Number of Graduates vs Entry Level jobs

yaustar · 02-02-2008, 02:00 PM

I got bored so I thought I take a look at what courses exist for games in the UK, it turned out to be 285 which is a lot more then I expected taking into account of the traditional courses that are not included in this count.

If 10 graduated per course, that means there is potentially 2850 graduates per year wanting to enter the industry in the UK alone which to me seems far too many for the size of the industry.

Any thoughts?

Gshonk · 02-02-2008, 06:32 PM

I was actually thinking about this the other day. Because there are about 10-20 kids in each class at Full Sail spanning 21 months. Which means 10-20 people graduate each month (not sure if that is completely accurate). So where are we all supposed to get jobs? Is there that much of a demand?

Avyon · 02-02-2008, 09:05 PM

I had this thought my senior year. I was looking around me during the brunch before graduation and had the "take all the schools in the country.. add all the graduates every year..." and I'll be honest I felt a little overwhelmed.

ronnoc10 · 02-03-2008, 11:50 AM

I'm completely terrified of all of the kids trying to get into the video game industry.

And even more scared of how are better then me.

Crastin · 02-03-2008, 11:25 PM

I can relate. Almost every student at my school is enrolled in game design which is my major as well but i've made up my mind i'm going to succeed no matter what. Each day I wake up I ask myself, what am I going to improve on today? So far it's working but all i've got to compare myself to are my fellow students. Will this confidence get me a job? Who knows, i'm still just a freshman.

jillduffy · 02-04-2008, 04:19 AM

I'm actually moderating a panel at the Game Career Seminar at GDC about hiring and can ask the panel about the number of applications they receive for different entry-level job titles if you like. I can also ask how many of those applications are considered at all versus thrown out immediately.

The description of the session is this: "A panel of HR heads from Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony and EA discuss the hottest jobs at the hottest companies/studios and share insights on their ideal job candidates, what jobs are available, who is applying and who is getting the job."

What other questions would you all like me to ask?

yaustar · 02-07-2008, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yaustar

I got bored so I thought I take a look at what courses exist for games in the UK, it turned out to be 285 which is a lot more then I expected taking into account of the traditional courses that are not included in this count.

If 10 graduated per course, that means there is potentially 2850 graduates per year wanting to enter the industry in the UK alone which to me seems far too many for the size of the industry.

Any thoughts?

Looks like it has been echoed: http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=32817

Uther Mortigast · 02-08-2008, 01:41 AM

It is interesting to me that M. Jeffery says on one hand, "That means [gaming degree holders] come to a company like ours and they need extra training - they're not quite ready," then goes on to say that EA prefers to train traditional degree holders into programming roles.

So with either degree holder, EA needs to train-up their new hire. I can believe that, for I contend that schools do not teach you what you need to know to do a job. Rather, they arm you with tools to help you learn your job once you get it. Evidently by what Jeffery says, EA prefers one toolbox over another.

If that bias is prevalent in the industry -- that specialized gaming degrees are worth less than broader scoped degrees -- then the ratio of jobs to graduates is much less disproportionate. That is, at least for those with CS or SE degrees.