Join us for one of the biggest student games events in the UK! We're back at Sheffield Hallam University with a full conference track, studio careers expo and of course the finals of the annual gamedev challenges; Search For A Star & Sumo Digital Rising Star!

This year we'll be returning to Sheffield Hallam University (and also introducing The National Videogame Museum!) on Wednesday 17th April.

We would love for you to be a part of the day and meet the students who've taken part in our gamedev challenges, as well as their course leaders and lecturers.

Schedule Overview:

09:00 - 16:30 : A day of industry led talks, networking and expo stands at Sheffield Hallam University. For academics and studio representatives the afternoon will also include our industry-academic roundtable.

17:00 - 18:30 : The Grads in Games Awards and the Search For A Star / Sumo Digital Rising Star presentations at The National Video Game Museum

18:30 - 20:00 : Relax & play at the NVM with networking and refreshments (and full access to all their videogames!).

Studio Outreach & Careers

The event is typically attended by 150-200 games students in the UK & Europe including over 50 finalists and high achieving students from our Search For A Star gamedev challenges. We also have 20-30 invited lecturers and academics present from leading courses across the country.

If you are looking for talented students and graduates to join your studio for junior positions, internships or placements, this is a great forum to promote yourself as an employer & meet . If you're looking for student outreach opportunities then this is one of the few UK events where you can actually meet many of the games lecturers and course leaders all in one place!

Typically we see turnouts from key games universities across the UK and Europe, including Sheffield Hallam, Huddersfield, Howest DAE, Hertfordshire, Abertay, Teesside, UCLan, Goldsmiths, Brunel, Solent and many, many more.

Academic Roundtable

In the afternoon session all available academics and studio representatives are invited to take part in an open discussion & insight panel on strengthening the links between studios and universities. Key discussions will typically cover;

Current industry standards and skills gaps, compared to current curriculums and knowledge access.
Preparing graduates to leave uni with the necessary skills & knowledge to start a career in games
How studios can better support students and work with universities in achieving this.

(If you're looking to improve your own hiring, rentention and overall student outreach, don't miss this)

Search For A Star interviews, presentations and the Grads In Games awards

Throughout the day we will also be putting our challenge finalists through their final stage interviews, with this year’s winners being announced as part of our evening event at The National Videogame Museum from 4.30pm.

This event will also incorporate the return of the Grads in Games Awards after its acclaimed introduction last year. The awards are specifically designed to shed some light on unseen efforts; to recognise and celebrate the work of universities, academics, studios and students in creating better links between industry and academia.

If you have any questions about the event, attendance logistics or partnership options, please contact martin@aswift.com for further information.

Thank you to all of our Grads In Games partners & patrons for their support, without which this event couldn’t take place

Epic Games, Sumo Digital, Boss Alien, nDreams, Red Kite Games, TT Odyssey, TT Games, d3t a Keywords Studio, Firesprite Games, First Touch Games

Search For A Star 2019 Finals Day Conference & the Grads In Games Awards - Studio Attendees