Adjunct Assistant Professor of Interactive Media & Games

The Interactive Media & Games Division within USC's School of Cinematic Arts is seeking an adjunct faculty member in the field of Interactive Media and Games with a specialty in Free-to-Play Games as a Service (GaaS) game design and Live Operations planning and management, particularly (but not exclusively) for mobile games.

We are looking for a working professional with experience designing and iterating on live games using a metrics-focused, iterative process. Our program is a vibrant and exciting community of designers, scholars and researchers, committed to the advancement of the digital arts, and it is situated within the larger School for Cinematic Arts, dedicated to the craft of storytelling and user experience from diverse perspectives, and working in collaboratively with the Viterbi School of Engineering.

The position will teach core game design methodologies including ideation, with a particular focus on GaaS/live operations, including concept testing, paper prototyping, metrics planning and analysis, player testing, user research, and live analytics on Betas and Live games which will provide direction on how the game will evolve over time in a live environment.

Minimum Education: Bachelor's Degree

Minimum Experience:

- 3+ years as a game designer working on independent and/or commercial (A/AA/AAA) video games, ideally with direct experience in designing and managing free-to-play games.

- Good communication skills, design methodology, and professional rigor and ethics.

- Experience or interest in teaching and mentoring students in game design and prototyping.

Preferred Education: Master's Degree.

Preferred Experience:

- 7+ years as a game designer working on and designing/managing free-to-play games.

- Experience teaching game design and prototyping courses, specifically paper prototyping and iterative design.

USC reserves the 'Adjunct' appointment for faculty teaching less than full-time at USC who are employed full-time in a primary profession or career elsewhere. Adjunct faculty typically teach only one course per year but, in exceptional cases, may teach one course per semester, if approved by the dean.

The core salary range for this position is $32- $38 per hour. This is an adjunct 25% FTE position.

When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state and local laws, as well as external market and organizational considerations.