In reply to uppersharpnose:
I've worked in the industry for 10 years, all of it in game design. Your experience can be massively dependant on the studios and I know people who've had the worst luck ever whereas I've been lucky and have worked in some great studios. On this front, I'd just say that you need to follow your gut and make hard calls if the place and culture is for you and if not, move on - otherwise it'll eat you up.
Regardless of what you're currently doing or studying, if you want into the industry then the best thing by far is to make games. That will by far be the biggest ticket in any interview if you show them stuff you've made. Even today, this is exceptionally rare which is sad. That by itself will tell anyone that you are actually passionate about making games and that is important. Nowadays, this is easier than ever.
Alternatively, if you've already worked on some games then talking about your contribution and the problems faced/solved will go far in the interviews since it establishes that you didn't just coast along the project.
Especially on games programming side, it's obviously good to have some degree behind it since it gives you a lot of insight into software development which is different from "just coding". But regardless of how you get that, you should create your own games as it pretty much doubles your learning, gives you understanding of the problems faced in the development these days and just generally allows you to talk about a variety of things regarding game development in a smart fashion.
That all said, if you're not passionate about making games and wanting to make games other people play (remember, you are not necessarily the target audience) then I'd say look for something else to do and just enjoy games as a hobby. If you're in it for any other reason than that, it will eat you up when the going gets tough and people around you will notice.
The pay is also what you make of it - it's probably ok to just get your foot in a few projects in the beginning and not mind the salary, but later on, you want to make sure that there is a fair and transparent system for awarding those who deliver.
I've had so many positive adventures due to being in the industry that my life would have been so much duller if it weren't for it (I originally discovered climbing as my company back then paid for the basic course for whoever was interested). The industry is global so you can go pretty much anywhere (I'm not originally from UK, but wanted to come here, so here I am).
