[Speve-o-matic]

Yeah, I'm probably going to be studying abroad next year sometime, I'm interested in attending a school with a very strong computer animation department.

At the end of this year I will be taking a trip to the USA to visit a friend of mine and check out a couple of schools. So far I have SCAD, Calarts, the Art Institute of San Francisco and the New York school of Visual Arts on my list . . . what other schools should I take a look at, seeing as I am in the area.

I am very keen on studying at SCAD, and I know that there are a couple of people here (Bradford and others) who are attending SCAD at the moment. If I could get some of your opinions and good or bad experiences with the school, that would be great. Any opinions on the other schools would be great too!!!!

Thank you all

- Steve

[eddie]

Heya, I goto SCAD and the computer animation department here is amazing.. The equipment/software used here is industry standard, and the teachers are great. The only complaint I have about the school is the city. Yeah, Savannah is beautiful, but there are alot of bad parts of town that you really hafta stay away from. Just a few weeks ago, a SCAD student was murdered :/

[shardik]

those are all good schools... a note about sva is its poor dorming situation if ur a male... the females have studios in their dorms... the male dorms in the city (the George Washington Hotel) suck! they are tiny and u have to climb over the toilet to get to the shower... if ur gonna go to sva make sure u get the new jersey dorms... i didnt get in the nice dorms so i went to my school which i now hate and im gonna transfer somewhere else.. im currently looking at SCAD and Ringling so if anyone else has info on them please submit it... i think the california schools are too far away for me for now good luck with your search!

------------------
-matt

[Speve-o-matic]

Hmm. I suppose most cities in the world have there bad parts . . .

I'm also thinking of taking a look at VFS and the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design . . . any opinions on the schools in Canada? For one thing, the tuition costs are a whole lot cheaper, but is the quality of teaching/facilities up to scratch? Seems like it . . .

- Steve

[Plouffe]

If you want computer animation i would suggest VSF in British columbia OR Sheridan college in Toronto. Sheridan college it known internationally for their art programs especially tradionnal animation and computer animation. Pixar and Disney go first hand their to get the top students. ANyways I applied to sheridan college 2 weeks ago soo i hope i can get in =) . The emilly carr institute would be a great school for traditional art. Like illustration and Fine arts degree and such. Their is also ACAD in Alberta and OCAD in Toronto ontario that would maybe interest you. Hmm Seneca college in Toronto is a great school for 3d animation.

Cheers..

[philjaeger]

I want to suggest you check on the academy of art in San Francisco. from my experience the san francisco bay area has a great atmosphere for studying in the art-technology realm.

Personally speaking i would choose an animation school up in Canada. i've heard good things about at least 2 of them. there also may be less culture shock in a move there.

Phil

[Bradford]

The great thing about SCAD is we have so many international students here, so you get to meet many people from abroad.

Just like Eddie said, they have assembled very good and talented professors, and I am blown away by every new one I meet. Every department, especially the computer animation, is top notch.

And yeah, the city has it's problems, but it is a city, and most of them have crime, just play it safe, and your fine.

I would also suggest visiting New York School of Visual Arts, that is supposed to be pretty amazing as well.

------------------
[email protected]
icq:3704871

[u2art]

SCAD!???
Wow.... well from my point of view...SCAD is like a long expensive technical school... plus everyone I know was offered small scholarships to SCAD even if they didnt apply to them... They bugged the hell out of me and kept offering me Scholarships...and I never even applied there!!!! So if you want an education just to learn programs,,,then that's it.
Ringling has one of TH ETOP animation programs in America. I can tell you it is amazing!!! VERY hard to get into though. You learn sooo much about animation concept, video, traditional drawing, etc...VERY well rounded. Plus they have visits from over 50 recruiters every year, not to mention visits from many industry Gods... David Lowry, Ruben Aquino, Andreas Deja, many people from studios like PIXAR DISNEY LUCASFILM, etc...

but it is in FL...that sucks, I would rather be in CA at CalArts...
basically it comes down to what you put into it. Most of our animation Grads get jobs right away.

Art

[Bradford]

quote

Quote:

So if you want an education just to learn programs,,,then that's it.

Sorry buddy, you've got it very wrong. That's all I have to say, my school has too good of a reputation for me to have to worry about defending it.

------------------
[email protected]
icq:3704871

[shardik]

woohoo, savannah vs ringling... guys question.. if i got into SVA for computer animation... should i be able to get into ringling or savannah?

------------------
-matt

[Speve-o-matic]

Hmmm . . well, studying in America is very very expensive. I'd love to study at CalArts, Ringling, SCAD, hell, they're all better than what is offered in my country, but the price tag is so very very high. Scolarships will help out but it depends on how much I can get. I'm writing my SAT's in June, I'm hoping to get a good score. I'm building up my portfolio aswell. At the moment though, schools in Canada are looking like a really good option because tutition fees are much lower in comparison to the U.S.A.

- Steve

[KrassOtti]

Speve-o-matic, I don't think SAT scores are very important for art schools. Most schools also only ask about your English SAT score, they don't care at all about the math score.

If you get at least a 500 in the English section than you should be fine. I have applied to a couple well known colleges [SCAD, RISD, ARTIC] and the highest score one wanted was 500 or so in english [I got a 510 ]

What really is important is the portfolio and recommendation letters.

btw, I don't know what language you guys speak down in South Africa, but if english is not your first language, you'll have to do the TOEFL, which is an incredibly easy english test [I got over 630 points, which is considered a perfect score]

[Justin Kramer]

SCAD is terrible for scholarships. At least when I applied there two years ago, they only allowed ONE merit-based scholarship -- based on grades or on portfolio, but not both. Because I got a pretty good SAT score, they offered a scholarship for that (a pretty measly one compared to what other colleges offered). But no matter how good my art portfolio was, I wasn't allowed to get any other scholarships, unless I dropped the SAT scholarship. Most other colleges let you rack up multiple scholarships. Maybe things have changed since I applied, though--you should ask them what their policy is now.

Their tuition is also pricey. This is how they spend so much money on their recruitment machine (they still send me postcards). Upside is they have really nice facilities.


[This message has been edited by Justin Kramer (edited March 11, 2001).]

[TriGGer_h]

While in NYC, be sure to visit Pratt (in Brooklyn) and Parsons along with SVA. You might want to check out NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, but their Animation program is almost totally traditional.

[the_monkey]

for a second i thought u guys were talking about ACAD (alberta college of art and design)

NEVER GO TO THIS SCHOOL

------------------
Maho: the online Comic

tradgedy is when i cut my finger.
comedy is when i fall down a manhole and die.