CV & Jobs Gareth Bellaby

CV Make it readable. The person reading the CV will skim through it quickly in order to filter out inappropriate applications. Use a clear layout. Use a clear typeface. Do not use fancy graphics, coloured paper, odd typefaces, etc. As many pages as you need but we'd suggest 1 side for the essential material. Brief overview at start. Use the Aardvark Swift talk as your guide.

CV When you list things such as jobs or eduction you place the most recent first. Stress the things that are most important, e.g. 3 years of C++ programming.

Course Content What is your degree about? What have you learnt? We describe it as having 3 main strands: Software Engineering (programming) Computer Games Development (note development not design) Maths.

Software Engineering "A Programming degree" "A Software Engineering degree specialising in computer games development" Programming C++, Three years of C++ Other languages: Java J2ME C# Methodologies (Object Oriented, UML) Agile, SCRUM

Computer Games Development Computer Graphics, 3D DirectX: 12. Game loop Entities Instancing AI for games (note emphasis)

Mathematics Linear algebra: branch of maths concerned with vectors and linear transformations. Affine transformation (rotation, scaling, etc.) is every transformation which is linear. Non-affine (projection matrices). Quaternions. Other maths, e.g. Manhatten distance, inverse square law, physics.

Jobs Recruitment Agencies Magazines/Websites Company websites gameindustrybiz gamasutra develop mvc. Aardvark-Swift Datascope Amiqus

Jobs Only one application per company! They may well reject you out of hand if they receive multiple submissions. Direct application to the company. Recruitment agency. Some companies may prefer a particular agency. Some companies may not use agencies. Check the agency: they should be active on your behalf.

Demo Immediate visual impact Easy to run. No technical problems (missing dll's artwork, other files, particular video card). Test it on a variety of machines! Visual Tech Demo: no controls on the main interface interrupt to allow control Laurent's demos are the model you should be following

Demo Professional. Interactive Demo Simple, clear interface Use the obvious controls William's is a good example to follow.

Polish The work should be polished. Some of the write-up about polish turns up in design. Some turns up at the end, possibly in a chapter on its own. Could be combined with the evaluation section.

Code You may be asked to provide code. They'll look for well written, readable code: Properly commented Well commented Properly laid out Consistent notation Efficient Good application of OO Impress with a UML diagram!

C++ tests Companies use programming tests. This is a general characteristic of programming jobs: software engineering as well as games. Practice

Research Research the job. Research what they are doing and have done. Use their phrases in your answer. Tailor your CV for the particular job.

Interview Practice all elements of the interview, e.g. questions and answers, summations, etc. May be asked to sit a test. The interview will probably be by a panel. May be asked to do a presentation. May have a social element. Learn to do small talk. Be confident but not cocky. Shake hands firmly. If you sweat with nerves then wipe your hand before shaking. Make eye contact.

Questions How would you implement a look-at function? What is a Computer Games Development course? Are you happiest working in a team or on your own? Why do you want to work in games development?

Afterwards Immediately make notes about the interview. Write down every question you were asked so that you can improve your answer. Make notes about the process, the responses of the panel, if they indicate anything about the type of person they wanted, etc. If you do not get the job then ring the company up and find out why. Most people are happy to provide feedback. It may be that you were very good, but another candidate just won out for a particular reason. The interview is about your performance on the day. It is not a judgement about your worth.