Getting into the games industry is competitive. Every year, thousands of students graduate from games-related degrees, while the number of junior roles remains relatively limited. For many aspiring developers, artists and designers, university feels like the obvious first step. But what can it actually do for your career, and where does it fall short?

In an interview with Nathan Flannery, Senior Games Lecturer at SAE Institute in Leamington Spa, he explained that the answer is more nuanced than many students expect. The degree is the starting point, not the finish line

“In most cases, having a degree is almost a given,” Flannery explains. “Employers expect it. But it doesn’t make you stand out anymore, because almost everyone applying has one.”

There are exceptions. Some people do enter the industry without formal education, often through self-teaching. But those cases are rare.

“It’s like becoming a Premier League footballer,” he says. “It does happen, but the chances are incredibly small.”

For the majority of students, a degree is the first hurdle. It helps get your application past initial screening. But after that, employers look for something else. “The real question becomes, what have you done on top of your degree?”

What university can do

At its best, university provides structure, time and access to resources that are difficult to replicate alone. It offers space to experiment, fail, collaborate and build a portfolio over several years.

It also exposes students to different disciplines and ways of working. In games especially, collaboration is essential. Artists, programmers, designers and producers all need to work together toward a single goal.

“Just having technical skills isn’t enough,” Flannery says. “You need the mentality and the teamwork experience to function in a studio environment.”

This is where practical, studio-style projects become important. At SAE, for example, students take part in large creative studio projects during their degrees. These are structured using agile workflows, mirroring how real game studios operate.

Students work in defined roles, use project management tools, communicate through industry-style platforms and deliver games to strict deadlines. The structure reflects how studios actually build games over years, condensed into focused project cycles.

“The difference is that students don’t just learn the software,” Flannery says. “They learn how to work in a team, how to manage a project, and how to communicate in the same way a studio would.”

Universities can also provide access to industry speakers, networking events and gamejams. At SAE, students regularly take part in major international game jams, including the Global Game Jam and the Game Maker’s Toolkit Jam, often collaborating with students from other institutions.

They also attend trade shows and industry events such as EGX, Develop and Pocket Gamer, helping them build contacts and understand the professional landscape before graduation.

What university can’t do

Despite these advantages, a degree alone does not guarantee a job.

“The reality is, there are more graduates than junior roles,” Flannery says. “So you have to think about how you’re going to stand out.”

Many of the tools used in games, such as engines, programming languages or 3D software, can be learned independently. Online tutorials and communities make it possible to build technical skills outside formal education.

What is harder to replicate alone is the experience of working in teams, managing deadlines, resolving conflicts and delivering a finished project with other people.

“Some of the most important lessons aren’t about software,” he says. “They’re about how to work with others, how to communicate, how to organise a project.”

University also cannot replace personal initiative. Students still need to seek out opportunities, build their portfolios, take part in game jams and develop their own projects.

“You can have all the facilities in the world,” Flannery says, “but you still have to use them.”

Standing out in a crowded field

For many studios, the biggest concern with junior hires is not technical ability, but how quickly they can integrate into an existing team.

“Studios want someone who can contribute as soon as possible,” Flannery explains. “They don’t want to spend months training someone from scratch while they’re already midway through a project.”

That is why practical experience, collaborative projects and real-world workflows are increasingly valued.

Knowing how to use tools for version control, communication and project management can make a significant difference during interviews. It shows an understanding of how games are actually made, not just how individual assets are created.

“At SAE, students often talk about using tools like Jira, Slack or shared repositories during their projects,” Flannery says. “That’s the kind of thing studios don’t expect from graduates, and it makes them stand out.”

Choosing the right environment

For students considering university, the key question is not just whether to go, but where and how they will develop the skills that make them employable.

A degree can provide structure, resources and connections. But standing out still depends on what students do with those opportunities.

“University can give you the foundation,” Flannery says. “But what really matters is how you use that time to build experience, work with others and create something you’re proud of.”

At institutions like SAE, the focus is not just on earning a qualification, but on preparing students to step into real studio environments with confidence. In the end, a games degree is not a guarantee. It is a starting point, a place to learn the fundamentals, build a network and begin shaping a career. What comes after that depends on the work students put in themselves.

Start Your Games Career at SAE

If you’re serious about building a career in the games industry, choosing the right environment matters.

SAE’s games courses combine technical skills with studio-style projects, industry workflows and regular networking opportunities, helping students graduate with more than just a degree.

Book an open day to explore the studios, meet the lecturers and see how you could start your journey into the games industry at SAE.