Hello there! I've been searching for a good animation school that costs less than 30,000 per year, but I don't know how to tell if the school's program is any good. So far I'm stuck between Northern Illinois University and Columbia College Chicago, though i'm open to any good animation schools in IL. Does anyone know if either of these schools have good programs?
Also at NIU their computer graphics degree is referred to as Time Arts (which only adds to my confusion).
THANX for any input! :D
help!
help!
What is it, exactly, that you desire to learn? Are you shooting for 2D or 3D? What is it that would determine, for you, if the school has a good program or not? I would think if the course work can get you to your goal (a job in a studio, make your own films, games?) then it is a good program. It may be of greater importance, though, what employers think of said schools.
Hello all. we'll have to leave my love of animation for another conversation, for right now, i am in a dire situation.
I am taking a college course in Communications and am in need of an interview with an established animator by Monday, July 16th. When i say established, i mean that has done any work in any animation project that i can trace. whether your name be in the credits or you created it entirely on your own.
I prefer the interview be conducted over the phone, but e-mail is very much an option.
i doubt that my professor will call to check up on my source if that is a problem for you.
PLEASE. i am in desperate need of this grade.
Thank you for reading
my goal is to be a 3d animator but my main question is how do iknow if the course work will be worth my time before iwaste thousands of dollars. Also I have attempted to speak with instructors at the two schools but they all just seem to be cheerleaders for their school's name without actually telling me if the program is what i'm looking for:confused:
instead of 'wasting thousands of dollars' on these schools (which are probably terrible anyway and just out to rob you blind), it would be much wiser for you to invest a few thousand of those dollars on software (the good stuff aint cheap), and a book or two.
cool
The money is only wasted if the student does not apply themselves. If money is the biggest problem then stay away from the "for profit" schools.
Why not just asked the schools about their courses,and you could know which one is suitable for your time. For me,if you have basic knowledge of animation, you could teach by yourself, not save money,but useful and free.
There's a real simple way to solve this problem;
Talking to the instructors isn't going to help you, because of what you have found--they are cheerleaders for their employers the school.
So don't talk to the instructors--talk to the alumni.
That's right, the alumni, the body of former students of the school that have taken the programmes you are interested in and who have graduated from said programmes. They should also, ideally, be working in the field they have trained in.
They are the ones that will be able to answer your questions as to whether or not the programme is worthwhile, and if it provided the kind of education needed to make a career out of.
The school should be willing to put you in touch with the alumni, and give you a list of names/contact info and the programmes each alumni studied in.
If they do not do that, or there are no or very few alumni for that programme, then don't apply to that school.
Don't take the school's word for anything....they are just trying to sell you on what they have and put butts in seats.
Instructors should be screened in the sense that you should ask about their professional backgrounds. Ask specific questions, such as what work in the field they have done and what projects they have worked on.
For example, the animation instructors should have worked on known-animation projects, stuff that YOU recognize and in positions that make sense.
But be aware that schools and instructors have been known to fluff up their credentials to sell students on the school. I know of one school that was claiming their animation instructor had worked on a very prominent live-action fantasy film--which was clearly an enticement for prospective students.
Alas, the instructor was only part of the lighting crew on the film, had very little animation background at all..........and I heard wasn't all that savvy about animation.
Yeah, be wary.
Ask the hard questions and expect good answers, and if you do not get them....forget about that school.
I'm going to be honest here and say that tuition costs will play a role here.....cheaper isn't going to necessarily be better, but neither is the most expensive school going to be better too. Look for what the programmes offer, what the alumni say and what calibre the instructors are.
And here's the important thing: if you cannot gauge those above things accurately for your own needs, then you should not be apply to schools.
Let's be candid about this one thing: If you are not knowledgeable enough at a basic level about what you are applying for ( animation studies) to evaluate whether the school is teaching what you need.....then you need to do some more self-education BEFORE you apply to these schools.
That means understand the rudimentary basics of animation and the animation process.
All that kind of info is easily available on-line or in a couple of inexpensive books. It'll help you determine if a school's programmes teach core animation material, or if they just cover stuff like software. THAT is how you can determine if the programme is good value for your tuition dollars.
"We all grow older, we do not have to grow up"--Archie Goodwin ( 1937-1998)