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How a Games Designer makes a difference

Did you know there are nearly 3 billion gamers around the world? Gaming used to be an activity enjoyed by a smaller community, but today, because of the range of games available and the ease of accessing them, on our mobile phones as well as games consoles, it’s hard to avoid gaming.

A games designer helps to generate the ideas for a game, builds prototypes – small scale versions of a game concept – creates the game storyline, decides on the points of interaction with a gamer, and plans the game mechanics. You could be the technician who helps to invent whole new gaming worlds that millions of people explore for fun and entertainment.

A person playing a game on their mobile phone.

The type of work a Games Designer will do

  • Designing games for a range of devices and platforms
  • Finding ways to capture the imagination of a gamer
  • Planning in detail every element of a new game, including the setting, rules, story flow, props, vehicles, characters and mode of play
  • Presenting your ideas to people in your game development team
  • Carrying out market research to learn what your target audience wants from a game
  • Transforming your initial ideas into a detailed concept, then implementing the concept
  • Writing scripts and designing storyboards
  • Developing design specifications and adapting them as the game progresses
  • Planning the overall user experience
Useful skills
Technologically minded
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Attention to detail
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Communicating complex ideas
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Problem solving
Skills & attributes

What you can bring to the Games Designer role

A passion for gaming and belief in the entertainment games provide.

Some knowledge of the different hardware platforms available for games.

A vivid imagination and lively mind that can generate fresh ideas.

A knack for using new technology and creating things on computers.

What you can bring to the Games Designer role

A focused approach to your work and the ability to make sound judgements and accurate decisions.

Good communication skills and the ability to get your ideas across to other people.

The confidence to work independently and in a team.

The determination to find solutions to make an idea work.

What you can bring to the Games Designer role

This role could also be right for you if you have any of the following interests:

- gaming and technology

- art, film, fashion and design

- sports, adventures and the outdoors

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Data powered by LMI for all
*according to ONS

Future career opportunities for a Games Designer

After gaining experience as a junior games designer, you could get promoted to a quality assurance (QA) testing role. In this role you would be involved in testing applications and games to confirm they reach the right standards and operate well properly across different platforms.

You can progress into a senior creative or technological role, subject to the training and experience you have. You might prefer to be involved in developing the storylines and working out how to make them a great gaming experience, or it could be the programming and build of the games you enjoy more.

How to become a Games Designer

There’s no perfect career path or ideal way into your dream job.

But if you’re interested in education and training options that could be relevant to this role, you might want to consider:

Options available after GCSEs:

More options available after that:

  • An apprenticeship as a Junior VFX Artist.

Schools and colleges each have their own career guidance plan and can provide detailed information, advice, and guidance on options and next steps.

A little more about the role

Exciting features...

You’ll work in a creative and technologically-advanced environment, interacting with game developers, programmers, game artists, animators and quality assurance testers. You’ll brainstorm together all the different ways a game could work in order to create the best gaming experience possible. Your role could include interface or content design. In smaller teams you will tend to get involved in a range of work, whereas bigger companies often have specialists focused on each element of game design.

How a Vehicle Paint Technician makes a difference

Vehicles today are available in a rainbow of colours that are sprayed on by robots programmed to apply colour perfectly. Vehicles also sometimes need to be resprayed, when they are involved in collisions or other incidents, for example.

After an event like that, owners want their vehicles returned to as good as new. You could be the technician who ensures their paintwork is in top condition.

The type of work a Vehicle Paint Technician will do

  • Masking, sanding, and other preparation work
  • Mixing paints to achieve the right colour match
  • Looking after materials and machinery
  • Spray painting vehicles
  • Maintaining a clear working environment
  • Keeping tools and equipment safe
Useful skills
Attention to detail
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Logical thinking
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Critical thinking
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Precise
Skills & attributes

What you can bring to the Vehicle Paint Technician role

A passion for cars and other vehicles.

The ability to focus, make sound judgements and accurate decisions.

A natural instinct to look at problems from different perspectives before finding the best way forward.

What you can bring to the Vehicle Paint Technician role

The confidence to engage with complex information, ask questions and act on what you’ve learned.

A responsible approach to working independently.

A talent for completing detailed work carefully and accurately.

What you can bring to the Vehicle Paint Technician role

You could also be right for this role if you have any of the following interests:

- cars, trains or planes

- science

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£ 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 , 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
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Data powered by LMI for all
*according to ONS

Future career opportunities for a Vehicle Paint Technician

After developing the required skills under supervision you will start to work independently.

With more experience, you could transfer your skills to a car manufacturing facility, overseeing robots or training others to spray paint vehicles.

How to become a Vehicle Paint Technician

There’s no perfect career path or ideal way into your dream job.

But if you’re interested in education and training options that could be relevant to this role, you might want to consider:

Options available after GCSEs:

Schools and colleges each have their own career guidance plan and can provide detailed information, advice, and guidance on options and next steps.

A little more about the role

Exciting features...

You’ll be responsible for ensuring the correct colour match, preparing the vehicle surface and achieving a high quality final finish. This involves using tools such as spray equipment and materials such as primers, base coats, and lacquers. You’ll also use different drying techniques such as ultraviolet, infrared, and catalytic solutions.

Other job titles...

This role can also be known by some other job titles including:

Painters
Vehicle Paint Sprayer
Paint Technician
Prepper/Painter
Refinish Technician
Car Sprayer
Applicants Technician
Maintenance Technician

How a Colour and Dye Technician makes a difference

Colours of all kinds are everywhere, in textiles, work clothing, fashion fabrics, and upholstery. Highly specialised colour and dye chemistry ensures the right colours can be achieved across all kinds of materials.

Colour trends come and go, however, and new fabrics are being developed all the time to make furniture, clothing and products of all kinds that are better for the planet. You could be the technician that brings colour to the world, applying your colour and dye chemistry to new and planet-friendly materials.

The type of work a Colour and Dye Technician will do

  • Creating recipes for specific shades of colour
  • Scheduling machine time
  • Programming the computers that control the containers of ingredients
  • Controlling stock and ordering dyes
  • Meeting environmental controls for chemicals usage
  • Liaising with clients on their colour objectives and production timelines
  • Carrying out colour test to make sure colour lasts
Useful skills
Attention to detail
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Precise
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Technologically minded
Skills & attributes

What you can bring to the Colour and Dye Technician role

A love of colour.

An interest in learning how different colours and dyes are created and interact with a range of fabrics.

An aptitude for chemistry.

What you can bring to the Colour and Dye Technician role

A responsible approach to focusing on your work, following instructions and completing tasks accurately.

The confidence to try out new tools and create things on a computer.

The natural ability to manage your time and resources carefully.

What you can bring to the Colour and Dye Technician role

You could also be right for this role if you have any of the following interests:

- art, film, fashion and design

- science

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Average salary per year *
£ 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 , 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Average salary per month *

Data powered by LMI for all
*according to ONS

Future career opportunities for a Colour and Dye Technician

Your skills in dye production can take you in lots of different directions, first working in and then leading a team.

You could help to create luxury fabrics for a fashion brand, hard-wearing comfortable fabrics for furniture or develop a whole range of colours on an industrial scale for different kinds of manufacturers.

How to become a Colour and Dye Technician

There’s no perfect career path or ideal way into your dream job.

But if you’re interested in education and training options that could be relevant to this role, you might want to consider:

Options available after GCSEs:

  • A T-level in Craft and Design.
  • An apprenticeship as a Craft Assistant Dye and Print Technician.

Schools and colleges each have their own career guidance plan and can provide detailed information, advice, and guidance on options and next steps.

A little more about the role

Exciting features...

Working as a colour and dye technician involves moving between manufacturing facilities and laboratories and working with customers to achieve their colour goals. You’ll be responsible for colour trials, production and the ultimate quality of colour.

Other job titles...

This role can also be known by some other job titles including:

Colour Chemist
Colour Scientist
Dye Technologist
Dye-House Technician
Laboratory Technician
Manufacturing Managers

How a Print Technician makes a difference

Even though communications are increasingly digital, there are still many different items that are printed. That’s everything from leaflets, birthday cards and wrapping paper, to product packaging, billboard advertising and money.

The printing industry is technologically advanced and as well as printing designs and colours, some printers also produce textures and even print different smells. You could be the technician who helps to bring creative design ideas to life, with accurate printing that achieves exactly the right standard on every printed item.

The type of work a Print Technician will do

  • Understanding customers’ print specifications
  • Preparing printing presses for new projects
  • Making sure colours match the required standards
  • Carrying out quality checks as presses are running
  • Maintaining machinery
  • Working to strict delivery deadlines
Useful skills
Logical thinking
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Instructing others
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Decisive
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Precise
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Attention to detail
Skills & attributes

What can you bring to the Print Technician role

An interest in the graphic design and communication industry.

The confidence to learn about and operate new machinery.

Skill at considering problems logically and identifying solutions or improvements.

What can you bring to the Print Technician role

The natural ability to supervise and instruct other people effectively.

A consistently careful approach to producing written reports and records.

The ability to make sound, accurate judgements in pressurised situations.

What can you bring to the Print Technician role

This role could also be right for you if you have any of the following interests:

- art, film, fashion and design

- exploring problems and finding answers

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Average salary per year *
£ 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 , 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Average salary per month *

Data powered by LMI for all
*according to ONS

Future career opportunities for a Print Technician

You can choose to focus on one of three areas in the early stages of your printing career, making sure everything is technically correct either before you print, as you print, or afterwards.

With experience, you could become a production manager or take on a sales and management role in a major UK or worldwide printer. Alternatively you could become involved in print innovation, helping to push the industry forward and solve new creative challenges.

How to become a Print Technician

There’s no perfect career path or ideal way into your dream job.

But if you’re interested in education and training options that could be relevant to this role, you might want to consider:

Options available after GCSEs:

Schools and colleges each have their own career guidance plan and can provide detailed information, advice, and guidance on options and next steps.

A little more about the role

Exciting features...

You’ll see the items you help to print all around you, in marketing and advertising campaigns, in shops, or even – if you print money – in people’s wallets! You’ll get to know different print materials and inks, how to programme large printing presses and how digital design files become a printed item.

Other job titles...

This role can also be known by some other job titles including:

Pre-Press Technician
Press Technician
Post-Press Technician

How an Animation Technician makes a difference

When you first think of animation, you probably imagine big feature films with quirky characters, hilarious stories, and funny voice overs. Films are one of the places where animation is used today but there are also many others.

Organisations of all kinds use animation to bring products, services and experiences to life, in short information films, advertising and computer games. You could be the technician who helps brands, charities, campaigners, game designers, and filmmakers to tell their stories in a fresh and engaging way.

The type of work an Animation Technician will do

  • Creating images that help to tell a story
  • Using different illustration processes – hand drawn, computer generated or 3D objects
  • Interpreting a story board and characters
  • Producing characters’ motions, gestures and expressions
  • Presenting creative ideas
  • Producing repeats of images with minor changes
Useful skills
Attention to detail
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Communicating complex ideas
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Precise
Skills & attributes
Useful skills
Technologically minded
Skills & attributes

What you can bring to the Animation Technician role

A vivid imagination and excellent drawing skills.

The ability to focus and great attention to detail when you draw.

An interest in how human and animal anatomies work.

An appreciation of different animation styles.

What you can bring to the Animation Technician role

The ability to follow instructions carefully and accurately.

A natural instinct for communicating complex ideas simply.

An ease with computers and experience using computer design software.

What you can bring to the Animation Technician role

You could also be right for this role if you have any of the following interests:

- art, film, fashion and design

- gaming and technology

Future career opportunities for an Animation Technician

You could work in an animation studio that specialises in a particular animation style and become a creative director who leads a team. 

Alternatively, you might want to develop your own animation style and  become a freelance animator who is used for a range of projects.

£ 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 , 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Average salary per year *
£ 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 , 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Average salary per month *

Data powered by LMI for all
*according to ONS

How to become an Animation Technician

There’s no perfect career path or ideal way into your dream job.

But if you’re interested in education and training options that could be relevant to this role, you might want to consider:

Options available after GCSEs:

More options available after that:

Schools and colleges each have their own career guidance plan and can provide detailed information, advice, and guidance on options and next steps.

A little more about the role

Exciting features...

Working in animation involves creating alternative worlds and deciding how to communicate messages simply. You’ll be involved in producing a series of still images that will be shown in a rapid sequence to create the illusion of movement. These can be combined with live action, real actors, visual effects, and interactive content to create visual communication that’s really exciting.