Degrees for gamers p1 - Military - Career Choices - Military Times EDGE

Benjamin Anderson admits that while he was on active duty he spent a substantial amount of time — off duty and on — dreaming up virtual training programs and simulations that would help in his electronic intelligence role for the Marine Corps.

None of the projects he conceptualized came to pass, but the former corporal’s fascination with simulation and video games gave him a clear career goal to pursue upon separation.

“I wanted to do something creative,” Anderson said. He wanted something entirely different from the mechanical engineering degree he had been working toward.

Now Anderson is pursuing DeVry University’s online bachelor’s degree in game and simulation programming.

“We call this a passion program since many students who enter the program are passionate about gaming,” said Jason Barquero, associate director of career services at DeVry.

The future of digital design

Anderson’s background consists of playing video games against his brother and in 16-man “Halo” and “Madden NFL” tournaments in the barracks at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni.

But the future of gaming and simulation isn’t just in video games.

“Over the next five to 10 years, we are going to see a rapid increase of digital interactivity in our daily lives on all levels,” said Jeremy Roden, program director and lead faculty member for the Interactive Simulation and Game Technology program at Richland College in Dallas.

“Consumers are thirsty for a product that is ‘functionally beautiful,’ and the future global economy will rely on designers to bring them from concept to completion.”

Beyond games and military simulation, many private companies are beginning to use graphic training technology.

“There are a lot of serious games being created now,” said Linda Sellheim, academic director for The Art Institute of California-Orange County, which offers a bachelor’s degree in game art and design. “From games for change and games for health to environmentally conscious games, there is a lot going on in this area.”

The programs

Game and simulation programs are generally divided into two groups — those focusing on “design,” creating ideas for games and doing the coding that governs how the games work; and the art programs in which students specialize in bringing characters and settings to life, said Scott Chappell, chief marketing officer and curriculum developer for Sessions Online, a college that specializes in game art.

Just keep in mind that you can’t earn a game degree simply by playing video games, said Don Ott, associate prop artist at High Moon Studios, a faculty member at the Orange County Art Institute and a former Marine.

“The commercials that show people sitting on the couch playing video games and getting paid isn’t what we do. It’s a lot of hard work, and it requires a vast amount of software skill as well as an artistic eye for detail.”

Anderson’s degree is in the game design and programming category, and so far, one of his favorite assignments was a group project to create a game concept.

Anderson and his classmates invented “The Brawler Chronicles,” a video drinking game based around down-on-his-luck “town drunk” Barney Brawler, who travels from bar to bar winning friends and raising his game status to “barroom legend” in order to win back his girlfriend, Betsy Flowers. Mini-games along the way provide plenty of opportunities to make your opponent drink.

Anderson will leave school with a portfolio, or “reel,” to show potential employers the work he’s done.

“This tends to be a ‘show-me’ industry,” Barquero noted. “The résumé isn’t the most important thing. It’s part of the protocol, but students come out of these programs with an online portfolio of work, and that’s what employers are interested in.”

Your prospects

The entertainment software industry will directly or indirectly support more than a quarter of a million American jobs by 2009, up from about 80,000 in 2007, according to information from the Entertainment Software Association.

The simulation and training industry is also growing. “The U.S. Army alone is expected to invest $100 million in training games and simulation over the next two to three years,” Barquero said. A security clearance from the military could be a valuable commodity with companies creating sensitive training programs.

Starting salaries for graduates of the Orange County art college average $37,195, said Veronica Orozco, a spokeswoman for the school. The potential to earn more rises as graduates gain experience. Advancement tends to be rapid, as companies see that employees have a grasp on a game’s design and functionality and understand the production process.