Want to get into Game Developers Conference 2014 for free while helping the show go off without a hitch? Apply to be a volunteer Conference Associate (CA), and you can earn the equivalent of an All-Access Pass by putting in about 20 hours of on-site work.
GDC 2014 runs from Monday, March 17th through Friday, March 21st, 2014. Conference Associates have pre-conference assignments and a required orientation dinner on Sunday, March 16th.
If you are accepted into the program, you are expected to be on-site from the start of your pre-conference assignments through the end of the conference on the evening of Friday, March 21st, during conference hours.
Duties may include guarding doors and scanning badges, monitoring sessions, answering attendees' questions, and more. (You will be given some free time during the show to attend talks or the Expo floor.)
To apply, head over to the GDC 2014 CA application page and read the instructions. The deadline for applications closes at 11:59pm PDT, January 3rd, 2014. Applicants will be notified if they are accepted (or not) by January 9th.
Applications submitted after the positions are filled will be offered the opportunity to be put on the waiting list. Applications will be accepted up until 11:59 pm (Pacific Time, UTC-8) on March 14th for the waiting list.
Do you have what it takes to be a CA? The wife of one GDC Europe speaker shared this story of a volunteer from GDC Europe 2013 that went above and beyond the call of duty, just one of many amazing stories of Conference Associates helping the GDC community:
My husband had some oral surgery awhile ago and had [even more dental issues on the way to GDC Europe]. However, with a Monday morning lecture scheduled, there were very few options for us. He was a trouper and delivered his talk, then turned to me and said "I need a doctor." We then started our journey to find him health care in Germany.
Thankfully, the first person we encountered was an amazing CA named Andre; he brought us down to first aid and upon finding out that we would need to go to a doctor, talked to GDC, then drove us to the doctor and set us all up with an appointment. He came into the room and translated for us, and when our credit cards didn't work (American cards have no chip) he paid for Brian's healthcare, as well as medicine. He then drove Brian back to the hotel, and me back to GDC.
Brian required a return visit the next day at 7am, and Andre picked us up at 6:45am and took us to the doctor again. He also brought us back there the following Friday.
Andre was a savior, without him I have no idea what we would've done. He was so kind and humble, we are both truly touched. It's the small things, like unexpected kindness that count.
Organized by the UBM Tech Game Network, GDC 2014 will take place March 17-21 at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, California.
