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In October of 2020 two important things happened within 10 days of each other: I lost my job and my relationship of two years. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise because I was already unhappy with my living situation and my work life. For the rest of October, I took time to myself to reflect on what I enjoyed the most in my life: videogames and esports.

After scouring LinkedIn for jobs, I came across Prof. Jason ChungÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ™s profile, and I found an article he posted about esports. I spent hours on Google looking at various degrees (masterÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ™s and bachelorÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ™s) pertaining to esports. My search brought me back to JasonÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ™s one-of-a-kind from the University of New Haven.

Prof. Chung and I set up a time to speak, and I told him more about myself and what I was looking to achieve: a job in the world of esports. He introduced me to another individual by the name of Corey Parks, a professional gamer who is head coach and director of the .

Coach Parks and I share the same drive and passion for competition and esports, and we both come from similar backgrounds that involve the game of Counter-Strike. It was only natural that our conversation led me to making the appropriate moves towards my next journey: pursuing esports full time. He offered me an assistant coaching position for the varsity Valorant team if I was willing to commit to helping the team in person.

ÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ˜Everything has been genuine and remarkableÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ™

My ultimate decision to move to Connecticut came with great deliberation. I spent a week speaking with close friends and family about a possible move. I told them about the masterÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ™s program and coaching opportunity and there was unanimous support from them for me to pursue it. I pulled the trigger.

Presently, almost three months into the program and my coaching experience, I am thrilled with everything about the University and the choices I have made thus far. From the staff to the campus to the people I have met, everything has been genuine and remarkable.

I took a leap of faith in coming to Connecticut. This move helped me grow in more ways than one and has truly matured me as a person. Every day I wake up looking forward to what Professor Chung will be teaching us or how I can help my students develop into better players in Valorant under the guidance of Coach Parks.

David Pendleton ÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ™22 M.S. is one of the first candidates in the UniversityÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ™s new graduate program in Esports Business. He holds a bachelorÐÓ°ÉÔ­°æ™s degree in communication from .