5 answers
Miah
Student
Plattsburgh, New York
1
Question
Updated
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How do you recommend building your experience in game development to get into a relatively good job out of college?
I have heard that game development is a somewhat difficult job to get into straight out of college, so is there any specific advice you could give me for me to follow throughout college? What types of things should I study/explore, and what kind of internships should I seek?
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5 answers
Fasi Uddin Mir
17
Answers
Hyderabad, Telangana, India
Updated
Fasi Uddin’s Answer
Hi Miah,
It's great that you're thinking about game development after college. It can be competitive, but starting early gives you an edge. Here's how to boost your chances:
1. Build small games often. Completing multiple simple projects is better than waiting for one big one. It shows your ability to finish tasks and learn.
2. Create a portfolio. Make a simple website or page to display your projects, your role, and what you learned from each.
3. Work on team projects. Game development is a team effort. Show that you can collaborate with others like artists and programmers.
4. Join game jams. These events let you build a game quickly, teaching you speed, teamwork, and problem-solving.
5. Master one core skill. Whether it's programming, design, or art, having one strong area makes you stand out.
For internships:
- Look for roles that match your skills, like QA testing or design support.
- Don’t worry if your first internship isn’t at a big studio. Small companies can offer great experience too.
- Apply regularly, even if you don’t feel completely ready.
Also, go beyond your classes:
- Join game development clubs.
- Engage in online communities.
- Learn from how other developers work and share.
By graduation, aim to have a portfolio that shows your skills, thought process, and teamwork. You don’t need to be perfect—just show progress and consistency. Starting now puts you ahead, and with steady effort, you'll build a solid path into the industry.
Choose one game engine (like Unity, Unreal, or Godot) and commit to learning it over the next few months.
Plan and complete one small game project within 2–4 weeks to build momentum.
Create a simple portfolio page and upload your first project, even if it’s basic.
Join a game jam to gain teamwork experience and learn how to build under time constraints.
Start tracking internships early and apply to multiple opportunities, including smaller studios or related tech roles.
It's great that you're thinking about game development after college. It can be competitive, but starting early gives you an edge. Here's how to boost your chances:
1. Build small games often. Completing multiple simple projects is better than waiting for one big one. It shows your ability to finish tasks and learn.
2. Create a portfolio. Make a simple website or page to display your projects, your role, and what you learned from each.
3. Work on team projects. Game development is a team effort. Show that you can collaborate with others like artists and programmers.
4. Join game jams. These events let you build a game quickly, teaching you speed, teamwork, and problem-solving.
5. Master one core skill. Whether it's programming, design, or art, having one strong area makes you stand out.
For internships:
- Look for roles that match your skills, like QA testing or design support.
- Don’t worry if your first internship isn’t at a big studio. Small companies can offer great experience too.
- Apply regularly, even if you don’t feel completely ready.
Also, go beyond your classes:
- Join game development clubs.
- Engage in online communities.
- Learn from how other developers work and share.
By graduation, aim to have a portfolio that shows your skills, thought process, and teamwork. You don’t need to be perfect—just show progress and consistency. Starting now puts you ahead, and with steady effort, you'll build a solid path into the industry.
Fasi Uddin recommends the following next steps:
Travis Ruopp
Software Developer
6
Answers
Menasha, Wisconsin
Updated
Travis’s Answer
Game development can definitely be a difficult field to break into straight out of college, so one of the best things you can do during school is focus on building experience alongside your classes. A degree is helpful, but what often matters most is being able to show what you can actually do. Employers usually want to see practical work, whether that is small games, prototypes, mods, testing experience, design work, or other projects that show your skills.
The first step into the industry is often the hardest. In my own experience, I got my foot in the door through content creation and by working with gaming companies on tutorials for their games. That eventually led to an opportunity with a small indie company where I helped with their Discord and testing side. It started as volunteer work, but it gave me real experience and eventually turned into project management and QA management. That will not be everyone’s path, but it taught me that sometimes your first opportunity comes from smaller roles, community involvement, internships, testing, modding, or volunteer work rather than landing your dream role right away.
Throughout college, I would spend time exploring what area of game development you are most interested in, because that should shape what you study and what kind of portfolio you build. If you are interested in design, it is usually more valuable to create small playable games, systems, levels, or mods than to focus on art pieces alone. If you are more interested in programming, then technical projects and small finished games can help show your coding ability. If you are aiming for art, then your portfolio should focus much more on visual work. The important thing is that your projects match the role you want.
I would also recommend paying attention not only to technical skills, but also to soft skills. Communication, note taking, teamwork, and being able to explain your ideas clearly are often overlooked, but they matter a lot in game development. These skills help in interviews, internships, and full-time roles, and they become even more important as you grow in your career. A lot of game development is collaborative, so being someone who can communicate well, take feedback, and work effectively with others is a real strength.
For internships, I would keep an open mind. Big studios are great opportunities, but smaller indie studios, QA work, community support, playtesting, and other entry level roles can also be incredibly valuable. Sometimes the goal is not to get the perfect title immediately, but to get real experience, make connections, and prove that you can contribute to a team. Those smaller opportunities can lead to much bigger ones later.
More than anything, I would encourage you to keep making things while you are in college. They do not need to be huge, groundbreaking, or visually impressive. Small finished projects are often better than big unfinished ones because they show that you can take something from idea to completion. That kind of work gives you something concrete to talk about in interviews and helps you stand out when you are applying for internships or jobs.
So overall, I would say use college as a time to explore your specific interests, build projects that match the kind of role you want, and look for any opportunity that gives you hands on experience. Breaking into game development is hard, but every project, internship, and small opportunity helps build momentum.
The first step into the industry is often the hardest. In my own experience, I got my foot in the door through content creation and by working with gaming companies on tutorials for their games. That eventually led to an opportunity with a small indie company where I helped with their Discord and testing side. It started as volunteer work, but it gave me real experience and eventually turned into project management and QA management. That will not be everyone’s path, but it taught me that sometimes your first opportunity comes from smaller roles, community involvement, internships, testing, modding, or volunteer work rather than landing your dream role right away.
Throughout college, I would spend time exploring what area of game development you are most interested in, because that should shape what you study and what kind of portfolio you build. If you are interested in design, it is usually more valuable to create small playable games, systems, levels, or mods than to focus on art pieces alone. If you are more interested in programming, then technical projects and small finished games can help show your coding ability. If you are aiming for art, then your portfolio should focus much more on visual work. The important thing is that your projects match the role you want.
I would also recommend paying attention not only to technical skills, but also to soft skills. Communication, note taking, teamwork, and being able to explain your ideas clearly are often overlooked, but they matter a lot in game development. These skills help in interviews, internships, and full-time roles, and they become even more important as you grow in your career. A lot of game development is collaborative, so being someone who can communicate well, take feedback, and work effectively with others is a real strength.
For internships, I would keep an open mind. Big studios are great opportunities, but smaller indie studios, QA work, community support, playtesting, and other entry level roles can also be incredibly valuable. Sometimes the goal is not to get the perfect title immediately, but to get real experience, make connections, and prove that you can contribute to a team. Those smaller opportunities can lead to much bigger ones later.
More than anything, I would encourage you to keep making things while you are in college. They do not need to be huge, groundbreaking, or visually impressive. Small finished projects are often better than big unfinished ones because they show that you can take something from idea to completion. That kind of work gives you something concrete to talk about in interviews and helps you stand out when you are applying for internships or jobs.
So overall, I would say use college as a time to explore your specific interests, build projects that match the kind of role you want, and look for any opportunity that gives you hands on experience. Breaking into game development is hard, but every project, internship, and small opportunity helps build momentum.
MaryAnn Ivan
Musical Director/Composer
23
Answers
New York, New York
Updated
MaryAnn’s Answer
Hi Miah
Gaming people are so very cool to speak with about their industry. I am a music composer myself and just went to a panel talk in Los Angeles about writing music for game companies.
I would suggest getting online and put together a spread sheet of company name(s), creative team, head of HR, Lead Artist, Lead Special FX , etc. and introduce yourself in an email and ask them if they might have a few moments (at their convenience) to give you any advice on how to break into the industry. Tell them your goals, and thank them for their time. They would have the answers. Keep your email short and sweet and to the point.
That's what I am trying to do with the music department heads of the gaming companies. They truly are very easy going and relaxed people.
Good luck with your adventure !
Mary Ann Ivan
Gaming people are so very cool to speak with about their industry. I am a music composer myself and just went to a panel talk in Los Angeles about writing music for game companies.
I would suggest getting online and put together a spread sheet of company name(s), creative team, head of HR, Lead Artist, Lead Special FX , etc. and introduce yourself in an email and ask them if they might have a few moments (at their convenience) to give you any advice on how to break into the industry. Tell them your goals, and thank them for their time. They would have the answers. Keep your email short and sweet and to the point.
That's what I am trying to do with the music department heads of the gaming companies. They truly are very easy going and relaxed people.
Good luck with your adventure !
Mary Ann Ivan
Teklemuz Ayenew Tesfay
Software Engineer and Career Mentor
678
Answers
Ethiopia
Updated
Teklemuz Ayenew’s Answer
If you have a genuine passion for game development, pursue it with consistency and effort. Your success comes from staying persistent and believing in your potential; even though the journey can be tough, it is definitely within reach.
In college, concentrate on core computer science subjects such as data structures, algorithms, object-oriented programming, computer architecture, and operating systems, along with essential math like linear algebra and basic calculus for graphics and game physics. Regularly build small projects, learn key programming languages like C++ or C#, and choose either Unity or Unreal to master deeply while building 2–3 polished game projects for your portfolio. Practice problem solving on platforms like HackerRank and LeetCode, and also use game-focused platforms such as Codewars, Unity Learn challenges, Unreal Engine community samples, and itch.io game jams to solve real gameplay and systems problems under constraints.
From your second year, start applying for internships or volunteer roles to gain early industry experience. Participate in game jams, contribute to open-source projects on GitHub, and join community projects on platforms like itch.io or Discord to improve collaboration skills. Use resources like Unity Learn and Unreal Engine Online Learning, and explore remote internships or mentorships on LinkedIn and Wellfound. Join programming or computer science clubs and hackathons to strengthen teamwork and problem-solving. Connect with professionals through LinkedIn, GitHub, and Stack Overflow, and build skills in Git, debugging, and performance profiling. Create a clear, project-focused resume and practice explaining your work and solving coding and game design problems for interviews. By consistently practicing, building projects, and gaining real experience, you can become a job-ready game developer.
In college, concentrate on core computer science subjects such as data structures, algorithms, object-oriented programming, computer architecture, and operating systems, along with essential math like linear algebra and basic calculus for graphics and game physics. Regularly build small projects, learn key programming languages like C++ or C#, and choose either Unity or Unreal to master deeply while building 2–3 polished game projects for your portfolio. Practice problem solving on platforms like HackerRank and LeetCode, and also use game-focused platforms such as Codewars, Unity Learn challenges, Unreal Engine community samples, and itch.io game jams to solve real gameplay and systems problems under constraints.
From your second year, start applying for internships or volunteer roles to gain early industry experience. Participate in game jams, contribute to open-source projects on GitHub, and join community projects on platforms like itch.io or Discord to improve collaboration skills. Use resources like Unity Learn and Unreal Engine Online Learning, and explore remote internships or mentorships on LinkedIn and Wellfound. Join programming or computer science clubs and hackathons to strengthen teamwork and problem-solving. Connect with professionals through LinkedIn, GitHub, and Stack Overflow, and build skills in Git, debugging, and performance profiling. Create a clear, project-focused resume and practice explaining your work and solving coding and game design problems for interviews. By consistently practicing, building projects, and gaining real experience, you can become a job-ready game developer.
Sandeep Khandelwal
Software Engineer
143
Answers
San Ramon, California
Updated
Sandeep’s Answer
Hello Miah,
The best way to build experience in game development is by creating games and building a strong portfolio. Work on small projects, participate in game jams, and collaborate with others to learn how real game development teams operate.
Internships related to software development, graphics programming, or game studios can also give valuable real-world experience
The best way to build experience in game development is by creating games and building a strong portfolio. Work on small projects, participate in game jams, and collaborate with others to learn how real game development teams operate.
Internships related to software development, graphics programming, or game studios can also give valuable real-world experience