Caitlin Goodale - Class of 2011 - Video Games Design 

The first in our series of Alumnae Showcases, profiling former pupils of St George's.

What subjects did you study at St George’s and what did you do after leaving school?
At school I studied English Lit, Mandarin, Chemistry, Computing, Art and Maths. After I left St George’s I completed a BA (Hons) in Computer Arts at Abertay University which included a semester at Den Danske Filmskole in Copenhagen.
 

What’s been your career path since leaving higher education?
I did internships throughout uni, working as a Pixel Artist on Minecraft and as a Graphic Designer at Microsoft, and running a design consulting business alongside my degree. After graduating I moved to Malmö in Sweden where I worked as a User Experience Designer for King, the makers of Candy Crush. I then worked as a Senior Product Designer for
Memrise, and now I am Head of UI/UX Design for Drest, a fashion game startup in London.
 

Any notable achievements since leaving St George’s?
I’m a BAFTA member and help with their awards juries, including on their Young Game Designers program. I have given several talks, including at GDC San Francisco in 2015, and as Keynote Speaker at the New Zealand Game Developers’ Conference in Auckland in 2018. I’m also a mentor in a range of programs helping  underrepresented folks into games and design, including Google’s Hexagon program, STEM ambassadors and Limit Break.
 

How did the subjects you studied impact on your career?
Doing a broad range of subjects helped me immensely! As an artist and designer, it helps to have a broad range of interests to be inspired by. When you’re building things in teams, like games or products, the more you understand the other disciplines you work with, the better you can work together.
 

What influence did St George’s have on you when you look back?
The ability to explore different interests in a supportive environment was massively valuable to me.
 

Is there anything you would have done differently when setting out in the world of work?
The role I’ve ended up in didn’t exist when I left St George’s. Especially if you’re interested in tech or design, accept that the world of work will change even while you study. Just follow your passions and enjoy the ride!
 

What lessons have you learnt along the way?
Try not to compare yourself to other people too much. They’re following their own path - people do things at different times in their lives, and that’s totally okay! Some of the best engineers and artists I’ve worked with only picked up the discipline in their 30s. You have time - try not to worry if you don’t have everything figured out at 14!