Gaming & Esports F-1 STEM OPT Sponsorship Jobs in California
California is the center of the U.S. gaming and esports industry, with companies like Riot Games, Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts, and Twitch concentrated in Los Angeles and the Bay Area. F-1 students on STEM OPT can work in qualifying technical roles at these employers, provided the position meets STEM OPT eligibility requirements and the employer is enrolled in E-Verify.
See All Gaming & Esports JobsOverview
Showing 5 of 31+ Gaming & Esports F-1 STEM OPT Sponsorship Jobs in California
Have you applied for this role?
Have you applied for this role?
Have you applied for this role?
Have you applied for this role?
Have you applied for this role?
See all 31+ Gaming & Esports F-1 STEM OPT Sponsorship Jobs in California
Sign up for free to unlock all listings, filter by visa type, and get alerts for new Gaming & Esports F-1 STEM OPT Sponsorship Jobs in California.
Get Access To All JobsINTRODUCTION
Every day, tens of millions of people come to Roblox to explore, create, play, learn, and connect with friends in 3D immersive digital experiences– all created by our global community of developers and creators. At Roblox, we’re building the tools and platform that empower our community to bring any experience that they can imagine to life. Our vision is to reimagine the way people come together, from anywhere in the world, and on any device. We’re on a mission to connect a billion people with optimism and civility, and looking for amazing talent to help us get there. A career at Roblox means you’ll be working to shape the future of human interaction, solving unique technical challenges at scale, and helping to create safer, more civil shared experiences for everyone.
WHY DATA SCIENCE & ANALYTICS?
The Data Science & Analytics organization's mission is to increase our speed, frequency and acumen of making decisions at scale by instilling a data-influenced approach to building products. We cover a wide area of the data spectrum including analytical data engineering, product analytics, experimentation, causal inference, statistical modeling and machine learning. Aligned and partnering with product verticals, we use this extensive tool belt to discover new opportunities and unmet use cases, influence and shape the product roadmap and prioritization, build data products and measure impact on our community of players and developers.
WHY GAME ENGINE AND DIGITAL MATTER
The Digital Matter team, within the Engine organization, powers Roblox’s Game Engine Simulation capabilities. Digital Matter sits at the core of how Roblox worlds are built, experienced, and brought to life. Spanning Physics, Geometry, Rendering, and Interactivity, this team defines the fundamental systems that govern how worlds behave, look, and respond – making balls bounce, light scatter, meshes stream, avatars move, and experiences feel immersive across every device. As the Senior Data Scientist on this team, you will partner with engineers and product leaders to shape the technical foundation of the platform. Your work will directly influence how we simulate reality and empower creators to bend it – balancing physical realism with performance, scalability, and artistic control. You will drive data-informed decisions across core engine systems, defining and evolving top-line metrics for performance, stability, visual quality, scalability, and user experience. Your impact will span the entire stack – from physics simulation and mesh streaming (SLIM), to rendering pipelines and input systems – ensuring that engine innovations translate into measurable improvements in creator capability and player experience. Collaborating closely with engineering, product, and leadership, you will evaluate the impact of foundational engine changes, uncover performance bottlenecks, guide prioritization through rigorous experimentation, and surface new opportunities through dashboards, deep analysis, and strategic experimentation. In a team that builds the substrate of the platform, your work will help determine how the next generation of Roblox experiences looks, feels, and performs.
You Will
- Define Success Metrics for Digital Matter – Establish key performance indicators for Physics, Geometry, Rendering, and Interactivity, such as performance, latency, stability, memory usage, scalability, and quality metrics that directly impact creators and players.
- Drive Cross-Functional Collaboration – Partner closely with Engineering, Product, Technical Program Managers, and teams across Roblox (e.g., Creator tools, Growth, Infrastructure, and Economy) to explore new opportunities and navigate ambiguous problem spaces.
- Transform & Visualize Data for Actionable Insights – Access and process raw telemetry data, build robust analytics pipelines, and deliver clear insights through dashboards, reporting, and exploratory analysis using modern data tooling.
- Design Experiments & Apply Causal Inference – Lead A/B experiments and causal analyses to measure the impact of features, infrastructure improvements, and feature launches to ensure data-driven decision-making.
- Shape the Future of Roblox’s Core Simulation & Interaction Layer – Influence how foundational systems evolve, ensuring the team delivers scalable, high-performance, and creator-empowering technology that powers the platform.
You Have
- Advanced degree in Statistics, Computer Science, Physics, Applied Math, Economics, Engineering or other related quantitative fields, or equivalent experience.
- 4+ years of relevant industry experience; background in game engine, system performance is a plus.
- Data engineering experience, e.g. telemetry logging, data pipeline building, dashboard design.
- Experience applying creative first-principles reasoning to solve ambiguous problems.
- Experience leading and presenting analytics results and enjoy data storytelling to influence engineering teams and leaders.
- Experience driving an area as an individual contributor and thought leader.
Nice To Have
- Domain expertise in game engines, simulation systems or related technologies.
- Experience in game development or working closely with real-time interactive systems.
- Track record of driving large-scale, cross-functional initiatives across multiple teams or organizations.
- Strong engineering background with hands-on technical depth.
COMPENSATION
The starting base pay for this position is as shown below. The actual base pay is dependent upon a variety of job-related factors such as professional background, training, work experience, location, business needs and market demand. Therefore, in some circumstances, the actual salary could fall outside of this expected range. This pay range is subject to change and may be modified in the future. All full-time employees are also eligible for equity compensation and for benefits as described on this page.
- Annual Salary Range: $221,380—$263,670 USD
Roles that are based in an office are onsite Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, with optional presence on Monday and Friday (unless otherwise noted).
Roblox provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. Roblox also provides reasonable accommodations to candidates with qualifying disabilities or religious beliefs during the recruiting process.
INTRODUCTION
Every day, tens of millions of people come to Roblox to explore, create, play, learn, and connect with friends in 3D immersive digital experiences– all created by our global community of developers and creators. At Roblox, we’re building the tools and platform that empower our community to bring any experience that they can imagine to life. Our vision is to reimagine the way people come together, from anywhere in the world, and on any device. We’re on a mission to connect a billion people with optimism and civility, and looking for amazing talent to help us get there. A career at Roblox means you’ll be working to shape the future of human interaction, solving unique technical challenges at scale, and helping to create safer, more civil shared experiences for everyone.
WHY DATA SCIENCE & ANALYTICS?
The Data Science & Analytics organization's mission is to increase our speed, frequency and acumen of making decisions at scale by instilling a data-influenced approach to building products. We cover a wide area of the data spectrum including analytical data engineering, product analytics, experimentation, causal inference, statistical modeling and machine learning. Aligned and partnering with product verticals, we use this extensive tool belt to discover new opportunities and unmet use cases, influence and shape the product roadmap and prioritization, build data products and measure impact on our community of players and developers.
WHY GAME ENGINE AND DIGITAL MATTER
The Digital Matter team, within the Engine organization, powers Roblox’s Game Engine Simulation capabilities. Digital Matter sits at the core of how Roblox worlds are built, experienced, and brought to life. Spanning Physics, Geometry, Rendering, and Interactivity, this team defines the fundamental systems that govern how worlds behave, look, and respond – making balls bounce, light scatter, meshes stream, avatars move, and experiences feel immersive across every device. As the Senior Data Scientist on this team, you will partner with engineers and product leaders to shape the technical foundation of the platform. Your work will directly influence how we simulate reality and empower creators to bend it – balancing physical realism with performance, scalability, and artistic control. You will drive data-informed decisions across core engine systems, defining and evolving top-line metrics for performance, stability, visual quality, scalability, and user experience. Your impact will span the entire stack – from physics simulation and mesh streaming (SLIM), to rendering pipelines and input systems – ensuring that engine innovations translate into measurable improvements in creator capability and player experience. Collaborating closely with engineering, product, and leadership, you will evaluate the impact of foundational engine changes, uncover performance bottlenecks, guide prioritization through rigorous experimentation, and surface new opportunities through dashboards, deep analysis, and strategic experimentation. In a team that builds the substrate of the platform, your work will help determine how the next generation of Roblox experiences looks, feels, and performs.
You Will
- Define Success Metrics for Digital Matter – Establish key performance indicators for Physics, Geometry, Rendering, and Interactivity, such as performance, latency, stability, memory usage, scalability, and quality metrics that directly impact creators and players.
- Drive Cross-Functional Collaboration – Partner closely with Engineering, Product, Technical Program Managers, and teams across Roblox (e.g., Creator tools, Growth, Infrastructure, and Economy) to explore new opportunities and navigate ambiguous problem spaces.
- Transform & Visualize Data for Actionable Insights – Access and process raw telemetry data, build robust analytics pipelines, and deliver clear insights through dashboards, reporting, and exploratory analysis using modern data tooling.
- Design Experiments & Apply Causal Inference – Lead A/B experiments and causal analyses to measure the impact of features, infrastructure improvements, and feature launches to ensure data-driven decision-making.
- Shape the Future of Roblox’s Core Simulation & Interaction Layer – Influence how foundational systems evolve, ensuring the team delivers scalable, high-performance, and creator-empowering technology that powers the platform.
You Have
- Advanced degree in Statistics, Computer Science, Physics, Applied Math, Economics, Engineering or other related quantitative fields, or equivalent experience.
- 4+ years of relevant industry experience; background in game engine, system performance is a plus.
- Data engineering experience, e.g. telemetry logging, data pipeline building, dashboard design.
- Experience applying creative first-principles reasoning to solve ambiguous problems.
- Experience leading and presenting analytics results and enjoy data storytelling to influence engineering teams and leaders.
- Experience driving an area as an individual contributor and thought leader.
Nice To Have
- Domain expertise in game engines, simulation systems or related technologies.
- Experience in game development or working closely with real-time interactive systems.
- Track record of driving large-scale, cross-functional initiatives across multiple teams or organizations.
- Strong engineering background with hands-on technical depth.
COMPENSATION
The starting base pay for this position is as shown below. The actual base pay is dependent upon a variety of job-related factors such as professional background, training, work experience, location, business needs and market demand. Therefore, in some circumstances, the actual salary could fall outside of this expected range. This pay range is subject to change and may be modified in the future. All full-time employees are also eligible for equity compensation and for benefits as described on this page.
- Annual Salary Range: $221,380—$263,670 USD
Roles that are based in an office are onsite Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, with optional presence on Monday and Friday (unless otherwise noted).
Roblox provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. Roblox also provides reasonable accommodations to candidates with qualifying disabilities or religious beliefs during the recruiting process.
Gaming & Esports Job Roles in California
See all 31+ Gaming & Esports Jobs in California
Sign up for free to filter by visa type, set job alerts, and find employers with verified sponsorship history.
Search Gaming & Esports Jobs in CaliforniaGaming & Esports Jobs in California: Frequently Asked Questions
Which gaming and esports companies in California sponsor F-1 STEM OPT workers?
Several major California-based gaming and esports employers have a documented history of hiring STEM OPT workers, including Riot Games and Activision Blizzard in Los Angeles, Electronic Arts in Redwood City, and Twitch in San Francisco. Smaller studios and esports technology companies also participate, particularly for roles in software engineering, data science, and machine learning. E-Verify enrollment is required for all STEM OPT sponsors.
Which California cities have the most gaming and esports F-1 STEM OPT sponsorship jobs?
Los Angeles is the single largest hub, home to Riot Games, Activision Blizzard, and numerous esports organizations. The San Francisco Bay Area follows closely, with EA in Redwood City, Twitch in San Francisco, and a concentration of gaming startups across Silicon Valley. San Diego also hosts mid-size studios like Jam City. STEM OPT positions are most concentrated in these three metro areas.
What types of gaming and esports roles typically qualify for F-1 STEM OPT sponsorship in California?
STEM OPT eligibility depends on the role mapping to a qualifying STEM field, not the industry itself. In gaming and esports, roles that commonly qualify include software engineer, game engine developer, machine learning engineer, data analyst, cybersecurity analyst, and computer vision researcher. Roles in game design, production, or esports event management generally do not qualify because they do not map to a STEM Classification of Instructional Programs code. Verify your specific degree and role combination with your DSO.
How do I find gaming and esports F-1 STEM OPT sponsorship jobs in California?
Migrate Mate lists gaming and esports positions in California filtered for F-1 STEM OPT eligibility, showing employers with verified E-Verify enrollment and STEM-qualifying role classifications. Because STEM OPT eligibility depends on both your CIP code and the job's SOC code, searching on a platform that surfaces those details alongside the job listing saves significant time compared to manually verifying each employer.
Are there any California-specific or gaming industry considerations for F-1 STEM OPT sponsorship?
California's strict worker classification laws mean gaming studios are careful about contractor arrangements, so most STEM OPT hires in the state are brought on as full-time employees, which aligns with STEM OPT's requirement for a bona fide employer-employee relationship. California's high concentration of unionized game studios can also affect hiring timelines. Additionally, STEM OPT requires your employer to submit a training plan through your DSO before your work begins, a step some California studios may be unfamiliar with if they primarily hire H-1B visa workers.