Major problem

[Archangel]

I never thought I'd be doing something like this >.>

Ok, I've applied to various universities and colleges saying I want to do Architecture, but honestly the only thing I'm interested in is games but I know that ain't no walk in the park either. In the end I've received admission from a few but I know for sure that I'm going to change my major; therefore I come to TNF to ask what some of you guys do and what it entails. I'm really not interested [and I mean hooked] in anything in particular but I know there's stuff out there that I might not have realized even existed. So...umm basically I need help looking for a major.

Please, I'm kind of desperate >.<;;

[kyubichan]

You might want to state what country or region you're in.

In my country, a freshman's major wouldn't matter so much unless he took an exam in the large universities where enrollment/acceptance is really strict. First year curricula, regardless of major/course, are almost the same with all those silly minor subjects that CHED requires.

[Hitoshura]

You could always not go to college until you decide.

[Death_Eater]

well i know there's a game coding major out there, and animation major, but you just need to keep looking at a list of majors, thats what i am doing now.

[Archangel]

You could always not go to college until you decide.

I could but I really hate waiting, kinda want this 'education thing' over with >.<

You might want to state what country or region you're in.

In my country, a freshman's major wouldn't matter so much unless he took an exam in the large universities where enrollment/acceptance is really strict. First year curricula, regardless of major/course, are almost the same with all those silly minor subjects that CHED requires.

I'm in the U.S, but not there at the moment. On something likea vacation...>.>

What does Kyu-chan do? o-o

[iceshadow40]

I'm in game art & design that is an option you can go. but honestly if your not willing to put the work into anything then it would be better if you took a break for a while...any education you do will not be a walk in the park and will require a lot of work.

[kyubichan]

What does Kyu-chan do? o-o

I'm a computer science graduate and I've been a college instructor for almost five years.

I don't know how necessary college education is in your country. My sister started college without knowing what she really wants, but she continued her course (Education, major in English) because our country's system sucks, "paper" (diploma) is more important than actual skills. She graduated without having any where to go next, had a teaching job for a year and hated it, and now she's a NEET, and wants to stay that way xD

Find something that you really love. Being interested in games is a start but that branches off: would you like to program a game (the technical aspects, I have students who prefer that) or would you like to design the game (visual aspect, sadly few of my students prefer this LOL) ?

[Hantaisha]

I'm a computer science graduate and I've been a college instructor for almost five years.

Kyu looks as young as the students she teach. -nods- In a good way.

[Ino]

Its not that big of a deal... when you sign up for classes, you will probably have to talk to someone to "guide" you. Take mostly basics, the intro to whatever interests you as electives. That way, you can get a feel for other majors.

For a freshman, changing majors should be simple. Its when you get to be a junior/senior that it requires extra paperwork.

Also, look around for on campus activities/clubs - you might get a feel through those, as well.

As a side note, in the US, (at least for computer science peole) not having a degree will seriously hinder you. Most entry level programming jobs require one. And the ones that dont require a degree, you will be passed with those that got a degree. I had a class mate in college that got his degree for that very reason -for he was tired of constantly having grads who knew less than him taking better jobs and getting promoted.

[Archangel]

I'm in game art & design that is an option you can go. but honestly if your not willing to put the work into anything then it would be better if you took a break for a while...any education you do will not be a walk in the park and will require a lot of work.

Yeah, but you know the feeling. The longer you postpone things the more you feel you don't want to do it; if I take a break I have a strong feeling I won't want to get back into school and most of the stuff I learned would just rot away at some part in my brain u_u;;

I'm a computer science graduate and I've been a college instructor for almost five years.

I don't know how necessary college education is in your country. My sister started college without knowing what she really wants, but she continued her course (Education, major in English) because our country's system sucks, "paper" (diploma) is more important than actual skills. She graduated without having any where to go next, had a teaching job for a year and hated it, and now she's a NEET, and wants to stay that way xD

Find something that you really love. Being interested in games is a start but that branches off: would you like to program a game (the technical aspects, I have students who prefer that) or would you like to design the game (visual aspect, sadly few of my students prefer this LOL) ?

I think I'd prefer the latter XD

But I have a question regarding the gaming stuff. When I look here; I see Kopra, Aet and you talking about all this stuff I don't even understand or know anything about. Now am I supposed to know anything like that before I even start the course or I go in not knowing the first thing about programming or maybe even computers? o-o;;

Its not that big of a deal... when you sign up for classes, you will probably have to talk to someone to "guide" you. Take mostly basics, the intro to whatever interests you as electives. That way, you can get a feel for other majors.

For a freshman, changing majors should be simple. Its when you get to be a junior/senior that it requires extra paperwork.

Also, look around for on campus activities/clubs - you might get a feel through those, as well.

As a side note, in the US, (at least for computer science peole) not having a degree will seriously hinder you. Most entry level programming jobs require one. And the ones that dont require a degree, you will be passed with those that got a degree. I had a class mate in college that got his degree for that very reason -for he was tired of constantly having grads who knew less than him taking better jobs and getting promoted.

I thought about this too but I would rather not put all my hopes on this person to guide me, because the person barely even knows me. I'll take your advice if I still can't get anything though I'd really like to make a decision before I start this September ^_^;;

[Ino]

I thought about this too but I would rather not put all my hopes on this person to guide me, because the person barely even knows me. I'll take your advice if I still can't get anything though I'd really like to make a decision before I start this September ^_^;;

I was stating that you were going to get one, more than likely - and you can't avoid talking to them. At least, that's how it was for me. Though, you didn't necessarily have to follow what they said.

It's not a big deal if you don't have a major your freshman year. Sophmore year is iffy, and (if everywhere is like my college) you have to have a declared major when you hit enough credits to be a junior. When in doubt, take basics (and do take into account that some basics will shift based on major, but several won't)

[Aeterno]

I think I'd prefer the latter XD

But I have a question regarding the gaming stuff. When I look here; I see Kopra, Aet and you talking about all this stuff I don't even understand or know anything about. Now am I supposed to know anything like that before I even start the course or I go in not knowing the first thing about programming or maybe even computers? o-o;;

I'm not in the industry, but I'm the jack-of-all-trades, so I'll shed some light.
The design stuff branches off into the artsy things, story, art assets, sound assets and the semi-hard things that go into game mechanics, user interaction and the likes.

You don't need a terribly deep understanding of programming to do the artsy stuff, but you need talent to actually get anywhere with them. And it still helps immensely to be able to get around a computer decently, and have a basic understanding of the actual mechanics of programming, because it helps you understand the limits.
Given what I know about education everywhere, stepping in without any prior knowledge should work. But you'll probably be confronted with it anyway.

Most game design programs get you in touch with every field, at least at a basic level so you can get a feel of where you want to go. 3D modelling, game design documentation, sound assets, basic programming, possibly even mucking about with OpenGL/Direct3D. If you have no real affinity for programming, it'll be a tough road. Especially since the world of games is one where it's easiest to 'break in' from a technical perspective.

Art, Sound, Game design, all of these are things that require a vast amount of talent to be moderately successful. The technical aspect is something anyone can do with sufficient training.

[Hantaisha]

Serious suggestion: game tester. I could swear people make a living off this.

[Aeterno]

Serious suggestion: game tester. I could swear people make a living off this.

Not half as fun as you'd think. And requires a pretty good technical background to be able to test reliably.
That isn't a "Play games and get paid" job, that'd be the game reviewers (and even they would say that's only half-true)

[kyubichan]

But I have a question regarding the gaming stuff. When I look here; I see Kopra, Aet and you talking about all this stuff I don't even understand or know anything about. Now am I supposed to know anything like that before I even start the course or I go in not knowing the first thing about programming or maybe even computers? o-o;;

When I was taking up my first computer course and for half of my ComSci course, I did not even own a computer. I finished two theses by using the school's labs only. We couldn't afford it with the family budget and I was able to finish school only because I had two scholarships. I knew little about computers when I started out. Kopra's thread discusses the C language, which I thought I'd fail back then. I couldn't grasp the idea of programming charts and models either. But I easily grasped Visual FoxPro and Visual Basic, and thought I'd forever loathe C. Then, I had to teach it when I became an instructor and my first thought was "o shit". I reviewed C and wondered how in the world was I not able to understand such a simple thing before.

Nothing is easy when you're starting out. If you have the time and effort to spare, you should learn the basics of programming on your own. Even designing little Flash games requires a basic understanding of how it works under the hood, otherwise you'd be asking for impossible things from the programmer. You don't need in-depth, technician-level knowledge of a computer.

As Aet pointed out, for most people, it's actually easier to approach games from a technical perspective. Programming doesn't require much talent; as long as you have a bit of logic and the drive to learn, you'll be able to program in most languages. At first all the "keywords" might seem confusing but once you are actually learning and applying it, it'll come to mind naturally.

Game design in any form requires much skill and talent, in addition to logic and drive. Note that "art" skill doesn't actually mean that you have to be able to draw well. I have a co-teacher who can't draw to save her life but she makes awesome 3D models. Skills regarding "sound/musical arrangement" don't necessarily mean that a person should be able to sing well. There's something about the artistic side of games that is difficult to explain, it just exists in a person through inborn talent or a lot of practice.

You have one of the necessities: interest. You're interested in a specific field so that narrows the selection down. You also need the willingness to learn since a lot of things, no matter what major you take, will definitely be "new" to you. The third necessity is intelligence. There are many types of intelligences so this does not just mean that you should be able to memorize anything and everything. I had a student who had crappy memory and almost failed some of his minor subjects, but he was stellar when it came to using Flash and AUTOCAD. There are other factors such as talent, drive (which comes and goes), etc. but the three I mentioned affect freshmen heavily based on my experience.

[Akayuuki]

Law.

*nods*

Law is always a good thing to have in your head, for one if you know the law even a little bit well, your like 50 steps ahead of the average person, I'm currently into my second year of Police Officer training and it's a blast, the concepts your learn and just how deep the law actually goes.

[Yuki Aisu]

I'm in with Ino for this one. It's not necessary you know right freaking now. I think you live in the US, so I'm giving advice from that perspective. I'm a CS and EE (Comp Sci and Electrical Engineering) future major myself, and every packet for courses I've seen has only intro classes going in. It's the same for all my friends and their majors.

which is where I defer to Kyu's point. You need interest/drive so you don't get bored and can keep at it, which basically boils down to being able to practice repeatedly and not come to hate your subject. That, and some basic competence. Kyu calls it intelligence and she probably thinks of it that way from her experiences (and she's seen it from both sides, so I think she gets it and knows what she's talking about), but as an incoming freshman myself, I call it competence. Basically, you need to use your brain. It won't be easy, because life is not easy, so use your brain.

What you don't need is an absolute understanding of your subject before you even start. That'd be crazy. No one expects that, so don't let bot knowing something now prevent you from learning about it later.

[kyubichan]

I called it intelligence because of the Multiple Intelligences theory. Some people seem to be naturally inclined to specific aspects of learning. There are people who are labeled "slow" or "dumb" simply because they cannot grasp a lesson on the same pace as other students. Based on my experience this is perfectly natural, some people are just quicker to understand something because that is their "intelligence", others are slower at it because their "intelligence" lies in something else. It is easy to differentiate from people who are just being lazy because people who have different "intelligence" tend to put their whole effort into one thing but the outcome is still subpar, while lazy people throw in the towel and just walk away.

/explanation

[Yuki Aisu]

Oh. I didn't realize you were talking about that kind of intelligence. My mistake.>____<

[iceshadow40]

From the Game designer perspective, I can't really draw that well but I'm continuously practicing to get better so I can draw out my own concepts. As Aet said there are many different things that go into game designing the main ones I'm studying are Drawing, 3d modeling, and Animation.

With my classes I can literally move into almost any field I want just from those. As I said I don't have that great of drawing skills but my modeling skills are pretty high along with my animation skills...I can take a drawing someone gives me model it and make it do what ever I want.

Its a very fun subject to learn if your truly interested in it, hell I'm also going to take some programming classes because it is also something that interest me and will broaden my knowledge to further increase my chances of getting a job.

Also I agree with Aet being a game tester is not that easy, you don't need a degree per say but as Aet said having a good technical background is what you'll need.

if you want something to do try becoming a pro-gamer not easy at all.