Many children today spend thousands of hours playing video games. Going from GameBoys(TM) to GameCubes(TM), Wii(TM) and XBox(TM), to the latest frontier of Massively Multiplayer Online gaming, it seems to have taken over their lives. Is there a way to capitalize on this obsession and find a career that is equally (or at least almost) as attractive? Take on the quest and discover a brave new world of future work that video game fans will truly love.
Videogame designer
First and foremost, of course, is the work of creating the video games themselves. The facts are these: the video game industry has surpassed movies in terms of dollar value generated. Amazing! This industry not only continues to expand, but also appears to be relatively recession-proof. What does it take to have a career in game creation? First, you need to understand that there is not just one type of video game job, but many. It takes a multi-talented team of people to pull off the creation of a new and exciting game. The jobs and skills involved include artists
– storyboard artist, character artist, animator, texture artists, programmers including sound and audio engineers, game designers
– character design, level design, general design, game producers –
project management skills and writers
– software documentation, storytelling, character scripts.
There has been a recent explosion in universities, technical institutes, and certificate programs to help you gain the skills you need to enter this industry. However, while researching this industry, I discovered that there are many other emerging careers that use many of the same skills and can be just as appealing.
simulation engineer
Just as the job of the game designer and programmer is to create a compelling virtual world, there is a “real life” application of this to various industries: simulations. At a university, they talked about how some students were using electrical impulses from the heart to generate real-time, three-dimensional images of the heart to help doctors examine what might be wrong. At RPI they are working on creating a simulation of a surgical procedure for doctors to practice before cutting someone open! Beyond medical applications, simulations are gaining traction in aerospace, automotive engineering, and many other industries. Of course, the military has been interested in simulation for a long time. Some of the college video game programs are recognizing this trend and have added “simulation” to their program title (for example, Daniel Webster Colleges’ BA in “Games, Simulation and Robotics” or the University of Baltimore’s BA in “Simulation and Digital Entertainment”). Scientists, engineers, defense planners, and educators use simulation to make their jobs easier.
mobile app developer
Another big career trend is the explosion of apps for all sorts of other devices. Just look at the iPhone or iTouch. What can’t these things do? The creation of content, software applications and who knows what else for all kinds of mobile devices is all the rage. So “Mobile App Developer” is a career that is here now and will expand in the future. This is also a career that colleges and universities are already recognizing. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute offers a degree in “Electronic Media Arts and Communication”; Worcester Polytechnic Institute offers “Interactive Media and Game Development”. The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) has a BA in “Interactive Development and New Media”; Champlain College offers a degree in “Software Engineering for Emerging Technologies.”
Computer Forensics and Cyber Security
The other really important area highlighted at universities like RIT is computer forensics and cyber security specialists. You only have to listen to the latest news about hackers stealing 135 million credit card numbers to see why these are hot areas of work. Computer forensics specialists work with criminal justice people to dig deep into all computer records and data associated with criminal cases. We’re only going to be more connected in the future, which will make us even bigger targets. If you like figuring out how to get around what someone else did, why not consider putting your talents to good use for the benefit of all? DePaul University offers a degree in “Information Assurance and Security Engineer”; RIT has “Information Security and Forensics” while Champlain university offers “Digital Computer Forensics”.
These careers are real, they are growing, and the educational resources are available now! If you’re a gamer, or if you know a gamer, there are great races you can participate in. The US Department of Labor predicts that IT jobs will be among the fastest growing and highest paying jobs over the next decade. These jobs will be critical to the nation’s economy and security, and offer the highest entry-level salaries with a bachelor’s degree anywhere. Check them out and find the schools and programs that excite you the most.
