Esports scholar to battle for $5000 scholarship

Hoping to secure New Zealand’s first university esports scholarship, Jayden Yeoman spends up to 40 hours a week on a virtual battlefield.

The focus of the 18-year-old school leaver’s dedication is a multiplayer first-person shooter video game that pits two teams of combatants against each other.

The teenager’s gaming skill will form part of an application to Waikato University, which is asking esports enthusiasts to list their gaming expertise for its first $5000 esports scholarship – part of the university’s wider plans to be an esports industry leader.

‘‘There are genuine career paths for people in esports. It would be almost negligent not to engage with it,’’ university student services director Mike Calvert said.

‘‘We’re confident that we are the first and only university in New Zealand to be offering such a scholarship for esports.’’

This year, Queensland University of Technology became the first Australian university to offer an esports scholarship – five are on offer for exceptional League of Legends players – and scholarships are increasingly popular in the United States, reflecting its status as the world’s fastest growing sport.

New Zealand eSports Federation president Ben Lenihan said