Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) today announced that it is now accepting applications and submissions for its 2012 Gamers in Real Life (G.I.R.L.) Game Design Competition. Celebrating its fifth anniversary, the G.I.R.L. Scholarship prides itself as being an active catalyst for inspiring women’s involvement in the video game industry, as well as for providing an open gateway for those pursuing careers in the field of creative and applied arts.

Since its inception in 2008, the G.I.R.L. program has granted scholarships to four winners through its annual "Game Design Competition," each of whom has made an impact within the gaming and art industries.

SOE will award one winner of the 2012 G.I.R.L. Game Design Competition with a scholarship in the amount of $10,000 to be applied towards tuition and other educational expenses at the winner’s school of enrollment. Winners will also be given the opportunity to participate in a paid internship of up to 10 weeks at SOE’s headquarters in San Diego for hands-on experience working on one or more of the company’s games.

"The goal of G.I.R.L. has always been of opportunity, education and recruitment to get more women into the gaming industry," said Laura Naviaux, senior vice president of global sales and marketing, Sony Online Entertainment. "Over the last few years, we have been nothing short of impressed with the hundreds of amazing submissions from talented students nationwide. Now in our fifth year, we can’t wait to see the creativity that comes out of the G.I.R.L. program."

Submissions for the 2012 G.I.R.L. Game Design Competition will close on March 29, 2012. To apply, applicants must register with Scholarship America, SOE’s scholarship administrator, and submit their application for evaluation, as directed here: https://www.scholarshipamerica.org/gamersinreallife/.