Starting college. Would appreciate suggestions.

[Joseph Kerr]

Hello,

I'm starting community college soon and i signed up for a full schedule. I have a three day weekend, while tuesday and thursday i only have 1 class, 7-9. Monday and Wednesday i have 3 classes from 8-5, with a 3 hour break in the middle from 12-3.

Does that sound too much to squeeze all of them in? Should i space them out more?

I was trying to get some good art classes, but most were already closed, so i went with Color Theory. Which i feel is fine since i could use help in that area. Should i possibley try to squeeze into a drawing class if i can, or would it not hurt to stick with Color Theory for my 1st semester? I'm trying to get into Illustration and Conceptual work.

Also, i'm looking into the Acedemy of Arts and The Art Institute in San Francisco, aswell as Art Center. One of the reasons why i'm taking community college is to hone my skills and build a respectable portfolio, plus it's cheaper. This weekend, i'll be visiting the Art Institute at their Open House, anyone else going too?

I know this seems like i'm leaping from one thing to another, i'm just kinda nervous and confused about all this. I would appreciate any feedback at all about ANYTHING relating to the college life and the Art community.

[sweetoblivion314]

as far as college goes. for selecting classes, you'll want to choose 5 classes. figure out which ones you like the best and which ones you can actualy learn stuff from the teacher, then drop 1 of them. Keep it at 4 active classes. Otherwise you may not have a social life depending on the classes you take (especial if your gonna be working on your art ontop of that).

As far as the time goes it really doesnt matter. I've never had an experiance where one long day was a bad thing. Yea spreading it out is more relaxing, but if your free time is constantly broken into by randomly timed classes, then you'll never get anything finished. Huge blocks of free time are more productive then small ones with classes in the middle. Although i will say 8am is early for a class :\

hope that helped.

[Storyboard Dave]

Without knowing your habits, likes or dislikes it's tough to judge or even really offer any meaningful suggestions.

It's your first stab at a schedule like this. You're really not going to know unless you go through it somewhat. Some people would think your schedule is a breeze whereas some people would struggle with less than half of what you got. Some people are morning people and some are night owls. It comes down to you and your tastes and how you manage your time.

One thing about choosing these classes though. You've chosen these classes assuming they will transfer over to Art Center, the Academy of Arts and The Art Institute in San Francisco. Make sure that if you do decide to take these classes that the credits count for something at your eventual school- if not then you're taking them for your knowledge only.

And yeah it might be all a bit confusing at first but that's why you ask questions. No harm in that. Just keep your goal in mind (a career in Illustration & concept art) and figure out the best tract for getting it with the least amount of grief. It'll come with plenty of work but it doesn't have to be that painful if you aply yourself and go at it with some passion.

Good luck.

[ConCrete]

I spent a year at a community college in wisconsin and am in the middle of deciding whether to go to a real art school or stay at the community school. In summation I have been scouring the interent for any insight and believe me, the more artwork you do on your own for your own portfolio the better.
But the things I learned about people and life at the community college almost made wasting $10,000 worth it. I plan on either staying there and working on my artwork or transfering to the west coast and starting over education wise...I have yet to figure it out...but meh, I know what I want to do which is more than most people at this point...good luck to you in your endeavors...and just always be working on art...