Why are internships so important?

Sudeep Kumar Gurung was enrolled in Apeejay in 2018 and now he is in his final year. Pursuing BA in Animation and  Multimedia from School of Design and Visual Arts, Apeejay Stya University (ASU), the 20-year-old design student has recently bagged a paid internship opportunity with StareOut Games, a Hyderabad-based startup building super crazy hyper-casual games. In an interview, Sudeep talks about his internship experience and more. Edited excerpts:

Why did you choose to pursue your Bachelor’s in Animation and  Multimedia from Apeejay?

After I completed my class 12, I was thinking of pursuing a career in medicine. But my father, who is with the Indian Air Force,  encouraged me to build a career in design. He told me that the design industry is evolving in the country and has vast opportunities. Moreover, I was always fascinated about drawing and sketching since childhood and so, I thought of giving it a shot. We researched different design institutes. At the same time, my father had got to know from one of his colleagues about Apeejay.  Luckily my father got posted in Delhi during that time and this coincidence worked so well for me.  We chose Apeejay. When my father visited the campus and spoke to the faculty members about the course, he was very impressed  by the course structure. 

How has been your learning experience so far?

In the foundation year,  we started with learning the basics such as what are the elements of design, animation, multimedia and so on. Foundational drawing is an essential aspect of being a designer. Hence, the course focused on practical training in sketching and drawing. We also worked on developing our observational skills. Apeejay offers a comprehensive course structure that is learner-centric and follows a studio-based approach. Creativity plays a key role in developing a career in design and animation. So I invest my time in developing my drawing skills and colour knowledge along with different design techniques. 

Please share your internship experience with us?

I love animation. However, there are different segments in animation as well. But I want to build my career in animation for games. And so I chose to pursue my internship in this firm. StareOut Games works with Indie developers, designers and budding game studios to make superhit hyper-casual games. It’s been almost eight months that I have been interning with them and during this period, I got to learn new softwares. Earlier I used to work on Adobe Animate CC software but when I joined here I was introduced to new 2D and 3D animation softwares. They gave me the time and liberty to learn at my own pace. The founder of the company has recently completed his Bachelor’s and he understands very well the expectations of college students.  He allows me time to balance between my college classes and internship.

Which is your favourite animation game and why?

My favourite is PUBG. I like to play this game as it gives you a platform to interact with your friends in the game. Moreover, I feel the game has realistic graphics and sounds. Those gunshots, footsteps, grenade sounds along with their visual effects feels so real.

Why are internships so important?

I think internships are very important in a student’s life. Internships help you gain valuable work experience. In fact, it’s a good introduction to the career one may want to pursue. It’s because when you start working with an organisation, you will realise that what you have learnt in college is very different. You have to work with your colleagues, deal with new softwares, balance your professional and personal lives, and complete projects as per the deadline. Internships help candidates understand these aspects of a job entirely. If your internship is a positive experience for you and the company you work for, you could be hired for a permanent position. And I believe one should start applying for  industrial internships right from the first year of college. Students must utilise their summer breaks to get hands-on knowledge in their career field.  Not just that it also enables candidates to understand their career trajectory for their desired job title. In addition, internships give students a platform to establish professional connections. The earlier one starts gaining experience, the better for his/her CV.