Preparing to Enter the Game Development Industry... am I shooting myself in the foot?

[Natso]

Without getting into too much detail about my own history, I'll be a junior in college this fall semester. My Bachelors Degree is "Computer Science" (the other degree offered being "CS - Information Technology" which is a bit more hardware based).

My end goal is to be a programmer (on a development team), preferably for game development. From what I read online, the most valuable thing in the industry is -EXPERIENCE-, and usually a BS in CS (or a related field).

What worries me is this: A friend of mine attends Digipen ("the Nintendo college"), and according to him I have little chance of actually getting anywhere in the game development industry - because I am not getting a degree that is specifically game related.

Now, I'm fairly certain that when it comes to experience, I'll be quite prepared for the entry-level field of programming jobs. I'm just worried that I'm shooting myself in the foot for getting a degree that won't compliment my goals.

Thank you for your help,
- Natso

PS: my strengths lie in engine development, artificial intelligence, encryption, and security.

[Narue]

>I have little chance of actually getting anywhere in the game development
>industry - because I am not getting a degree that is specifically game related.
I'd say your friend is full of it. Ability trumps education every time, and the gaming industry is especially well-known for turning basement coders into millionaires. A degree in CS won't hurt you (it'll probably help more than the specialized degree, but I'll get to that in a moment), and a good portfolio will go much further than a degree from a "game programming college".

Now, the reality is this: game development is very competitive. You'll be going up against some extremely talented people, so unless you're one of them, it's likely that you won't end up with your dream job for a while. In that case, a general CS degree can benefit you more than a game programming degree as you work your way into the field.

[sciwizeh]

a general CS degree can benefit you more than a game programming degree as you work your way into the field

i was told that too, so that is what i am doing when i enter college this fall :)

[chaosprime]

Game development shops consider 'gaming degrees' a joke. Your friend is blowing sunshine up his own degree program.

[ripsocrates]

Imma new comp sci major, this is great news thanks for the help everyone!