By Robert A. Emmanuel
As interest in the world of e-sports and technology grows among the Antiguan and Barbudan populace, the General Manager of Antigua Barbuda E-sports Club, Elijah James, is optimistic about the level of interest shown by youth.
James was speaking to Observer media on the final day of the E-sports College Fair, organised by EducationUSA Eastern Caribbean, and the US Embassy for Barbados, the Eastern Caribbean and the OECS.
James noted that during the two-day event, the students expressed great interest in joining the E-sports Club held regularly at the National Public Library, and that more than 50 of them had signed up to do so.
“One thing that drives my passion about e-sports, robotics and more so the STEM field, is that young people have to inherit the future, and so we, as adults, have to be able to provide them with the structure, tools and experience so that they can be become the engineers, coders and developers of tomorrow,” he explained.
Students from several schools, to include Sir Novelle Richards Academy, Jennings Secondary, Antigua Girls’ High, and Pares Secondary, were in attendance over the two-day event and showed great interest.
Many had burning questions about studying in the United States, which were answered by the recruitment officers from Kennesaw State University, Ball State University, and Lynn University, among others.
According to Natasha Talreja, the Associate Director of Transfer and International Student Recruitment for Kennesaw State University, students were very interested in getting information about more than just the e-sports degrees.
“Some are showing interest in the technology and e-sports field, but a lot of them are asking about other areas of study, so they wanted to get a more well-rounded education,” she shared.
She added that global interest in the field continues to grow.
“We are just now discovering how much interest there is from Fortune 500 companies … whether it be game design, robotics, or artificial intelligence, that there is a strong need for those types of students to study in the United States with those specific majors,” she said.
On Wednesday, the fair’s opening day, Minister of Education Daryll Matthew spoke about the value of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields in the country.
“E-sports is a multi-billion-dollar industry worldwide and as we transition into a more virtual world—the metaverse that Meta is pushing, virtual reality, artificial intelligence—these are all areas that are the new frontier and you are on the cusp of the next great thing in education and humanity,” he told the students who filled the room.
