Top 100 Women in Games: Romana Ramzan

Growing up, games were the only constant in Ramzan’s constantly shifting life.

This made a career in games an obvious choice – a choice that was cemented when Ramzan’s final university project focused on the relationship between players and games.

Presenting her results at an international conference, Ramzan got her first taste of being an academic – and loved it.

Upon her return, Ramzan applied for a Masters in games, before securing a fully funded PhD.

Alongside her studies, Ramzan contributed to many research projects, including roles as a key researcher at the eMotion Lab and a volunteer at GDC in 2007 – a move which resulted in her return to GDC on an International Ambassador scholarship.

For the last six years alongside her PhD, Ramzan has worked tirelessly to make the Scottish Game jam – which she founded – a flagship event in the Scottish games calendar.

As a result of her efforts and success, she was invited by the British Council in Thailand to setup the very first game jam for the Bangkok Design Festival.

She is also on the board of directors for the Global Game Jam.

Ramzan is a previous recipient of the Scottish Asian Woman of the Future Award.