Experience Guide
Make the most out of your university career by taking advantage of all that Laurier has to offer you. Volunteer work, campus clubs, leadership programs, studying abroad, work experience – there are so many ways you can extend your classroom experience into the real world.
Year-to-Year Experience Guides
The following is a year-to-year outline of the kinds of experiential learning activities that work well with your program.
Be Inspired: Maximize Your Academic Opportunities
First Year
- Take Game Design and Development courses and explore other programs of interest through electives.
- Complete Foundations courses in your first two years.
- Review your program requirements and plan for a successful degree path.
- Explore game concepts for organizations of interest and develop prototypes of these ideas.
- Join the Game Changers residence learning cluster to enhance your academic and social success.
Middle Years
- Explore courses in related areas of study and begin thinking about a minor or an option to complement your degree.
- Explore digital game concepts (second year) and mobile game prototypes (third year) related to your game ideas from first year.
- Register for a project management course.
- Consider taking social innovation or entrepreneurship courses.
- Meet with academic advising to make key academic decisions.
Final Year
- Design a game and develop a prototype in collaboration with a community partner or organization for your capstone project.
- Thinking of pursuing graduate school?
- Talk to your professors and visit the Career Centre.
- Sign up for a scholarship proposal-writing workshop or book a writing consultation for help with your proposals.
Be Involved: Explore Work, Volunteer and Leadership Experience
First Year
- Join student clubs such as the Game Design and Development Student Association, Game On or a special interest club. Or create your own!
- Participate in residence leadership opportunities or attend LOCUS events.
- Participate in Game Jams – develop a game in a short period of time to meet the goals of an organization.
- Attend the Community Engagement Fair in September.
- Explore your interests by volunteering on campus (e.g., Sustainability Office, Schlegel Centre's Innovation Squad, peer programs, Students' Union and more).
- Join intramural sports or participate in recreational activities.
Middle Years
- Work with a team of students on a game design experience with BGNlab or a game organization over the summer.
- Develop game-based events for gaming student organizations and other student organizations to run.
- Be a note taker through the Accessible Learning Centre.
- Volunteer to be an O-Week Icebreaker and welcome incoming first years.
- Connect with local organizations to learn about volunteer opportunities.
- Attend the speaker series with professionals in the industry.
Final Year
- Work with the LaunchPad program for the opportunity to discover, validate and launch your game.
- Apply for an executive position in an on-campus club.
- Develop a game with a real-world impact in partnership with an organization.
- Attend the Career and Job Fairs to network with employers.
- Take part in internal and external game design competitions.
- Plan for completing your Project Management certification.
Be Engaged: Broaden Your Perspective
First Year
- Visit the Diversity and Equity Office and become a member of the student service provider groups.
- Visit Laurier International to learn about international options available to you to enrich your university experience.
- Complete the Intercultural Effectiveness Certificate to build your intercultural competence and global perspective.
Middle Years
- Visit the Indigenous Student Centre for Soup Thursday.
- Consider the Alternative Reading Week trip with Habitat for Humanity.
- Study abroad for an academic term.
Final Year
- Complete the Diversity Certificate.
- Consider attending the Ashoka U Exchange.
Checklists
Completing the checklists below will also help ensure your academic, professional, and personal success during your time at Laurier – and beyond.
Academic Success Checklist
- Discover the Library – librarians can help you find and evaluate scholarly information for your assignments.
- Book a career consulting appointment to explore career options in the context of your academic studies.
- Complete the Student Awards scholarship and bursary applications on LORIS.
- Visit Writing and Study Skills to get feedback on your work, develop your learning skills, and further enhance your writing.
- Attend the Further Education Fair to learn about postgraduate programs.
- Apply to graduate and attend convocation to celebrate your success.
Experience Checklist
- Get involved with the Students’ Union (e.g., Foot Patrol, EcoHawks, Food Bank, Healthy Lifestyles).
- Apply for part-time jobs on campus (e.g., Athletics and Recreation, Residence, U-Desk, Bookstore, peer programs, and more).
- Have your resumé reviewed in the Career Centre.
- Earn your Career Development Certificate.
- Be a changemaker – visit the Community Innovation Hub and get involved in social innovation.
- Get to know the location of the Wellness Centre for emotional, mental and physical health support.
- Create a profile on LinkedIn and laurier.tenthousandcoffees.com to connect with Laurier alumni.
- Add co-curricular activities to your Laurier Experience Record.
- Network with alumni at career events to gain insight into possible career paths.
- Apply to part-time, summer and full-time jobs for after graduation through the Career Centre’s Navigator portal.
Career Opportunities
When you're ready to start thinking about your life after graduation, you should check out the career and postgraduate options for people with a degree in Game Design and Development.