The Official Artcenter Thread - like, omg!

[luckyc71]

Hi chil3, thank you for your answer. Hopefully the same thing goes to graphic design program.

Yes I can do Photoshop. I've been doing it for five years or so. But to be honest, I'm not an expert at other softwares like Illustrator or InDesign. I've heard that the average age for freshmen in Art Center is 22 years old and most of them have had a professional background/full time artist prior to entering Art Center, while I'll be fresh out of the college by the time I enter Art Center (I'm 19). In addition, I'm currently balancing my studio classes with some general education classes in college (I'm not a full time art student like most of you guys are at the moment). As for designing skills, I've been improving it purely through online tutorials, so I'm quite an amateur. That's why I'm a little worried that professors and classmates at Art Center might have high expectations towards my skills.

Can you give me some tips and suggestions what to prepare/face to enter this school?

[mirajuana]

Hi everyone,

I just got accepted to the fall 2012 illustration term for undergrad, and from what I've heard and seen (on youtube) about Art Center, I'm completely in like with it. i just have a bucketload of questions.

-So I'll be entering as an 18-year-old, so would this set me apart from my peers? I've heard a lot about how everyone is older, how people have no social life, no dorms, and sort of a lack of community. I find a sense of community really important, though, and I'm also really hoping that being 18 won't isolate me from everyone else.

-Second of all, I've heard that the school is very "industry focused", so they set you up for a career in the art industry without much room for conceptualizing. Is this true?
I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing. I like the idea of conceptual artwork but I'm more used to doodling and drawing for a narrative, so I want to practice that before I get into the "industry focused" work.
I'm also pretty interested in 3D work, taking liberal courses (I heard that Korean Literature was interesting), and travelling abroad. Does Art Center allow room for this in their curriculum?

-Some other small things that bother me are the fact that I don't have a car, so does the campus have vans or zip cars or something? Any sort of transportation to get back and forth between the school and the apartments?

-How comparable is Art Center to, say, SVA, RISD, MICA, Ringling, or VCUarts' programs for someone who wants to be a concept artist or visual development artist?

-Do teachers work part time, and the other time in the actual work field? I heard that this was pretty important.

-What is it like in a classroom? Do teachers work closely with the students or do they just yell at them and leave them to work independently?

thanks if you at least read this far... i don't know what i'll do.

[chil3]

Hi chil3, thank you for your answer. Hopefully the same thing goes to graphic design program.

Yes I can do Photoshop. I've been doing it for five years or so. But to be honest, I'm not an expert at other softwares like Illustrator or InDesign. I've heard that the average age for freshmen in Art Center is 22 years old and most of them have had a professional background/full time artist prior to entering Art Center, while I'll be fresh out of the college by the time I enter Art Center (I'm 19). In addition, I'm currently balancing my studio classes with some general education classes in college (I'm not a full time art student like most of you guys are at the moment). As for designing skills, I've been improving it purely through online tutorials, so I'm quite an amateur. That's why I'm a little worried that professors and classmates at Art Center might have high expectations towards my skills.

Can you give me some tips and suggestions what to prepare/face to enter this school?

try taking some classes at pcc, most of the teachers there come from art center, alumni, former and current teachers, they will help you get on shape. try taking stank kong, rick osaka and albert yu, they know their stuff.

[luckyc71]

try taking some classes at pcc, most of the teachers there come from art center, alumni, former and current teachers, they will help you get on shape. try taking stank kong, rick osaka and albert yu, they know their stuff.

Hi chil3, thank you for your suggestions! I'm currently in De Anza College and I'm not sure if they have similar classes with PCC. Is it possible to take some classes in PCC at the same time as enrolling in Art Center? But in any case, I'll keep the instructors you suggested in mind!

-So I'll be entering as an 18-year-old, so would this set me apart from my peers? I've heard a lot about how everyone is older, how people have no social life, no dorms, and sort of a lack of community. I find a sense of community really important, though, and I'm also really hoping that being 18 won't isolate me from everyone else.

Hi mirajuana, yeah I definitely feel you. I'm 19 and I'm afraid the school will be somewhat making us isolated from our the community, especially I'm currently in college where I definitely feel that the sense of community here is really as engaging as high school. But well, let's hope that someone from Art Center can give us a good answer

[chil3]

Hi chil3, thank you for your suggestions! I'm currently in De Anza College and I'm not sure if they have similar classes with PCC. Is it possible to take some classes in PCC at the same time as enrolling in Art Center? But in any case, I'll keep the instructors you suggested in mind!



Hi mirajuana, yeah I definitely feel you. I'm 19 and I'm afraid the school will be somewhat making us isolated from our the community, especially I'm currently in college where I definitely feel that the sense of community here is really as engaging as high school. But well, let's hope that someone from Art Center can give us a good answer

unfortunately art center will take up most of your time, unless you can find a class on a saturday on pcc, i can recommend taking classes with schenider and joan caan at pcc, they also teach at art center at least for joan.
Also don't listen to all the bs about artcenter having no life, heck i did pretty much no homework on the weekend and went out frequently with friends both from home and artcenter, if there is one thing the guys at artcenter know how to do, besides from designing, it freaking partying.

[lleeeeeoo]

So I'm a 20 year old college student who just got accepted to Art Center as a second term undergrad with a $7,500 per term scholarship. Kind of sucks that I have to do 7 more terms and that most of the classes I did in college didn't do anything for my transfer but c'est la vie. I'm still waiting to hear from the Cal Grant peoples. Thing is though is that I live about an hour south in Orange (in Orange County) and chances are I might be commuting when I attend the school (though I might possibly move in with my cousins). That's the risky biscuit right there but other than that tuition is tough. I'm going to email the admissions department and ask them if they can raise my scholarship award by a bit to make it more affordable.

Anyway, I also talked to the financial aid department and they said that I can do work study for about $500 per term and I also asked about the other scholarship opportunity for continuing students. Basically, they said that it's a separate scholarship so after a year of attending the school, I can apply for that one and quite possibly get another scholarship.

[Battle Armor Fail]

hi there.
Im thinking about to apply to ACCD, but can't choose right major.

Ent. course in Illustration or just Entertainment Design? Which one is better? Portfolio will not be a problem.
Also, i find out that for first one I'm gonna get BFA and for the Ent Design its only BOS degree. So... any suggestions?

Try going on their website, all majors and tracks are listed. See which professors are teaching what and then do some research. If you do decide to go with Illustration - Entertainment track, take all of Gary Meyer's classes, the man is amazing.

[luckyc71]

Hi chil3, thank you for your suggestions! I'm currently in De Anza College and I'm not sure if they have similar classes with PCC. Is it possible to take some classes in PCC at the same time as enrolling in Art Center? But in any case, I'll keep the instructors you suggested in mind!



Hi mirajuana, yeah I definitely feel you. I'm 19 and I'm afraid the school will be somewhat making us isolated from our the community, especially I'm currently in college where I definitely feel that the sense of community here is really as engaging as high school. But well, let's hope that someone from Art Center can give us a good answer
unfortunately art center will take up most of your time, unless you can find a class on a saturday on pcc, i can recommend taking classes with schenider and joan caan at pcc, they also teach at art center at least for joan.
Also don't listen to all the bs about artcenter having no life, heck i did pretty much no homework on the weekend and went out frequently with friends both from home and artcenter, if there is one thing the guys at artcenter know how to do, besides from designing, it freaking partying.

Phew, good to hear that the social life at Art Center is not as scary as what people have always said. I understand that being an art student means having tons of workload and often have to stay overnight at school, but I also don't want to lose my social life. Anyway, thanks for the information!

Also, one more thing, I know that Art Center doesn't offer foundation classes (such as color theory, 2D, 3D, drawing classes, etc), but do they at least offer classes where students can learn more about the techniques of digital software programs? Like Photoshop, how to use Illustrator, InDesign, Lightroom, etc and what sort of techniques students can utilize using the tools from those programs?

I've already got familiar with Photoshop, but not very much with programs like Illustrator and InDesign. I've so far spent some time learning how to use Illustrator through online tutorials though, but my skill in Illustrator is still in the very beginner level.

[Paper.Trains]

Hi, im accepted to art center for this fall. So i havent attened yet, but i know some people in the school and have been researching the school for a while now and i believe that they have you take a class called Digital Design 1 your first term, and i think thats kind of an intro to photoshop and illustrator and such. at least i hope so. otherwise, im screwed and even though they dont have really basic 2d, 3d and color theory classes, i (once again) think that those are all encompassed (to a slightly more advanced degree) in their Design 1 and 2 and Materials classes. again, i think. this is what i've gathered from my hours of research. but i could be totally wrong. so if i am, someone, PLEASE correct me.

[EchoArt7]

hi there.
Im thinking about to apply to ACCD, but can't choose right major.

Ent. course in Illustration or just Entertainment Design? Which one is better? Portfolio will not be a problem.
Also, i find out that for first one I'm gonna get BFA and for the Ent Design its only BOS degree. So... any suggestions?

The main difference, I think, is how the two majors start out. In Ent. Arts you have the first few terms with the illustration people doing figure, comp, and color stuff, while in Ent. Design we had our first two terms in industrial design foundation (constructing and lighting things in 3d space + lots of building) with the product and trans people. No one is actually better, I think you can get to where you want to go regardless of which one you choose.

As for social life at art center, honestly it is what you make of it. If you have good time management nothings stopping you from going out and doing shit. But the key is time management.

[Deadlyhazard]

Anybody know when I should start applying for Spring 2013 for Entertainment Design or Illustration? Not sure what I'll be shooting for between those two, just curious. I hear the deadline is October 1st, but I'm wondering when they accept early applications?

[finnianm]

Hey, was wondering if someone knew where to find roommates for Art Center? Been searching for a while and haven't found anyone Checked the facebook pages as well...

[Imogine]

I'm in the same boat as Finniam. I'm looking for a room for about $500 a month. I'd like to move in sometime in June and unfortunately the only one Ive found was looking for a room mate this month :/

How feasible is $500 a month for a room?

[Ics]

Hey Imogine and Finiamm,

To look for roommates art center has a special site for that. If you email housing at art center they'll direct you to the link.

But honestly it is best if you came to the school to look for posters of wanted roomates. As for 500 as a budget, I'm afraid you might be setting it a little too low. Generally rental prices closer to Art Center cost 600+. I have friends who are even paying up to 900. However, if you have a car and live further away in Pasadena I don't see a problem finding something around your budget.

Paper Trains,

You are right in some respect. Digital Design can be taken in the first term though not always. Most people do it in their second (as far as I can see anyway). Illustrator is taught a little bit in design 1 but honestly its too little to count as real instruction of the program. If you want to be exempted from taking Digital design, you can sit for a waiver test to prove that you have sufficient knowledge of both photoshop and illustrator.

[luckyc71]

Illustrator is taught a little bit in design 1 but honestly its too little to count as real instruction of the program.

Hi Ics, do you mean Art Center don't teach the exact Illustrator technique, like how to make a vector, how to utilize vectors in making a logo stuff like that?

[Ics]

Sorry for the misunderstanding. They do teach illustrator, but in a separate class called Digital Design. But it is not taught in Design 1 even though most students will usually take Design 1 before they take Digital Design

[steve kim]

What's the scholarship situation lately? Is entertainment design still getting shafted when it comes to scholarship?

[Deadlyhazard]

That's what I'm interested in. What do scholarships these days look like for incoming applicants (is it different for transfers)? Anybody getting any full scholarships?

[lleeeeeoo]

Hey Deadlyhazard.

I'm an illustration student transferring this Fall and my original scholarship was $7,500 per term. However it wasn't enough for me so I contacted the financial aid office requesting a larger award. A few weeks later, I was contacted and my scholarship was raised to $10,000 per term. Hope that clears some things up for you.

[lleeeeeoo]

Hey Deadlyhazard.

I'm an illustration student transferring this Fall and my original scholarship was $7,500 per term. However it wasn't enough for me so I contacted the financial aid office requesting a larger award. A few weeks later, I was contacted and my scholarship was raised to $10,000 per term. Hope that clears some things up for you.

[Deadlyhazard]

Hey Deadlyhazard.

I'm an illustration student transferring this Fall and my original scholarship was $7,500 per term. However it wasn't enough for me so I contacted the financial aid office requesting a larger award. A few weeks later, I was contacted and my scholarship was raised to $10,000 per term. Hope that clears some things up for you.

That's a fantastic scholarship. Did you have a high GPA along with a great portfolio? Do you have it up online? I'm just curious what they might be looking for. Thanks for that answer, though!

[lleeeeeoo]

Thank you! My GPA is actually only "okay" as it's a 3.36. I did three years (6 semesters) of community college before applying to transfer and of those 6 semesters, the first 3 were from an era of me slacking off with no drive and focused-goal.

The actual portfolio I used to transfer is on my hard drive in my desktop but since the capacitors in the motherboard are in need of replacement, that computer is torn apart at the moment. I do however have a Facebook page for my art where everything I submitted in my portfolio is on there if you would like to see the caliber of my work. At Art Center, they really want to see your technical skills so they request you put your best life drawings in your portfolio.

Here's my page if you're interested!
http://www.facebook.com/viasantamaria

[Deadlyhazard]

Hey thanks a lot Leo!

Anybody know if you can apply to two majors at once (and is it any different as a transfer student)? I was considering applying to both illustration and entertainment design, if possible.

[Riiroi]

Hi,

Has anybody tried submitting a portfolio online? It says to provide 15-24 images but I have around 30. Is it possible to upload 30 images?

Thanks

[chil3]

Hi,

Has anybody tried submitting a portfolio online? It says to provide 15-24 images but I have around 30. Is it possible to upload 30 images?

Thanks

That's what they say but the more the better, I showed like 40 pieces, I don't know about the online part thou.

[Deadlyhazard]

Cool, I got accepted to Illustration for Spring 2013 with advanced standing. Can't go unless I get at least a 10k a semester or higher scholarship, though. Anyone know what the chances are for me getting a scholarship? I have a crappy 2.9 GPA, and an EFC of 30,000 (which is unfortunate since my mom isn't going to aid me at all yet I'm slapped with that high EFC). I have some portfolio pieces uploaded at the very last post in my sketchbook for reference.

[thirla]

Cool, I got accepted to Illustration for Spring 2013 with advanced standing. Can't go unless I get at least a 10k a semester or higher scholarship, though. Anyone know what the chances are for me getting a scholarship? I have a crappy 2.9 GPA, and an EFC of 30,000 (which is unfortunate since my mom isn't going to aid me at all yet I'm slapped with that high EFC). I have some portfolio pieces uploaded at the very last post in my sketchbook for reference.

Hey! I got accepted to Illustration too! I'm in the same situation as you are. I'm not planning to go unless I get nearly a full ride.

I talked to a guy in admissions when I took a tour of the campus and he said that they take both your merit and portfolio into consideration.

If you're really worried email the admissions office. They're extremely helpful. They just started reviewing portfolios for scholarships around last week.

[Deadlyhazard]

Hey! I got accepted to Illustration too! I'm in the same situation as you are. I'm not planning to go unless I get nearly a full ride.

I talked to a guy in admissions when I took a tour of the campus and he said that they take both your merit and portfolio into consideration.

If you're really worried email the admissions office. They're extremely helpful. They just started reviewing portfolios for scholarships around last week.

Thanks a lot, nice to see someone in the same boat. Not sure what I would e-mail them about if the deed is already done and I don't want to harass them ;p. I guess I get it if I get it, but if not....bah. My merit sucks (if by merit you mean GPA) I don't think a 2.9 GPA will be getting me anywhere with scholarships. Guess I shouldn't have screwed up my first year in college!

[chil3]

Merit and portfolio are the same thing lol, still good luck on it, hopefully they started giving full rides now which i doubt (they are getting way to greedy at art center).

[Deadlyhazard]

Merit and portfolio are the same thing lol, still good luck on it, hopefully they started giving full rides now which i doubt (they are getting way to greedy at art center).

Merit also means GPA IIRC.

Somebody in the accepted threads at the top of this forum got a full ride (Spikie). Had a fairly strong portfolio, with a 5.3 weighted GPA among other things.