Games Design Courses

The quality of game design degrees continues to be under the spotlight, and I've seen and heard first hand about some of the questionable teaching going on. From a design course that only teaches 3D modelling (the candidate I interviewed had not been taught a thing about A.I. or anything else technical for that matter) to another where the teachers were the Masters students that had just finished their postgrad (i.e. zero "real world" experience of development.

Game design degrees are really now the Media Studies degree of the 2000's - pretty much worthless. What's worse is that universities seem to be cynically pursing these courses as they attract a lot of students, and in turn a lot of money.

The result of this is students end up feeling very disgruntled when they complete their course, often blaming the industry itself:

http://www.gamecareerguide.com/features/540/oped_from_the_outside_looking_in.php

In truth the answer to this guy's woes is a lack of talent. I won't embarass him by posting a link to his porfolio here, but suffice to say, he hasn't got a hope in hell of getting in with it. The horrible thing is that having done a degree it instills a sense of right in the student that they are now capable of getting into the industry.

There are notable exceptions to these rules. The University of Abertay in Dundee has a great reputation for producing good, knowledgeable candidates, and I have seen similar good things happening at the University of Teeside (I was lucky enough to be invited to do a talk at their regular games / animation festival Animex). By communicating and building relationships with the industry, these courses will strengthen and improve, particularly as ex-professionals cross over into teaching. However, to truly succeed, the universities simply looking for a fast buck need to stop.

Now the solution lies in the students being able to create a good portfolio, but much of this effort will have to be taken on themselves. In truth, the only way to get into the industry is through a lot of hardwork and a lucky break. Only a good portfolio will give a student that chance.