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In July, Alarming Ladder hired over 20 interns as part of the Learning Ladders Program. This program consists of an industry briefing that allows local university students from Colchester Institute, Suffolk New College, and the University of Suffolk to complete work for a commercial game product. From concept art briefings to content creation, various talented students from the Game Design, Game Art, and E-Sports courses participated and made significant contributions.

We reached out to the studio to learn more about this brilliant initiative and asked about the motivations and objectives of the Learning Ladders Program. Alarming Ladder explained that, as a young studio, they understand the difficulty of entering an industry filled with talent, where experience is crucial. Being based in Suffolk, England, they wanted to help students gain this initial experience and connect with local networks that could be useful for freelancing and job opportunities. Additionally, they wanted students to understand the processes of game development professionally, with talks from other indie developers sharing the challenges faced during development cycles.

One of the biggest challenges during the implementation of the program was the difficulty in enlisting help from other small studios, which, due to the current industry trend, were unable to take on the Learning Ladders interns. To overcome this barrier, the program was adjusted to be more flexible, utilizing recorded talks and the constant use of a Discord server to monitor the interns' work.

The experience of collaborating with students from Colchester Institute, Suffolk New College, and the University of Suffolk was extremely positive. The lecturers at these institutions actively supported the program, promoting the internship and sharing information about the process. At Suffolk New College, the entire games team embraced the idea and encouraged students to apply. The support from the academic teams was crucial to the program's success, reflected in the high student turnout.

Looking to the future, Alarming Ladder plans to run the program again next summer, due to the positive responses and the success of the showcase at the end of the program. They are considering changing the project the students will work on but are excited to welcome more students during their summer break next year. Additionally, they intend to continue working with local educational partners to offer a game jam at the beginning of the year, which will be used as part of the application process for the summer internship.