In our article on getting a career in esports, we talked about the different things you need to do in order to start building your path towards getting a paid job in the industry. In this article, we team up with Fnatic once more and take a look at where to go when you’re finally ready to take the next big step: applying for an esports position.
While regular job openings can be found in newspapers or online databases, you’ll be wasting your time if you’re hoping for your dream job in esports to show up there.To get to the good stuff you’ll have to get away from the local listings, and if you’re really serious, even the national ones. Esports is a truly global phenomena and there’s a high possibility that the job you’ve been looking for is not situated in the country you’re currently living. Because of this, we turn to the platforms that do have the correct listings and they can all be found online.
1. LinkedIn
Let’s start by highlighting a platform that will not only help you find the right job but will also allow you to be found by potential employers. Consider LinkedIn as your online resume, available to the world to see, meaning that it has to be as good (and even better) as the two page PDF file labeled “CV” you’ve put together to attach to an application.
The advantage of a LinkedIn profile is that you can provide a lot more insight into your experience than on your CV. Where it will say “Social Media Volunteer at Gamescom” on your CV, LinkedIn will give you the chance to explain that you produced original content and posted it to the social channels of your employer, learning more about social media and its management in the process. Somewhere in this extra information, a potential employer might find the details that convince him of your worth, so make sure to put some time in your profile! Also, don’t be afraid to ask a former boss or colleague to write you a recommendation, these go a long way.
Now that your profile is set up, let’s look for that job! Where?
- On company pages. Sometimes you already know where you want to end up and checking for an opportunity is as simple as looking up your favorite company and check if they have any openings. Some companies will post their job openings directly to the page (like Fnatic), while others have a dedicated jobs section (like Blizzard).
- In dedicated groups. Groups are where a lot of the interaction happens on LinkedIn. They are a valuable source of information and you’ll often be the first to know about new opportunities. There’s official groups (like the Riot Games one) and a lot of unofficial ones too. It’s as easy as typing esports in the search bar.
2. Company websites
Just as you can find job postings on individual LinkedIn pages, you can also find them on a company website of your choosing. When visiting a site, look for “Jobs”, “Careers”, or similar on the page. You’ll either find it at the top of the page in the navigation or at the bottom of the page in the small print. Most companies keep these pages fairly up to date but even if there’s no listings available they might tell you where to send your resume anyway, like the Fnatic website does.
3. Esportscareer.org or similar
If you’re not sure about your future place of employment then a traditional job board with an esports twist might just be what you need. Esportscareer is a job portal exclusively focused on esports listing and is used by big companies like ESL, Fnatic, Kinguin,… to publish available positions. They even list available volunteer positions for those of you who are still trying to build experience, something that is unique to the site.
4. Reddit
Just as Reddit is a nice platform to get involved in the community, it’s also a nice place to look for exclusive insights on jobs opening up soon that might not have been posted yet, giving you a head start on preparing for them when they do. /r/esports for example has a lot of discussion going on about career paths in the industry as well as the occasional job posting that might just be what you’ve been looking for.
We hope this article was informative for those of you who are ready to put themselves to the test and start looking for their first source of esports money. Good luck!
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