How hard to transfer to Interactive Media undergrad?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Southern California
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<p>Hey CC. I'm a Canadian student in my 4th year of uni. I decided this year to aim for game design after I graduate, but I figured for some of the competitive programs (like USC's) it'd be better to just apply for undergrad since my portfolio isn't nearly robust enough for grad school.</p>

<p>Even so, the interactive media program sounds competitive. Does anyone know what portfolio/experience/recommendation letters are expected of applicants? I should have an edge in experience considering my age, but then again, there are high schoolers who've done a lot more than me. By the application deadline I'll have two small amateur game projects completed and some misc writing experience (blogging and editing), but it's all amateur and I haven't actually interned with a company. I'm guessing they'll weigh my experience lower but I'm not sure how much lower. My major is film studies (mostly theoretical, not like production) and my minors are in English and philosophy, if that's relevant for the diversity factor.</p>

<p>I'm also not sure if SAT scores are necessary if I've already graduated, and I'm not actually sure what Algebra II refers to on this sheet: <a href="http://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/private/1213/TransferPlanning_worksheet2012.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/private/1213/TransferPlanning_worksheet2012.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>A bit off topic perhaps, but for those who've looked into game design as an arts major, are there any other Cali schools you'd recommend looking in to? Is it possible to enter USC as undeclared and get into SCA later and/or is that a bad idea?</p>

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<p>Hi, I am also a prospective transfer student wants to major in game design and I am actually wondering the same thing.</p>

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<p>Hey guys/gals,</p>

<p>USC IMGD is very competitive. There’s more applicants every year and I’m pretty sure they’re still only accepting around 25. I don’t know what is expected to be competitive in the admissions process, but game design related things will help the application stand out next to the app with 10 glowing letters of rec. I’ll come back to this at the end.</p>

<p>I can’t imagine graduating from any decent Canadian college without at least Algebra II equiv (solve/graph quadratic functions, linear equations, matrices?), so you should be fine.
My guess is they’ll accept your undergrad GPA instead of SAT scores.</p>

<p>There’s many other game schools One I’ve heard of in the area that’s decent and more artsy: [Game</a> Production: Create Games at LA Film School](<a href=“http://www.lafilm.edu/programs/game-production]Game”>Animation – Degrees at The Los Angeles Film School)
UC Santa Cruz is another good game design school in Cali.
But I should clarify, do you mean more artsy game design? or do you mean game art? If the latter, then [Laguna</a> College of Art + Design -](<a href=“http://www.lcad.edu/]Laguna”>http://www.lcad.edu/) is really good.</p>

<p>It is possible to enter USC as undeclared and get into SCA later, but it’s still hard because IMGD is very selective. Worst-case: What if you come to USC and never get admitted to SCA? Would you still be wanting to attend and have a few ideas for back up majors?</p>

<p>Clordia, what discipline in game design interests you?</p>

<p>Get dat portfolio:
Games and relevant supplements in your portfolio will help a good deal. If you’ve never made a game, or just want to learn more, I’d recommend Unity, which has great online docs, and this tutorial [Runner</a>, a Unity C# Tutorial](<a href=“http://catlikecoding.com/unity/tutorials/runner/]Runner”>Runner, a Unity C# Tutorial) OR if you want to go native iOS then the Beginning Game Programming tuts here [iPhone</a> Tutorials | Ray Wenderlich](<a href=“Kodeco | Learn iOS, Android & Flutter”>Kodeco | Learn iOS, Android & Flutter)</p>

<p>A game design doc will show your interest goes beyond ‘I have this idea for a game.’ If you want to go more of an art route, include things you’ve created, whether concept art or 3d models. There could be many other things, including paper prototypes or critiques of games including analysis of why you think designers made the decisions they did and things they could have improved on.
Something like this would get you some brownie points: [The</a> Role of Narrative: A Case for Diversification | The Artifice](<a href=“http://the-artifice.com/ludology-narratology-role-of-narrative/]The”>The Role of Narrative: A Case for Diversification | The Artifice)</p>

<p>Adding to your portfolio, keep in mind whether game, art, or writing, explain your thought process so why you made the decisions you did, or how you optimized the polys, or why you chose to write about what you did (the writing should explain your thoughts of course).</p>

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<p>@psydent</p>

<p>Thank you for your extremely helpful advice!</p>

<p>I want to be a game designer but I know people who work in this field usually start as programmers or artists, so I take some computer science classes at college. But to be honest, I don’t like programming at all, I consider myself more like an artsy, idea-generating person( I usually do some conceptual arts, character design, sound effect and story) so I really appreciate the program offered at USC which combines creativeness and technology, that is something I really want to learn.</p>

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<p>@Clordia: You’re welcome :)</p>

<p>It’s ok if you don’t like programming, but doors to game design positions will open for you if you’re good at the fundamentals and know a scripting language. So I’d recommend you do your best even though it’s not in the direction you want to go.</p>

<p>You’re correct that the USC IMGD program has a good combination of creativeness and technology. It seems like you should go an art route if you enjoy that. It’s good to generate good ideas but anyone can be an idea person, so you should build up an employable skill to help get your foot in the door for internships and jobs, yet also for Advanced Games and other projects.</p>

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<p>@mindKiller, I would apply to grad school there. There’s not much point at getting a second BA when you could get a MFA there. You’d spend half your time just going through GE’s that you would’ve already done in undergrad. Who knows, you might get a TA gig teaching Cinema that’ll help you pay your way through it.</p>

<p>@Clordia I just transferred in as a freshman undergrad at SC. I didn’t have any actual completed games, so take that as you will. My portfolio was varied in form and included songwriting, poetry, stories, screenplays, and interactive fiction. I positioned myself as someone who was creative and wanted to tell stories in as many different ways as possible but did not yet have the technical skills to do so in games. Your creative vision and ability to CREATE will get you in over anything else.</p>

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<p>@Clordia:</p>

<p>I got your PM, but I couldn’t reply because I don’t have enough posts. I sent my response to your email.</p>

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<p>@Quixotism @psydent‌ </p>

<p>I made it! I transferred to SCA IMGD!!! I still cannot believe it! This is the happiest moment in my life!
Thank you very much for your help! Can I PM you about how should I get prepared this summer? Because I am entering as a Junior and I am already two years behind:(</p>

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<p>Congrats! You can PM me, but unless it’s specific/personal to you, I suggest posting it here so it might benefit others.</p>

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<p>@psydent‌ Okay I am posting it here. So what programming languages/softwares do you use often in class? And do you think learning animation is helpful?</p>

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<p>While there’s so many programming languages an IMGD student can find useful, I’d say the most useful is C# because that’s the preferred language for Unity. And you will probably be using Unity every year. Download it for free from here and look into it/find a tutorial <a href=“http://unity3d.com/”>http://unity3d.com/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Unity is great because you can make your own small projects, it builds to many platforms, and it’s used a lot in industry. About 33% of Advanced Game Projects in the past 3 years have been in Unity. Notably, about 50% have been in Unreal, but that has a much steeper learning curve. It would behoove you to learn Unreal if you want to go into AAA game development.</p>

<p>Other languages to know would be C++ as a lower-level high-level language ubiquitous in industry. An IMGD student with basic but thorough knowledge of C++ is twice as sought after. Many coveted design positions involve scripting and debugging. </p>

<p>For a third language, I would say it depends on what you want to do. If you’re interested in mobile games then Java for Android or Objective-C for iOS (not Swift, yet). If you’re interested in HTML5 or web dev, then JavaScript. If you’re still figuring things out, then Python is a good choice also very popular, thus has good communities, tutorials, and Stack Overflow presence.</p>

<p>Software to know, besides Unity and Unreal, includes any thing else that can make a game or aid in the creative process. On the programming front, Xcode, Eclipse, Visual Studio, etc. For art, Photoshop, Flash, Maya, etc. For sound, Audacity, Garage Band, FMOD, etc. For a designer, things that not everyone thinks about but can be helpful include software for conveying and managing design, such as spreadsheets (stats and organization) and chart/flow creators (Google Drawing is easy and free).</p>

<p>I think learning the basics of animation is helpful, but becoming talented is not necessary unless you want to do animation as well. I can do programmer art, which works for prototypes, but have to leave anything for an actual game to the talented artists. Again, if it’s something you want to learn, go for it! If you’re just looking for a side skill to be more valuable then go with programming. Mediocre art won’t (shouldn’t) make it into release but adding functionality or fixing a bug will.</p>

<p>Some bonus info. You should become fluent in critical analysis of games and testing methodologies. This is super helpful for participating in discussions, becoming a better designer, and getting your foot in the door for QA roles and making sure your projects are quality games. These things should be taught in a class or two, but the more you know the better. Something just as important that is not explicitly taught in class is version control. I beg of you, learn SVN and Git! This has multiple benefits for you and whatever teams you’re on. Just the basics will make you more employable, able to back up your projects, and a more efficient collaborator. Don’t be the person who breaks the game project!</p>

<p>Lastly, IMGD students should be well versed in different types of design. The 3 that come to mind are mechanics, levels, and UX (includes UI). Having experience with all, which you’ll get in class, and being really good at at least one makes you more valuable than having breadth with no depth. All three rely on psychological underpinnings as well, which you’ll soon find out in class. This goes back to the analysis of games point and trying to get into players heads. In the end, the goal of the program is: How are you going to create an enjoyable, engaging experience?</p>