"fresh out of college you probably don't have a AAA game under your belt" - you don't need a AAA game. There are many other levels of game which yield useful experience. As you say, side projects are useful, but so are small indie releases, or mobile games, or internships/work-experience placements/etc.

"most Designers start in QA." I don't think that's true, except at big places like Ubisoft perhaps. For a start, not every company even has a QA department (sometimes because they outsource it to publishers, or simply because they are too small).

Everyone will give you different advice about getting into game design because the role of a designer differs from company to company. (I've even worked at places that didn't employ designers at all.) What I would recommend is this: if you're passionate enough about game design to be willing to relocate to get a job, do whatever will get you the broadest and most impressive portfolio in the next few years. That is probably a game design degree, providing you can find a university with a high quality course (and all the caveats other people have mentioned apply there). A Computer Science degree will help you get a job as a programmer, but won't necessarily let you transition to designer later. But it will pay better, and give you options outside of the games industry.

Hello,

This is my first post so forgive me if I do something wrong.

I just wanted to share that I am currently in school for my Bachelors in Game Design and Development at New England Institute of Technology and feel I may be able to help you with this decision. At this school we start off learning code such as html and design programs like 3ds max or Flash animator. The point of this is to help guide a student in a direction they want to go. Around quarter 4 of 6 you get to choose a focus between design or programming. I chose the design branch.

From there your core focus is what you chose but you still get experience with the other side through mutual group project classes or necessity in finishing a project. I am currently a quarter 8 out of 12 in my degree and I have learned a lot. To give you an idea of what I have learned so far I attached a photo of my completed courses. (further descriptions of the courses can be found on the NEIT website.)

I wont lie to you this program is tough and requires a lot of hard work. We also realize how competitive the industry is and how it can be difficult to enter. However, it is still possible. To prepare us for a different outcome though I am taking a class called Game Industry Perspectives. In this class we analyze the industry and ourselves. We go over our skill sets and how we could apply them to other industry's as well. Example: I want to be an animator the fields I can look into for employment are games, media and entertainment, movies, medical, army etc..

The school is providing you with the tools needed to carry out what you want and succeed but it is up to you to master them.

Also, this is the design perspective if you want to go programming you are in better shape. You learn many different languages such as html, java script, c++, C#, etc... the program side is diverse in what they learn as well and it can be applied in various ways.

Ex: A buddy of mine graduated from the game program here after going through the programming track. He now works and programs at Brown University helping engineers develop medical simulations in Unity. He still hopes to pursue games but the experience he is gaining will be extremely valuable and could be the stepping stone into games he needed.

I hope this helps. Its a tough decision to make but I would also say to go with what you think will make you happy. Schooling is a lot of money and time you want to be sure you are choosing something that you will be content with in the future.

My feedback is mostly generic in the context of career hunting in the scope of Computer Science. I've never worked a job outside of this umbrella of an industry so I can't rightly speak to much of anything else.

Personally (I may catch some heat about this) I believe there is a huge discrepancy from "going to college", and "Going to College to earn a degree" as opposed to "Going to College to earn a degree, and get a job in my Major".

Do what you think is right. A degree is a good thing, but viewing college as a meal ticket to any career is a dangerous mentality, and it is healthy to be weary of joining the college bubble! College imho should be treated as a place to make connections, and to undergo self enlightenment in some skill or trade. Which indirectly may land you a job, but nothing is for certain.

A brief digression in the context of choosing your major, the last thing you want to do is type-cast your credentials in a market segment that some employers, honest to god, don't even believe constitutes a separate career path.

I can't speak to much about Game Programming as a profession, but I can't imagine it being that much different than Software Development in general. Obviously you have to know your stuff when it comes to whatever technology, APIs, and languages the development house is using (Or demonstrate an ability to pick them up quickly). Which leads to my point.

I think a degree is good for showing you can stick things through; It can be beneficial as well if you feel you learn best in a more structured environment, and also for passing any bots the HR department may be using to filter out any resume that doesn't have a key word of "Bachelors" in it. But, conversely I believe a decent portfolio showing your prowess in the technologies the development house is using, and critical thinking skills, and a natural ability to speak well and give thought out articulated responses during an interview (Naturally, being able to pass the technical portion helps as well :wink: ) speaks larger volumes than a degree.

To play devils advocate to my earlier assertion of the evil HR bots; you will always have certain postings stating, "5 Years Experience, Bachelors Degree Required". But, having been a interviewer before, I find semantics to be a harsh lady indeed, as most should say "5 Years Experience, Bachelors Degree Preferred" as the exception to the rule always seems to occur more often than most people think.

Marcus