{"id":798733,"date":"2026-05-15T18:09:16","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T18:09:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/798733\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T18:09:16","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T18:09:16","slug":"from-gaming-to-engineering-how-a-san-antonio-esports-program-preps-students-for-high-demand-careers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/798733\/","title":{"rendered":"From gaming to engineering: How a San Antonio esports program preps students for high-demand careers"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN ANTONIO<\/strong> \u2013 Boeing Center at Tech Port is spotlighting a growing pipeline from gaming to careers. Thousands of students are ready to compete on Friday. <\/p>\n

Students from San Antonio-area school districts are set to compete in the Forge Scholastic eSports Championship at the Boeing Center at Tech Port.<\/p>\n

The event, run by the San Antonio Museum of Science and Technology (SAMSAT) through the R-20 Premier eSports League, kicked off Friday morning and runs through 7 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free to the public.<\/p>\n

The tournament has grown dramatically since its early days. Josh Martinez, director of esports at SAMSAT and R-20 Premier League organizer, said the high interest speaks for itself. <\/p>\n

\u201cIn year one, we had 80 students in our grand final. Now, we serve about 650 students from 35 high schools and 17 ISDs,\u201d Martinez said. \u201cOur monthly average is about 300 competitors per month, so it\u2019s grown significantly and it shows no sign of slowing down.\u201d <\/p>\n

For many students, the league is opening eyes to career possibilities they hadn\u2019t previously considered. <\/p>\n

Alexander Raimondi, a student participating in the event, said the experience has taught him lessons that go far beyond the screen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got to go in there and learn what it means to be in like a high-stress team, right? Where, like, everything matters,\u201d Raimondi said. \u201cYou have to communicate effectively. Your personal performance is as important as your team cooperation.\u201d <\/p>\n

This fall, Raimondi is heading to the University of Houston to study electrical engineering. He wants parents to know gaming can be the start of something bigger for their kids.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re not just trying to waste time,\u201d Raimondi said. \u201cSo, like, especially the younger kids, if they\u2019re first getting into something, like, nurture that.\u201d <\/p>\n

The connection between gaming and real-world skills is gaining attention at the national level, as well. <\/p>\n

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is actively recruiting gamers to become air traffic controllers, citing a nationwide shortage of qualified candidates. The spatial reasoning, quick decision-making and team communication skills sharpened in esports are translating directly into high-demand professions.<\/p>\n

Organizers are encouraging students and parents to attend the free event Friday-Sunday<\/a> to learn how the programs can help shape students\u2019 futures. <\/p>\n

More recent news coverage on KSAT: <\/b><\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 by KSAT – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SAN ANTONIO \u2013 Boeing Center at Tech Port is spotlighting a growing pipeline from gaming to careers. Thousands…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":798734,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5133],"tags":[5229,128472,407,62759,23773,7202,7203,7120,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-798733","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-antonio","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-boeing-center-at-tech-port","10":"tag-education","11":"tag-esports","12":"tag-ksatkids","13":"tag-san-antonio","14":"tag-sanantonio","15":"tag-southwest-side","16":"tag-texas","17":"tag-tx","18":"tag-united-states","19":"tag-united-states-of-america","20":"tag-unitedstates","21":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","22":"tag-us","23":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116579936934654618","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/798733","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=798733"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/798733\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/798734"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=798733"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=798733"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=798733"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}