from Prof. David LeBlanc, Chair

A career in video game development? You are perhaps sceptical. And well you should be – the choice of university study your son or daughter makes is likely to highly influence, if not determine, their career path for a good part of their lives. It must be studied carefully.

Rest assured, this is not a fun and easy program introduced to attract tuition fees. The program is demanding and designed to produce highly skilled workers that are in great demand, both here on the island and worldwide. The video game industry as a whole now brings in more money than Hollywood’s box office receipts and the sector is still growing rapidly. Here on PEI, the sector employs approximately 70 people, with plans to add many more if skilled workers can be found. Certain jobs within this industry are not that hard to fill (game tester, for example), but good programmers are by far the hardest to find and are in great demand. This demand extends beyond the video game industry – highly skilled computer programmers are hard to find for any Information Technology (IT) industry.

This is a surprise to many who may think that the dot com bust of 2001, combined with off-shoring of jobs to developing countries, wiped out the demand for computer science graduates. The reality for university trained students is far from that. Yes, the bust and off-shoring have decreased overall demand for IT workers – but almost all of the job losses have been of lower skilled jobs such as (e.g.) webpage development. There was some loss of high-skilled jobs early in the decade, but after a brief period of bloodletting (when many companies overreacted), the demand for university-trained computer scientists rebounded. At the same time, students fled computer science programs in droves, thinking that the sector had collapsed. This has led to a severe shortage of high skill graduates and enrolments in university programs are only now starting to slowly recover from historic lows. You needn’t believe me – here is a recent Globe and Mail article on the subject:

And here’s a link to a US government analysis of computer science careers as a whole: If you go through this document closely, you’ll notice that the only computer-based profession that they don’t predict solid growth for is “computer programmer” – a profession that requires only a 2 year college degree. These jobs are being out-sourced. University graduates would normally become one of the following: Computer Software Engineer, Computer and Information Systems Manager and Computer Scientist/Database Administrator – all of which require 4 year university degrees. And remember, enrolments in computer science have plummeted in recent years, so workers are highly sought after in an expanding industry. Finally, here is a link to a US government analysis of careers in the video game development industry (video game programmer is on page 7). As you can see, the prospects are bright and the salaries very good (although I should point out that the salaries discussed are for American workers, mainly living in large cities).

Still sceptical about the video game programming specialization? I invite you to examine the requirements of the program. You will see that all of the courses related to the specialization are in addition to the normal requirements for a major in computer science. In other words, your son or daughter will receive a normal degree in computer science, plus an additional specialization. This education will prepare them for work in any traditional IT industry - the same as our non-specialization students. They will also be ideally placed to enter the video game development industry, an up and coming industry on the island (and worldwide).

Here on PEI, the government (through PEI Business Development) has identified the video game development industry as ideally suited to the local economy. The industry is actively courted and various incentives are in place that make PEI a highly competitive place to do business. The work is such that it can be done anywhere – studios work largely independently and the internet provides access to the world. The island offers a high quality of life and the low cost of living means that workers end up with a higher living standard than their big city studio counterparts. Attracting experienced people to come to the island to settle down is tough, but companies are doing ok in this regard. Where they are really suffering though is in finding junior (i.e. entry-level) programmers. This usually means people right out of university – and attracting people in their early twenties to the island is very challenging. Instead, it is much more likely that people raised and educated here on the island will stay on the island. Because of this, PEI is where the local industry is looking to for their new hires.

The Department of Computer Science & Information Technology has worked closely with local companies to develop a program that will provide the skills that they are looking for. Industry members teach some of our courses and provide mentorship for project work. Local companies are impatiently waiting for our graduates so that they may grow and take on more contracts. There is, of course, no guarantee of the future. Technology companies have, in the past, been volatile. But the popularity of video games make this field appear very strong, whatever the future may bring.

One last thing about the program – and it’s a warning. This is a tough program – it requires aptitude and dedication. Potential students must be reasonably good at math and logic-based problem solving. They must also be willing to apply themselves over a sustained period. Computer science has a reputation as a hard field of study – this specialization adds on an additional layer of hard work. Not all students will succeed in the specialization. The industry itself is very demanding – they would rather go without hiring than hire an unsuitable candidate – and therefore we must keep the program standards high to prevent graduating large numbers of students who cannot break into the field. But, because the specialization is built on top of a regular major in computer science, students who do not meet the requirements for entry into the specialization in their third or fourth years, but who are still receiving passing grades, may continue on to complete the requirements for a non-specialized degree.

My department and I are excited about this new opportunity to train local students for entry into a booming industry. If you have any questions, or would like to meet face to face with or without your son or daughter, then please contact me at my email address below. I am happy to discuss the program with you and to honestly answer any questions you have.

David LeBlanc

dcleblanc@upei.ca