How Jana turned a robotics & art portfolio into a full scholarship for game design

Jana thought her robotics code and her art sketches made her look unfocused. She is a national design champion, an international robotics finalist, and a competitive swimmer. She went from a high school in Serbia to a full scholarship in Drexel University's Game Design program.

Student snapshot

• Target: Game Design & Production
• Challenge: Merging two distinct interests, robotics and art
• Outcome: Full academic scholarship, Drexel University (Westphal College)

Equedu: You have national awards in design, entrepreneurship, and robotics. You have said the US was not always the plan. Why?

Jana: Honestly? It was doubt. I think a lot of international students feel this way. You see these big American universities in movies or read about their acceptance rates, and you just assume they are out of reach. I looked at my grades and my projects and thought, "This isn't enough."

And then there’s the financial side. Coming from Serbia, studying in the US is impossible without a full scholarship. I genuinely thought that door was closed before I even tried to open it.

Equedu: What changed your mind?

Jana: It was a specific conversation with the Equedu team. I was worried that I was too "scattered." I showed my mentor my robotics code and then my art sketches, thinking they were totally unrelated and that universities would see me as unfocused.

My mentor stopped me and said, "Jana, stop separating them. That intersection is your essay." They helped me see that my mix of interests wasn't a lack of focus. It was my "spike." It was exactly what interdisciplinary programs were looking for. That perspective shift changed everything.

Equedu: Game Design is a portfolio-heavy major. How did you turn such different interests into one application?

Jana: That was actually the hardest part. I had dozens of loose sketches, some coding projects, and photos of robotics competitions. It was a mess.

My mentor helped me be ruthless. We cut about 60% of what I wanted to include. We focused heavily on "process." Instead of just showing a pretty drawing, we arranged the portfolio to show the code behind the logic, next to the visual design. We curated it to prove I could handle both the technical and artistic sides of Game Design. I wouldn't have known how to frame that narrative on my own.

"I achieved things I thought were impossible simply because I finally had a plan and someone backing me up."

Equedu: You won a full academic scholarship to Drexel's Westphal College of Media Arts & Design. Why Drexel?

Jana: I never cared about the "brand name" of a university. I cared about the work. I’ve known for years that I wanted to sit at the intersection of Computer Science and Design. I didn't want to choose one and drop the other.

Drexel’s program is one of the best specifically for that. It’s incredibly flexible, allowing me to merge interactive digital media with game design in a way few other places do. When the scholarship offer came in, it was just the validation that I had found the right place.

Equedu: What was the hardest or most surprising part of working with a mentor?

Jana: The honesty. It sounds simple, but it’s rare. Friends are often too nice; online forums are too general. My mentor was straight with me.

I remember doing mock interviews where I stumbled, and my mentor didn't sugarcoat it. They told me exactly what was weak, what needed to be cut, and where I sounded unsure. It made the process efficient. When I got to the real scholarship interview, I wasn't nervous because we had already practiced those exact difficult scenarios. It felt like I had a cheat sheet.

The strongest interdisciplinary portfolios Equedu sees follow the pattern Jana describes: ruthless curation that shows reasoning as well as output. Portfolio reviewers at programs like Drexel Westphal, Carnegie Mellon ETC, and NYU Game Center read fifty portfolios for every seat. Portfolios arranged to show the work behind the work do better than finished pieces presented without context.

Equedu: Looking back, how did the process change you?

Jana: It crystallized my future. Before this, I had vague ideas: "I like design," "I like coding." My mentor pushed me to paint a very clear picture of my career. We mapped it out. But more importantly, it taught me that I’m capable of more than I give myself credit for. I achieved things I thought were impossible simply because I finally had a plan and someone backing me up.

Equedu: What is your one piece of advice for a student who is unsure about applying?

Jana: Look beyond the Ivy League. There are so many incredible schools that might be a perfect fit for you and have the budget to support you.

And start early. American universities love self-starters. Don't just join a club; start a project. Create something. That initiative is what gets you the scholarship.