Every so often we’ll receive an email that goes like this:
Dear GMG,
My 12 year old daughter has shown in stem activities but is not getting opportunities in school or at home. Do you have any recommendations for getting her started on Unity or other workshops like GMG in our region, or online?
Or another email like this
Our 16 year old is very passionate about animation and video game design, but we’re not sure what schools out there offer programs that would be a good fit. The few we looked at have been very expensive, do you offer college level scholarships or grants to girls?
If you have a child interested in playing and making video games, you can probably relate to these emails.
We’re here to help!
We’re pooling resources and building something that can help answer these questions and empower you with the information you need.
1//Get the big picture
For starters, we highly recommend checking out the tutorials section. Begin with “Game Dev 101” to get a high level view of the game development process. This will also give you a rough idea for what kinds of roles and careers exist in the industry.
2//Dip your toes in game dev
We also encourage you to try out our easy to follow tutorials for Stencyl and Unity with your child (or on your own!) - you don’t need to know how to code to make your first game in Stencyl or Unity, we promise!
3//Choosing a college
If you’re looking for colleges, we’ve compiled a list of top 10 colleges that offer programs in primary game dev disciplines: design, programming, art & animation.
>>Game Dev Colleges & Scholarships
4//Affording College
Please check out the newly launched Girls Make Games Scholarship Fund, offering scholarship for girls and non binary people looking to enter a game dev degree: Girls Makes Games Scholarship Fund
For more college scholarship resources, check out our College Resources page.
5//Role Models
Looking for role models for your daughter? Hear some of the top video game developers answer questions from girls all over the world in Girls Level Up, the award winning series created by Anne Edgar of Artifact Studios. The videos are featured on our “Inspiration” page along with young game developers/alumni of GMG.