From Gamer to Game Developer: How Kyle C. Bernelle Turned His Passion Into a Degree

Kyle C. Bernelle '21 came to Southern New Hampshire University  (SNHU) with a love for gaming — and a plan to turn his passion into a career.

He decided to earn a game and simulation programming degree on campus at SNHU for a couple of reasons. "I chose SNHU as all of the pictures online I saw of the campus looked beautiful," he said. "The in-house game studio was a big reason as well, where students could make games on their own for clients, which seemed like a great opportunity to have actual work on my portfolio."

Bernelle said the experiential learning he gained there was his favorite part of the program. "The Inkwell Studio, which is the university’s video game studio, was the best experience I could have ever asked for," he said. "Being able to work on an actual, real game project while still in school was an invaluable experience."

And his coursework didn't just teach him about theory. In addition to his time at the game studio, his classes let him use a variety of different software to develop his skills, too.

"The amount of hands-on work this degree had over others was second-to-none, as in almost every class you are working within Unity, Visual Studio or some other computer software to complete an assignment," he said.

He also noted his instructors were supportive and passionate about the subject. "This program allowed me to get plenty of experience working on games and learning to code, and the professors were outstandingly helpful," Bernelle said. "They care just as much about games and working on them just as much as any of the students, and it helped to have people on your side throughout the entire degree."

At the end of his program, Bernelle said it was well worth it. "It met, and in most ways, surpassed my expectations," he said.

Mars Girolimon '21 '23G is a staff writer at Southern New Hampshire University where they earned their bachelor’s and master’s, both in English and creative writing. In addition to their work in higher education, Girolimon’s short fiction is published in the North American Review, So It Goes by The Kurt Vonnegut Museum & Library, X-R-A-Y and more. Connect with them on LinkedIn.