The Gaming Pathway to IT
From an early age, one of my favourite past times was to head around to my extended family's house, not to be a good relative, but because my cousin had recently become the proud owner of a brand new Sega Master System II. Revolutionary for its time, this gaming console played some of the greatest games ever made from Alex the Kidd and Sonic the Hedgehog through to classics like Double Dragon and we would play for hours.
My love of gaming is something that has stuck with me, from a young age right the way through to high school, where after I continued down the IT path. I made a lot of friends along the way with similar interests - the majority now working in the tech and IT space.
With time, gaming and computers only got better and better,which unfortunately also meant that prices began to increase. Even though I hated this fact as a poor student, it became something to be thankful for as it enabled me to begin learning my IT skill set from an early age.
It was through the following methods that my IT journey began:
- Expensive hardware - Buying gaming PC’s was expensive for a student at high school, building them was much more cost effective. Determined to have my own gaming PC,by the age of 14 had built my first gaming rig and, in the process, had also received a crash course in computer hardware. This later put some cash in my pocket as I began to build computers for others.
- Expensive games - There were some gray areas on acquiring games without actually paying for them is all I’m going to say on this matter. A game of cat and mouse with game developers is where I learnt all about file systems, config files and minor coding changes with an aim to get around certain “obstacles”.
By the end of this process, I knew my way around computers and technology - both physically and virtually and when it came to being gently encouraged out the door at 18, IT was top of the table for what I should study at university.
Understanding this pathway and journey into the world of technology has turned out to be even more relevant than ever before and here’s why:
eSports and the GradConnection University eSports League!
Ignoring IT pathways ,computer games are now big business - one of the biggest in fact - worth billions and billions of dollars. What has been a hobby for most has now grown into a professional sport with millions (many like myself with a love for technology) tuning in to watch people play competitive computer games, just like they would the rugby league or AFL.
To put this in perspective, last year 4.4 million tuned in to watch the NRL grand final, however 27 million people tuned in to watch the League of Legends computer game finals!
Check out some of the events which have been taking place around the world but also now in Australia!
Forget hackathons - eSports and gaming are your newest, most untapped, up-to-date and relevant way to not only find these IT students, but to also be able to interact with them in a very positive and comfortable way. Many students gravitating towards IT have had a similar journey to mine into the profession of IT and, knowing this, you can use this information to your advantage.
Here is what you need to know:
- The average age of participants in eSports is 21 years old and have an interest in tech and IT.
- A much larger percentage of participants are female, compared to the current 15% graduating with IT degrees within Australia.
- Gaming is one of the fastest growing industries with many big brands from LG through to Telcos and various airlines sponsoring some of the most notorious teams and competitions, however, it is brand new in the attraction space.
- This is the origin of gamification being used in recruitment around the world.
With great enthusiasm, GradConnection is proud to present the University eSports League - a first for Australian attraction and one of the newest and coolest ways to attract Australia’s most sought after tech talent.
What is it you ask? The UEL is:
- A nationwide eSports tournament amongst university students across the whole country. Preliminary rounds will begin online, culminating with the final taking place in Sydney. Finalists will be flown in from around the country to take part in an absolutely awesome studio finals.
- A chance for organisations to take part, support this community and interact with these students from a very early stage.
Want to know more?
If you are interested in finding out more email [email protected], or your account manager, for a full info pack or a chat and a coffee. Make sure to contact us to find out all you need to know about the industry and how to get in early as there are limited sponsorship opportunities available for the first ever University eSports League.
