I am new to these forums and unfortunately I don't know where to post a question like this, so if it needs to be moved I understand. I assume it needs to be here. It's not really about business, but it is about career development. My question is more concerned with where to study more about game design. But I don't know if there's a section about where to find courses (or at least how to build a portfolio if I cannot find courses that give me “qualifications”).
Anyway, I want to study from home. I don't want to take a course that requires me to go anywhere in person. So that means there will either have to be no exam, or if there is, the exam will need to be open book so that you aren't required to take it in person. If I can study remotely, this will make things much easier for me as I can then take a course that is anywhere in the English speaking world.
So my main question is, as someone from the US who has moved to the UK (Scotland) does anyone know about a course that is UK based that is like this? Or better yet, one that is US based that is international? Also, do I even need “qualifications” or is there an alternative way into the gaming industry that doesn't involve something like this? Perhaps you could tell me how I could create my own path and find my own knowledge, such as the creation of a game designer's portfolio of some kind (whatever it's called).
As for who to work for, I am assuming most companies or independent developers want someone who is qualified, so that's where it gets tricky. As an alternative, I could also work for myself, make my own games, and then sell them in the market, but the problem is, who would I hire, where would I begin? That's why I came here to these forums. There's just so much I could do, I don't know where to begin.