Sumo Digital’s apprenticeship scheme has become the first
in the UK games industry to be recognised by the government and the Institute
for Apprenticeships and Technical Education.

The course, led by Director of Education Partnerships, Dr
Jacob Habgood, teaches
Level 7 Game Programming and is the first of its kind to provide
participants with qualifications upon graduation.

This year’s cohort
of apprentices began their learning in January 2022, beginning with C++
training before moving onto practical application through project work. Upon
delivery of the project, the cohort will move onto Unreal Engine training and
then placement experience and potential employment opportunities.

The development of this pioneering course has been led by
Sumo Digital with support from Rare, nDreams, Co-operative Innovations,
PlayStation London Studio, Hutch Games and Aardvark Swift, all of which will
commence their programmes in September.

Last year, the Sumo Digital Academy – a talent development initiative
aiming to create new pathways into the games industry – welcomed its
‘trailblazer’ cohort, who joined on a 12-month internship and helped to shape
the apprenticeship programme. All of this cohort subsequently went on to
receive employment offers from Sumo Digital to kickstart their careers.

Director of Education Partnerships at Sumo Digital, Dr
Jacob Habgood, said: “I’m so proud to be delivering this trailblazing
programme of learning and opening pathways into the games industry. Through our
work with educational partners, we’re able to provide opportunities for those
who previously haven’t had easy access into the industry and I’m so excited to
be helping to shape the future of games.”

The launch of this programme follows a report
by Into Games from late 2021 which identified that over half of the games
industry in the UK said it did not have the understanding required to offer
apprenticeships to future talent. With 50.3% saying they had willingness to
take on apprentices in the next 12 months ‘if the conditions were right’ but
the majority said they had ‘little to no understanding’ of how apprenticeships
work. Some of the largest barriers to adoption of apprentices in the games
sector were ‘diversion of resources towards an apprentice’, ‘a general lack of
knowledge about the apprenticeship process’ and ‘any extra costs involved’.

Discover more about the Sumo Digital Academy, including
how to get involved and who can apply here.

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