Sony Online Entertainment has awarded Alicia Crawford of La Quinta, California the 2011 Gamers in Real Life (G.I.R.L.) Scholarship. Now in its fourth year, the scholarship enables women to get involved in videogame development and encourages them to pursue careers in the creative and applied arts. Crawford, a game art and design student at the Inland Empire's Art Institute of California, was awarded the $10,000 scholarship to use toward her tuition and other educational expenses. She has also accepted a 10-week paid internship at SOE's headquarters in San Diego where she will work on one of the company's titles.
"It's such an honor to be recognized for my work by a major video game publisher and I'm extremely thankful to SOE for this opportunity," said Crawford."Winning the G.I.R.L. scholarship fuels my desire to work in the gaming industry and my existing passion for video games."
As part of the competition, finalists were asked to submit two pieces of original concept art inspired by either Free Realms or EverQuest II, and an essay discussing their views on women in the gaming industry to a panel of judges.
For more information about G.I.R.L., check out girl.soe.com.
