The thriving game industry made Ivan choose Sweden
Ivan moved from Ecuador to Gothenburg to study the international master’s programme Game Design & Technology. It was the thriving game industry in Sweden that made him apply for the programme.
“I have always loved games, which is why I started studying computer science in the first place. I dedicated all my academic life to know more about how games are made.”
From Quito to Gothenburg
Ivan studied his bachelor’s in computer science at Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador. It was an organisation focused on connecting students with master’s programmes around the world that informed Ivan about the Game Design & Technology master at University of Gothenburg.
“Sweden has a lot of tech companies related to games, so I thought: Why not? It will be a cool experience!”
An interesting game industry
The programme has a lot of connection with the industry, which according to Ivan adds extra value to the education.
“Sweden has a large number of game companies, and many of them are connected to the academia. They regularly come to the university to tell us about what they are working with, which is super interesting.”
He continues:
“Sweden’s game industry is very open to talk to junior people, so right now half of my contacts at LinkedIn are from Sweden and work in the game industry.”
Combining design and technology
Ivan is currently in his final year, with only a few weeks until graduation. The past two years have given him a designer toolbox that top up his computer science background.
“It’s a programme focused on how games are made with a designer point of view, with heavy focus on technology. When I first started out, I only wanted to learn how to program games, but now I also learned how to design them.”
After two years of game design focus, Ivan feels like he is prepared for the future.
“I want to work as a game designer! The knowledge we get from the programme is needed out in the industry, which feels very comforting. Just the other day I talked to a game design studio that said they were impressed by the things that I’ve been studying.
