in one state will likely be receiving a different variation of education than their peers in neighboring states. These differences make it virtually impossible to accurately compare the quality of education   one state is providing compared to another. You must utilize several common data points to make connections and draw conclusions about the quality of education any particular state is providing. This profile focuses on education and schools in Virginia.   Virginia Education and Schools Virginia Department of Education Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction: Dr. Steven R. Staples District/School Information Length of School Year: A minimum of 180 school days or 540 (K) and 990 (1-12) school hours are required by Virginia state law. Number of Public School Districts: There are 130 public school districts in Virginia. Number of Public Schools: There are 2192 public schools in Virginia. **** Number of Students Served in Public Schools: There are 1,257,883 public school students in Virginia. **** Number of Teachers in Public Schools: There are 90,832 public school teachers in Virginia.**** Number of Charter Schools: There are 4 charter schools in Virginia. Per Pupil Spending: Virginia spends $10,413 per pupil in public education. **** Average Class Size: The average class size In Virginia is 13.8 students per 1 teacher. **** % of Title I Schools: 26.8% of schools in Virginia are Title I Schools.**** % With Individualized Education Programs (IEP): 12.8% of students in Virginia are on IEPs. **** % in Limited-English Proficiency Programs: 7.2% of students in Virginia are in limited-English Proficient Programs.**** % of Student Eligible for Free/Reduced Lunches: 38.3% of students in Virginia schools are eligible for free/reduced lunches.**** Ethnic/Racial Student Breakdown**** White: 53.5% Black: 23.7% Hispanic: 11.8% Asian: 6.0% Pacific Islander: 0.1% American Indian/Alaskan Native: 0.3% School Assessment Data Graduation Rate: 81.2% of all students entering high school in Virginia graduate. ** Average ACT/SAT score: Average ACT Composite Score: 23.1*** Average Combined SAT Score: 1533***** 8th grade NAEP assessment scores:**** Math: 288 is the scaled score for 8th grade students in Virginia. The U.S. average was 281. Reading: 267 is the scaled score for 8th grade students in Virginia. The U.S. average was 264. % of Students Who Attend College after High School: 63.8% of students in Virginia go on to attend some level of college. *** Private Schools Number of Private Schools: There are 638 private schools in Virginia.* Number of Students Served in Private Schools: There are 113,620 private school students in Virginia.* Homeschooling Number of Students Served Through Homeschooling: There were an estimated 34,212 students that were homeschooled in Virginia in 2015.# Teacher Pay The average teacher pay for the state of Virginia was $49,869 in 2013.## Each individual district in the state of Virginia negotiates teacher salaries and establishes their own teacher salary schedule. The following is an example of a teacher salary schedule in Virginia provided by the Richmond Public School *Data courtesy of Education Bug . **Data courtesy of ED.gov ***Data courtesy of PrepScholar. ****Data courtesy of the National Center for Education Statistics ******Data courtesy of The Commonwealth Foundation #Data courtesy of A2ZHomeschooling.com ##Average salary courtesy of National Center of Education Statistics ###Disclaimer:   The information provided on this page changes frequently.   It will be updated regularly as new information and data becomes available.