How to become A Virtual Reality Designer

• VR Expert
• VR Consultant
• VR Specialist

What do VR Designers do?

A VR Designer would typically need to:

• Be able to apply principles of design and art to create 3D products and services for the future and the experiences of their uses in recreated real conditions
• Know how to distort the tools at their disposal to realize, prototype, and model the 3D experiences before launching their development
• Help continue to shrink the form factor while increasing performance and optics fidelity as well as battery and connectivity capability
• Understand the market, make connections, get their resumes circulating, and join groups on professional social networks to optimize showcasing of their professional skills

Virtual Reality Designers spend most of their workday in front of a computer or meeting up with clients. Casual or business casual is the accepted dress code for VR Designers working in an office or meeting with clients unless otherwise specified.

The work schedule is stable for a full-time VR job with working hours extending with approaching deadlines. Freelancers have more flexible timings.

VR is growing at an unprecedented rate. VR Designers can choose to offer their services as freelancers who juggle clients, hiring them for short-term projects that enable people to explore remote places or inhabitable environments. The military is also beginning to use VR for 3D design, simulations, and safety training.

VR Designers are generally employed by:

• Video Game Companies
• Entertainment Companies
• Architectural Firms
• Engineering Firms
• Construction Firms
• Healthcare Sector
• Defense
• Education Sector

Professional associations and organizations are a crucial resource for those interested in pursuing professional development or connecting with like-minded professionals in their industry or occupation. Membership in one or more looks excellent on your resume to bolster your credentials and qualifications as a VR Designer.

• Technical challenges include the need for devices to be smaller, lighter, wireless, and to have higher resolution and a full field of view, improved tracking, and lower latency
• Physical challenges include the need for devices to be viable for use eight hours/day
• Personal challenges include motion sickness as well as cognitive and emotional overload
• Experiential challenges include new approaches and techniques of designing for VR to enable compelling storytelling

Pursuing alternate careers in development will give aspiring Virtual Reality Designers a versatile skill set and experience. Building a VR application independently during their free time could be a huge add-on to a potential VR Designer’s resume.

It is also a good idea to reach out to the human resource team at a company to seek permission to shadow someone who is actively working on a project. This will give an insight into the skills needed to work in the field.

Seeking an apprenticeship at an established company would give vast benefits as hopeful VR Designers can gain experience and mentorship from experienced professionals.

There is no exact academic criterion to pursue Virtual Reality Design, but a specific skill-set is required. A bachelor's degree in computer science, software engineering is a preferred minimum qualification.

There are currently a handful of specialist Virtual Reality Design courses available at higher education institutions. Some of the more generic software/computing degrees also offer Virtual Reality as a module.

Learning programming languages is recommended. Various diverse design courses such as sound design, game design, 3D modeling, animation, industrial design, and architecture will come in handy in a dynamic field like Virtual Reality. A strong background in video editing and website development will be beneficial to aspirant VR Designers.

There are several options to take offline and online VR courses for developer certification. Certification from an objective, credible, and reputed organization demonstrates competency in a skill or set of skills, typically through work experience, training, the passage of an examination, or some combination of the three.

Certification can help a Virtual Reality Designer stand out in a competitive job market, increase their chances for a promotion or advancement, validate their knowledge and increase their confidence at work, and help them become an independent consultant.

Career progression usually begins with an entry-level Virtual Reality Designer with minimum responsibilities and moves to a more experienced VR Designer with more responsibilities, including handling an entire project individually. The top-level post in this career is that of a Project Manager. They oversee projects and supervise from its inception to a viable project.

As the industry grows, companies will need more than just programmers and engineers—they will need visionary CEOs, Product and Project Managers, Support, and Business Developers.

With VR expanding to diverse industries and with there still being very few with adept skills, the job prospects would be much higher.

Building a good portfolio and networking with professionals and potential employers would be a key differentiator. Joining groups on professional social networks can also help. Silicon Valley Virtual Reality (SVVR) organizes monthly meetups for developers and entrepreneurs. Attending conferences and seminars may open up networking opportunities and give forward-looking Virtual Reality Designers a better understanding of the field.

Programming skills, knowledge of design, and 3D modeling are necessary to gain an edge in this competitive field. You will need moderate to advanced proficiency with at least one VR platform, such as Unity, or emerging products. Depending on the project, VR Designers may need a background in motion capture, gesture recognition, networking, math, and simulated physics. As the field is ever-evolving, it is necessary to be up-to-date with the latest advancements.

Virtual Reality is currently one of the fastest developing tech fields and home to some of tech’s hottest jobs. VR Designers employed by a company work under supervisors. You will typically collaborate closely with software designers and 3D artists and design architects and engineers who plan and create the hardware on which VR software runs.

Virtual Reality is used in healthcare to treat depression, anxiety, autism, PTSD, and even nicotine addiction with Mindcotine.

VR Designers use various computer programs to create an animation that can mimic a world or make a whole new one. 3D offers simulation possibilities with scales, costs and risky situations that are impossible to approach in the real world: simulation of crowd flow, of nano-robots’ surfacing behaviors, of a nuclear plant’s emergency system, of a flight simulator…some experiences will remain in the virtual world while others will integrate our reality.

Don’t wait for permission. Make up a project and play with it yourself.