GamesIndustry.biz, the world’s leading video games trade website, and United Kingdom Interactive Entertainment (Ukie), the trade body representing the UK video games industry, today announced a renewed partnership to help guide the next generation of games industry employees through the first steps to a successful career in the video games industry; one of the most cutting edge industries on the planet.
The GamesIndustry.biz Career Fair, running throughout EGX 24-27 September – the UK’s largest video games consumer and trade event – features invaluable speaker sessions from key industry players, professional and educational workshops, exhibition spaces and networking opportunities. It’s a major destination for the nation’s educators, with EGX hosting increasingly large groups of school, college and university-level students. Last year these organised trips – which are heavily discounted – resulted in upwards of 5000 attendees, with greater numbers expected again this year.
Ukie will once again bring to EGX its highly successful Ukie Careers Bar, featuring talks by Video Games Ambassadors from some of the biggest names in the UK games business. The talks will deliver expert advice from all areas of the games industry, from programming and design to publishing careers in PR, marketing and community management.
Ukie’s Video Games Ambassadors will also be on hand throughout the fair to chat about their games industry experiences and career histories, as well as advise on study choices and available career paths. In addition, they’ll be providing one-to-one job application advice, so visitors are encouraged to bring their CVs and work portfolios.
Dr Jo Twist, CEO of Ukie, said, “The Ukie Careers Bar is a fantastic place for the next generation of the UK’s games industry to hear pop-up talks from professionals already enjoying a fulfilling career in the industry. We’re giving people a unique opportunity to sit down one-to-one with games industry experts, from all disciplines, who can provide a wealth of experience about the best ways to get your first job in the sector, but also how to build a successful career in all areas of what is the most creative and innovative sector in the world. We’re delighted to work with EGX to be able to share our network’s expertise with anyone who is interested in pursuing a future within our sector – and even for those who hadn’t previously realised they could get a job in games”.
“We have an incredibly creative and passionate British video games industry with countless lifelong career options”. Echoed David Lilley, Managing Director of Gamer Events. “The GamesIndustry.biz Career Fair at EGX is the country’s number one destination for budding games professionals and we’re proud to once again be working with Ukie to nurture and support the growth of this most cutting edge industry”.
Organised groups of students are entitled to a 30% discount to EGX, which includes access to the GamesIndustry.biz Career and Ukie Careers Bar, plus the many hundreds of playable PC, console and independently-developed games, developer speaking sessions, e-sports, cosplay and more. To qualify for the discount, trips must be arranged through educational institutions. Teachers and tutors go free with all group bookings.