As a company committed to promoting equal opportunities and increasing the number of women in digital and video game professions, Ubisoft has formed a partnership with Simplon.co, a social enterprise providing digital training. A training program has been set up to help make the video game and digital industries more inclusive and diverse.
Born of these shared objectives, the first class of the Pearl program was launched in May 2022. Simplon.co and Ubisoft trained 17 jobseekers, people far from employment or people undergoing vocational retraining, including 12 women (70% of the class) to become Systems and Networks Senior Technicians (TSSR).
Over a six-month period, the participants underwent intensive training provided by Simplon.co, and then joined Ubisoft's IT teams for a year's work-study program. These eighteen months of apprenticeship were validated by the TSSR (Technicien(ne) Supérieur(e) Systèmes et Réseaux (TSSR) professional qualification, equivalent to a Bac +2 diploma in France.
Based in our studios in Paris, Bordeaux and Annecy, the apprentices have been trained by our teams and have acquired the knowledge and skills they need to become expert professionals in the video game industry.
At the end of the program, 70% decided to continue their studies or found a permanent contract, including 4 who were recruited by Ubisoft (15 trainees obtained their diplomas and 4 of them were recruited on permanent contracts by Ubisoft).
This partnership between Ubisoft and Simplon.co shows the way forward for other jobs in short supply in the video game industry, opening the door to a new generation of talent. The pilot program has been extended to the Ubisoft Montpellier studio, which is currently training 6 apprentices on work-study contracts until March 2024 for specialties such as Tools Support Specialists, QA Analysts and Dev Testers.