People of EA: Interns - Ella
Meet Ella, a Tech Design Intern, and learn why she enjoys the specialization and career path of Tech Design.
Electronic Arts’ internship program provides great opportunities for students to start and grow their careers while cultivating their passions along the way. This fall, we welcomed a new class of #intEArns to our virtual Next-Gen Talent internship program. Discover why Ella says EA is a unique place to intern because of the support interns are given!
Fast Facts:
- Name: Ella Johnson
- Title: Tech Design Intern
- Major: Interactive Entertainment
- School: University of Central Florida, Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy
Describe yourself and your background.
I was born and raised in Connecticut. I started learning instruments and playing music when I was seven years old, and actually went on to get a degree in music. My first game console was a Wii, and it exposed me to my first EA games: every MySims created, EA SPORTS Madden NFL, and Medal of Honor: Heroes 2. I am finishing up my M.S. at UCF FIEA this fall with this internship, and I earned my undergraduate degree at the University of Miami.
What are you studying and why?
I am finishing up my M.S. in Interactive Entertainment, specializing in Tech Design, which is essentially a degree in game development. After doing a minor in Interactive Media, including a game design course, I realized that I really enjoyed scripting and creating games, leading me to apply to the program I’m in! I really enjoy the specialization and career path of Tech Design, as it teaches you both how to come up with creative and innovative ideas, but also how to implement them into prototypes.
What drew you to EA?
As a gamer, EA was always on my radar as a major player in AAA video games, and going to school in Orlando with Tiburon close by made an internship there a dream for me, especially pre-remote when location mattered. When it came time to apply for an internship, chatting with school alumni that have interned and now work at Tiburon really showed me how great an opportunity it would be to work there.
EA is such a unique place to intern because you are given so much support as an intern, as well as the opportunity to take on important and challenging tasks. From the start, I never felt relegated to throw away tasks, and have been encouraged to talk to and learn from design leadership, as well as pitch my own ideas and prototypes.
What was your reaction to EA’s call for a virtual internship following safety protocols for COVID-19? How have you leveraged some perks or benefits from this remote internship?
Coming in as a Fall Intern, I knew and expected the internship to be virtual, but it was very encouraging to see how well the summer internships had gone and the support that the Next-Gen Talent team was providing through virtual events. Additionally, being remote has given me the opportunity to attend virtual events and meet new people from across the company.
Tell us something we don’t know about you.
When I was 15, I auditioned for and got the chance to perform in the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) All-National Honor Band. We traveled to and performed in Nashville, TN!
Learn more about our Next-Gen Talent program and apply to be a part of our next intern class.
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