The General Advice Thread

[Moccomouse]

Well, it's almost may, and a whole new generation of high-school students like myself are about to graduate, and are starting to make final decisions about where we're going to college, and I think that all of us could do with some friendly advice.

So those art-college types out there, please post any glimmers of wisdom you've had, or wish you had had when you first started school. Any general tips for dealing with college life, dealing with money, time management, any observations about being an artist within the system of higher education would be helpful. Help keep your younger peers from making the same mistakes you did!


All I ask is that you end your replies with which college you attended, for reference, or failing that, at least put the country where you went to school.

[carpal]

Be focused. Try and understand what it is that you want to do as early as possible and go for it. Understand that your thoughts and ideas WILL change. This is good.

Don't forget that these four years are more than just work to become good at technical skills. You have four years to work on yourself as a person and gain experience in everything. So with all the work, don't forget to actually live. Waking up without any clothes on and forgetting where you are is IMPORTANT. it might not seem like it at the time.

but it is.

Otherwise, get your monies worth. You are paying a lot for this education, milk it for all its worth. Oh, and don't forget. Everything that you can buy, there is probably a way to get for free. Be creative and know why you are paying for it. Especially food and education.


Oh, and I go to Ringling right now.

[Moccomouse]

Good stuff man. Let's hear some more!

[Hett15]

Well I have already been through 4 years of college at Florida State University and after graduating with my b.s. in business I found that...I wasted a lot of time. I'm not saying that I didn't learn anything or that I wasn't exposed to new ideas and ways of thinking...but I find that I pushed myself through a lot of classes doing the best I could to get good grades, but I lacked interest in what I was doing. People kept asking me what I was going to do with my degree and I didn't really know. What had I learned? What did I know how to do post graduation that I didn't know before going to college? I honestly couldn't tell you that I can do anything of significance now that i couldn't do back in high school. I had other factors keeping me in school namely a wife that was finishing her masters, and financial issues with scholarships,since I was having it all paid for I might as well get a degree while I wait for my wife. so I got a business degree, but I also kept my little art hobby going on the side.

I discovered my dormat art "hobby" just never seemed to go away. I would spend hours reading books about animation and scouring the internet for character designs and things related to concept development (hence how I came to this site) Then my wife gave me a kick in the ass and basically said.."Why are you doing something you hate? Why aren't you doing art?" I soon realized that I wanted to create art (specifically animation). So during my last half of my sophmore year of college I made a plan to get into Ringling School of Art and Design. 3 years later...I just got accepted and I start this fall. My (long winded) point is that you need to go to college to actually want to learn something. Don't just get by and pass all four years like you did in highschool. No one is making you go to college. You are in control of what you want to learn and how well you will learn it.

[Moccomouse]

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