Check out Jason's story

With a BS in CD

Jason Schoonover

Object Engineer
Maxis/Electronic Arts

Jason loves his job because: “ Everywhere you look around here, Maxis/Electronic Arts are always offering fun things for their employees to do. There’s a 24/7 gym, basketball courts, tennis, and beach volleyball. They also have pool, ping pong, foosball, air hockey, and free video games all over campus. We even had Fire dancers here yesterday; it’s like working at the circus :)… The over all best thing about working on the Sims 2 is the excitement that rushes through me when I see one of my team’s commercials on primetime TV!”

In regards to some acquired abilities from CSUMB, Jason values his social skills: “To be honest my social skills are helping me the most. A lot of other employees here have gone to schools specializing in animation and different types of video game creation, but these private schools are very small. I believe that because I was always surrounded by college students and parties during my four years at CSUMB, it’s easier for me to meet everyone here.”

His advice specifically to Design students: “I realize that no design majors in TMAC will agree with me, but I think it is really important that everyone be taught C++. Don’t get me wrong, I loved my action scripting class, but my job would be a lot easier if I had learned C++ first."

His favorite class: “I definitely enjoyed the laid back atmosphere of the 3D animation class the most. We learned at our own pace and we didn’t have to worry about tests!”

Capstone: “My team’s Capstone was called “Covert Measures”. I worked with my friends Mat and Kari in order to create the first 3D video game to come out of CSUMB. It’s a first person shooter that takes place in an underground warehouse. Working on this project was so much fun and was a major factor in my career choice.”

His advice for current students: “Be as social as possible. Go out and enjoy your college experience at CSUMB. The friends you make could become the people who get you hired at your dream job.”

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Check out Frank's success story

With a BS in CD

Frank Chezem

Junior Designer
Takigawa Design

Frank is currently working for Takigawa Design where they are in charge of creating logos and designs for corporate identities and local regional businesses such as Private Schools, Wineries, Resorts, and Agricultural Companies. Frank enjoys his job because “working on projects is really fun and you get a great feeling when you see one of your jobs come back from the printer and it is crisp and fresh. That feeling is very rewarding.”

In regards to some acquired abilities from CSUMB, Frank values the different tasks he has been trained to do. “I am able to wear different hats at work because I have different skills. I am able to work with print, web, flash, networking, and many different forms of software and hardware.”

His advice for designs students is “not to be afraid to try different things. You also want to stick with the classes you enjoy because they will teach you a lot. More importantly don’t be afraid to change your ILP.”

His favorite class at CSUMB: “I really enjoyed action scripting with Ken Wanderman. The course was a very challenging course, but it was small and it was very collaborative. It made programming fun and understandable. We were able to learn a lot.”

Capstone: “I created a brand identity package for the Marina farmers market. It was called “Everyone’s Harvest”. It included printed materials as well as a website.” http://www.everyonesharvest.org/

His advice for current students: “I learned that in school the effort you put into anything is what you will get out of it. If you work hard and put your all into your work it will reflect in the quality of your work.”

Come to the iTCD Townhall Meeting to share your thoughts!

All students are invited to provide suggestions on how we can make our programs better.
See you there next Monday!

Welcome to our new blog for Communication Design!

This will be a space for announcements, news, event info, feedback, and community interaction.
Take advantage of this blog space & Enjoy freedom of speech!