Charlie Captains College Esports Team!
A female Games Development student is the captain of a college team competing in a national league promoting the biggest growing sport in the world!
Charlie Donovan, 20 from Llandudno, has been appointed captain of one of the six esports’ teams Coleg Llandrillo is fielding in the British Esports Student Championships this academic year. She is studying on the Level 3 Games Development course at the Rhos-on-Sea campus.
Charlie not only captains Hydras (team 2) - which consists of both male and female student gamers - she also trains her team members three times a week. Her team will be playing Valorant - a popular, character-based multiplayer shooter from Riot Games - against students from across the length and breadth of the UK. The team’s first match of the new season is taking place this week.
Outside of her college commitments, Charlie is part of a female-only group who are all learning how to be esports presenters. She and the group members are currently observing and commentating on esports competitions on a regular basis in preparation.
The college’s teams competing in the league are: 2 Hydras teams playing Valorant; 2 Basilisks teams (Rocket League); Drakes (Overwatch) and Wyvern (League of Legends). All students involved are studying on either Computing or Creative Arts’ courses.
The British Esports Student Championships is a series of competitive video gaming tournaments for school and college students aged 12+ across the UK. The Championships is an extracurricular, team-based activity that engages a wide demographic of young people, whilst providing an avenue to motivate and inspire students.
British Esports has recently confirmed that the grand finals of the Championships will once again be held in collaboration with the Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies – Nottingham Trent University’s new esports complex. The live event will take place on the 18th and 19th June 2022.
BAFTA-winning Coleg Llandrillo Games Development tutor Rob Griffiths, who was presented with this year’s prestigious ‘Further Education Academic Award’ for his ground-breaking initiatives in the world of games development and computing, was recently appointed as a non-executive director for Esports Wales, the national body for esports in Wales.
He said: “It's great to see so many students getting interested in esports, joining teams to help represent their college on a national level. It's also very positive to see so many females taking part and showing that there are no gender barriers to playing games competitively.”
Earlier this year to meet huge demand, Coleg Llandrillo announced that it would also be offering an A-level-equivalent qualification in esports. Learners are taught within the brand new £120,000, state-of-the-art Virtual Reality Suite at the college group’s Rhos-on-Sea campus.
Esports is part of a multi-billion pound worldwide industry with no physical barriers, and this innovative qualification will afford students with real career prospects in the burgeoning UK market, as well as gaining access to global industries in the US, Asia and Europe! As a new co-owner of an esports business, even David Beckham is getting in on the act!
Coleg Llandrillo’s Games Development department has had an unbelievable few years, after securing partnerships with some of the world’s most successful electronics and gaming brands. It has been registered as both Xbox and Nintendo developers, which is a possible first for any college or university in the UK! Further to this, it is now part of Sony Interactive Entertainment’s global academic programme - PlayStation®First.
For more information on the college’s courses in Games Development, or Computing courses in general, please call the college’s Learner Services team on 01492 542 338.
