****Degree?***Bachelors?***What?********

[Meowster]

Thanks

Another question,

When I have permission to work in say, Double Fine (idealistic example...) would I then be able to switch jobs to LucasArts, AFTER I had entered the country, or would I be stuck in that job for however many years was nessecary to become an american citizen?

[Matt Brown]

you should be able to switch jobs. They say that you need to be a citizen or whatever to hold down these jobs, but witha green card handy, you can stay in america over 30 years without becoming a citizen, like my mom did. I think it really depends on where you are from.

[Meowster]

Okay I also did a bit of research and it's looking like this so far:

I do a two year diploma in Ballyfermot, then transfer to Dun Loaghaire to do a one year bachelor thingymedoodle. I then get a H1B or something, visa to move to the states.

To get this, I have to secure a job first, so I would contact say, LucasArts or whatever, present my portfolio and ask them to sponser me to work in the US.

After this, I could switch jobs within my industry quite easily.

Do I have this right?

I also get a J1 visa in college!

[RickJ]

I do a two year diploma in Ballyfermot, then transfer to Dun Loaghaire to do a one year bachelor thingymedoodle.

So far so good

I then get a H1B or something, visa to move to the states.

To get this, I have to secure a job first, so I would contact say, LucasArts or whatever, present my portfolio and ask them to sponser me to work in the US.

This is essentially correct.  The main difficulty I can see is in securing such a job offer.  It would be much easier if you were able to do an intership or something with your future employer or establish a relationship in some other way prior to applying for a job.   Apply for a graduate school or two in the US to hedge your bet.  

After this, I could switch jobs within my industry quite easily.

After you have a green card you can change jobs as often as you like.  If you change jobs before your H1B application is processed your new employer will have to start the whole process over again.  I am not sure what happens after you have the H1B but before you have a green card.  

Do I have this right?

Pretty much.  The only additional thing I would suggest is tp check into some post graduate programs in the US just in case that job offer doesn't materialize.   Find a couple of graduate schools that have internship programs with Disney, Pixar, etc...  

Go for it...

[Matt Brown]

actually, if you want to work in the US games industry, it would be waaaay eaiser to just go to school here. Nintendo, EA, Lucusarts (I think) etc often recruit graduate students on campus, so it would be much easier to get your foot in the door.
Plus, lots of schools give generous aid to out of country students.

[shbaz]

You commented that it might be ridiculously expensive..

This is true.

There's a price to pay for prestige, and it's generally about $40k a year for an American citizen, going out of state.  It really depends on the region though.  As everyone has pointed out, it's not always where you go or that you went at all, it's whether you can draw or not.  That being said, I couldn't afford MIT (the most prestigious engineering school) or even the 10th most prestigious engineering school.  Instead, I went to the most prestigious I could afford in my state.  That was OK State University.

So far as I know, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, and I THINK Kansas, have the lowest tuition rates in the US (this is averaging all of their schools, not just one from each).  A foreign student going to my school will pay about $13k a year for food, living, and tuition.  I know an English fellow, a Kenyan, and several other nationalities going here and they all say they were told they would need $15k-$16k but it didn't end up that way at all.  You might consider that.  I tried to check my SIS page to see if any courses in 3d were available (i'm pretty sure they are) but the system is down right now.  If you want me to look into it for you, I can check the two biggest schools in my state, OU and OSU, and get back to you.  If you go to a strictly "Art" school in the US I'm pretty sure it is much more expensive than going through an arts program in a state-run university.  I've checked out the art museum at OU and I must admit they have an awesome arts program, even though they're a rival school.

Even if you go to a school in one of the above mentioned states and it isn't that prestigious, it might still be better for you than going in your home country because you'd have the advantage of already being in the US.

One big disadvantage (for some) is that you can't drink here (legally) until you're 21.

[Meowster]

I know this is gonna sound a bit baby-ish, but one of the main reasons I wouldn't like to go to college in the US is because I don't think I'd be ready to. I mean, the prospect of packing up and leaving my family for possibly years without seeing them often, in just two years time, is pretty dire. My family couldn't really afford to come over and see me, and as a student I probably couldn't afford to go over and see them, except for rare occasions. I wouldn't know anybody and it would be wayyy too much pressure all of a sudden, straight after high school which is essentially molly-coddling.

I'm checking out some of the links y'all gave me though. Perhaps education in the US would be better. The only thing that wouldn't make sense then is that I can go to a university in Ireland that is one of the best three in the world, for free, whereas I could only afford to go to a mediocre one for a very high fee in America. I know it's not the education but the actual skill that matters, but it still doesn't make much sense when you look at it like that.

One of the things we do in college is work experience. I'd obviously ask whether I could go on my J1 visa to one of these places in America, preferably my idolized developer, Double Fine... .... and spend a few weeks working there. Hopefully this would give me some credential should I want to move to San Fran. Plus, I will be able to steal a salt shaker from Simon's Deli.

However, I'll check out these internships, because if I could get past the homesickness (Now I sound like a baby ) then it would probably be really fun. So what you're saying is I could get a place in an american college for pretty much free, if I'm very lucky, or something? Time to check some links out.

And thanks everybody, you're being really really helpful and I'm considering an awful lot more options than I was when I started this thread. Thanks a million I know it may seem odd I'm worrying about this with two years of school still ahead, but at the end of this year we have to pick our subjects for the final exams, so really I'd better start making decisions now, because Irish Education works on a points basis. Besides that, if I do decide to study in America, I'd better start planning now

So thanks

[Miez]

I know this is gonna sound a bit baby-ish, but one of the main reasons I wouldn't like to go to college in the US is because I don't think I'd be ready to. I mean, the prospect of packing up and leaving my family for possibly years without seeing them often, in just two years time, is pretty dire. My family couldn't really afford to come over and see me, and as a student I probably couldn't afford to go over and see them, except for rare occasions. I wouldn't know anybody and it would be wayyy too much pressure all of a sudden, straight after high school which is essentially molly-coddling.

Yuf, that's not baby-ish. You're just being realistic, sensible and sensitive. I think a lot of people would think long and hard before packing up and moving to a country where you know hardly anyone. I know I would.

[Pumaman]

One of the things we do in college is work experience. I'd obviously ask whether I could go on my J1 visa to one of these places in America, preferably my idolized developer, Double Fine

That's actually not a bad idea - most courses will allow (and probably encourage) you to take a year out at work, so that might be the best of both worlds - get free education in Ireland but with a year's work experience in the USA.

[Meowster]

Oh but Christopher/Christian/Christ, I'd miss you so much, my darling.

I think I may inquire more about the work experience actually. I'm getting work experience in Torc Interactive, a donegal-based devoper, in March coming. It's gonna be awesome. Actually, I report back to y'all on it. But a whole year for real working in Double Fine or LucasArts... *sighs dreamily*.

I guess my main problem at this point is choosing whether to go abroad to study. Hmmm.

[Kweepa]

Once you have a H1B, you can change jobs quite easily I think - you just need to convince your employer and your future employer to cooperate, which could be difficult.

I highly recommend getting some experience in Ireland or the UK before attempting to go to the states. To get a H1B, your employer will need to convince the immigration authorities that you have something that can't be provided by someone from the US. In your case that would probably have to be good experience working on games in the field.

As for the games company, I think it would be easier to get a job with Lucas initially, although less rewarding. Lucas these days tend to get people straight out of college and exploit them for a couple of years, then fire them when they get too expensive. So that might work in your favour, since you'd probably want to move on anyway.

I don't know anything about DF, so this is just speculation: they'll be looking for people that have good published games in their resume, so moving over from Lucas could work there.

Another possibility is to get a position at a smaller company in the UK, where you can rise to a higher level more quickly, if you demonstrate talent. Then the H1B will be easier to get. The problem there is that a lot of small UK developers have folded recently, so there's a lot of experienced people in the market. I guess that doesn't apply to you though since work is a couple of years away.

It's a shame both Lucas and DF are on the west coast - if it was the east coast, I suspect immigration would love your Irish passport

Anyway, to actually land a job, the important thing is to have a good portfolio. AGS games would certainly help there - if you want to be an artist then you'd obviously be better off with a 3d game engine of some sort, but for a designer role it might be enough next to a bunch of paper designs.

Good luck!
Steve

[edit] Something I forgot to mention, that's probably relevant. In my experience US games companies have a lot of foreign programmers but not very many foreign designers or programmers. I think it's partially because programmers are more adventurous than designers and artists (go figure! - that could come from it being easier for a programmer to change job) but also probably because good homegrown art and design talent is more readily available. Not that should put you off - if it's your mission in life to work for DF (and you're good and not just some psycho!) that's a huge plus.

[Meowster]

Just found this out from a secret and unnamed. excellent source:

- It's not incredibly hard to find employment in video games as an artist... IF you have experience on your resume. But it is hard to break in.

- Most employers such as LucasArts and Double Fine have Interns. They do crap like sort files and test games, maybe, and they're not paid. But in the end, somebody might come along and say, "Hey, you're cool!" And employee you as a junior artist. Supposedly.

- So long as you're a good artist, you'll get in sooner or later. Unless you're really really really bad, in which case there's always Midway.

- Stay in School, Be Cool

- Never pay too much money for drugs.

Now let's say I go for my degree... take out a loan one summer, travel to America on my J1 visa and do an internship somewhere like Double Fine.... since there's no pay, it would be legal.... and then go back to college after the summer... that would give me a toe through the door, right?

Or am I wrong?

Hmm.

[RickJ]

I'm checking out some of the links y'all gave me though. Perhaps education in the US would be better. The only thing that wouldn't make sense then is that I can go to a university in Ireland that is one of the best three in the world, for free, whereas I could only afford to go to a mediocre one for a very high fee in America.

Do all of your under graduate work in Ireland.  Chech out schools in the US to do your post graduate work.   Find one that has many internships and that will hire you to do research or teach for salary + tuition.

Staying home for as long as possible is a good plan.  You will be able to save money and stay away from all sorts of distractions that come from moving out into the real world (no disparagement intended here).

Planning 2 years in advance is also a good thing so don't apologize for it.  

I can tell you are working your way through this in a methodical and logical manner.  You will surely end up with the results you desire.  Just keep on ...

[Matt Brown]

I think several schools in America have sister schools in both England and Ireland. One of the colleges I was looking at, (Maimi of Ohio) has a branch in England, where one can study for a semester...for no added cost. I think this works both ways...so maybe you could take a semester off from your college, and see if you like america, while still progessing with your studies