Ready student one? Universities launch degrees in eSports

Chapman and other students starting Staffordshire University’s eSports degree course play Counter-Strike in the school’s new London digital studio. A number of UK and US universities are launching degrees in eSports, or competitive multiplayer videogaming, to capitalise on the booming industry’s growing demand for skilled professionals. — Photos: AP

LONDON: On their first week in class, a group of students is playing a first-person shooter videogame in a sleek new digital studio. It's their introduction to the degree in eSports they've all enrolled in.

The group clicking away on their mice are at the University of Staffordshire, one of several UK and US schools launching programmes aimed at capitalising on the booming industry's need for skilled professionals.