GDC Next partners with USC to give out free passes to USC Game students

University of Southern California's USC Games program and GDC Next are collaborating to support the next generation of developers with a pass giveaway to GDC Next in November. USC will distribute 50 VIP All Access Passes and additional complimentary Expo Passes to eligible students in the USC Games program enrolled in Advanced Game Projects (a full-year class in which students at USC Games work with industry and faculty mentors to create professional-quality games) and MFA students working on their final year thesis projects (the culmination of the three-year MFA program in School of Cinematic Arts' Interactive Media and Games Division). "We’re thrilled to be able to offer an opportunity for USC students to participate in this GDC," said GDC general manager Meggan Scavio, "In creating an event aimed at discussing 'what’s next' in game development, it only seemed natural to include the next generation of game developers.” Tracy Fullerton, director of USC's Game Innovation Lab, echoed Scavio's sentiment: "Attending professional conferences such as GDC and GDC Next is an incredible opportunity for our students to learn more about the latest, best practices in the game industry; to meet with their peers and mentors; and is critical for their professional development." The USC Games program is a joint collaboration between the School of Cinematic Arts' Interactive Media & Games Division and the Viterbi School of Engineering's Department of Computer Science. Incorporating elements of design, artistry and engineering, USC Games offers an utterly unique educational experience for students, and serves as the launching pad for them to play significant roles in the game design field. GDC Next is the spiritual successor to GDC Online, and will take place alongside the App Developers Conference on November 5th-7th, 2013 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Be sure to check out the GDC Next Session Scheduler to see the other announced talks and begin your planning. Previously announced talks include Sony on free-to-play for PS4, Square Enix on its Collective publishing platform, and sponsored sessions from Tencent, Google, GREE. Online registration is in full swing for GDC Next and the co-located ADC; register now and save up to $200 on ADC, GDC Next, or a combined VIP All Access Pass. For all the latest news on GDC Next, subscribe for updates via Facebook, Twitter, or RSS. Also, check out the App Developers Conference's recently announced talks: Square product design lead Martin Pedrick on developing new design tools to move past wireframes and photo editors, and Sequence CEO Jojo Roy on app developers' opportunities to create new experiences using embedded sensor-driven data (and associated common pitfalls). Gamasutra and GDC are sibling organizations under parent UBM Tech.