Recently, an instructor asked me for a copy of my Resume. When he reviewed it, he promptly asked me why I'm not pursuing other work. It is a question I get asked often. After all, I have a bachelor's degree in Biology. Why am I going back to school at MATC?
There are a number of reasons that I chose to come to MATC and change career paths.
When I studied biology at Carthage College, I knew I wanted to be a researcher. I wanted to unlock the secrets of the cell and contribute to science. After I graduated, I spent a few months working as a lab tech to get experience. I was already wavering on whether I wanted to continue that route, as I wasn't enamored with the idea of continuing on to grad school. Working as a lab tech for those few months made it clear to me that I didn't want to continue down that road.
After I quit my job in the lab, I returned to work at the family business. It was good work, and while it wasn't a bad job, my heart really wasn't in it. I didn't want to continue manufacturing cages the rest of my life. I wanted to work with computers, and more specifically I wanted to work on making games.
I considered a number of schools in the area, but MATC stood out. I had always had both a talent with and love of computers. While many schools in the area have IT degrees of some description, MATC is the only school that also has a Computer Gaming program. I knew a number of individuals in the CSG program and had heard good things. The instructors had real-world experience, which I felt was a great resource.
When I entered the program, I was one of only a few people in the class with previous programming experience. When the class was divided into groups, I was chosen as our group's leader. I was reluctant at first, but I grew to enjoy directing the project and studying Agile and Scrum project management techniques. I worked hard to make the group successful, and my efforts were noticed by my instructors. I was given opportunities to work on projects for companies my instructors owned, which has been a great experience.
I hope to become a successful Game Developer and share my love of games with others. That is why I am studying computers and game development at MATC.
The reasons why you chose MATC are why many people with four year degrees come to MATC. Developing true skills sets and learning to work with others to emulate real world job skills differentiates MATC from other institutions.
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