<p>I was just accepted by Art Center College of Design in Pasadena!!!! my dream school. However that seems now to have been the easy part. I found out that I don't qualify for much aid, so it comes to whether or not I think a degree from art center is worth being in dept 150,000 when I'm done. help me! I'm from seattle and I've heard good things about Western WA U design program. I don't know what to do.</p>
<p>Art Center certainly is reputed to have a strong program in some areas (e.g., industrial design). What is your intended major?</p>
<p>The calculation that you're making is complicated. When you say you don't qualify for much aid, does that really mean you would have to go into debt for $150K, or are you just saying that's what the cost would be to attend? Do you have no resources or support from your family to bring to bear?</p>
<p>The costs, and how you might cover them (from savings, parents' support, scholarships, loans, work) are a separate issue from the larger one of whether it's worth it to attend your dream school in your chosen field. I hope you can live out this dream. Depending on your field of interest and, of course, your talent, ambition, and work habits, you can earn a reasonable living in art/design. You might be perfectly successful, and equally successful, however, if you earn your degree from a top specialized school as you would be if you earn your degree from a high quality program at a university. (I don't know about the quality of the W. Washignton program -- sorry.) But I think your initial entree into the job market can be easier if you have a degree from well-known and respected program. Still, in the end, it's your talent -- as reflected in your portfolio -- and your ambition and willingness to work hard that will largely determine your career success.</p>
<p>thanks for your input makinaw!</p>
<p>my major is graphic design
as for the cost dilema- over 12,000 per term X 8 terms= over 96,000 + 1000 per month personal expences X 3-4 years (reputation for difficult, time consuming curriculum- difficult to have much time to work) that's another 42000.
and yes, no savings, family doesn't have much money to contribute, at least not enough to make much of a dent in that tuition cost.</p>
<p>I encourage you to make some more calculations of how you can reduce your need for loans. In doing this, figure in a 5% increase per year in tuition from the current year's amount, just as a place-holder. You also have to factor in costs of equipment and supplies, which can be fairly substantial in an art program. That includes a computer (probably one specified by the school) but also other tools and paper, paint, etc., etc., that you will have to buy for your courses (figure $100 per month as a first approximation). And of course you will have to buy some textbooks for your non-studio courses.</p>
<p>Get the most realistic assessment of how much your parents can provide and how much you can provide via work. I agree that working during the school year is really hard in an intensive art/design program. My daughter did it her last three years (not in her foundation year) at RISD, but found that any more than 8 hours or so was too much. (Not to mention, the jobs she had were in the ID shops -- metal, wood, etc. -- and you really do have to be alert for safety reasons.) But you may well be able to earn 2-3 thousand during summers (including the summer before you enroll), and you should factor that into your calculations. Depending on your current experience in graphic design (GD), you may have chances to earn money now even. Start thinking of yourself as a professional, and start scrimping and saving.</p>
<p>I highly recommend going to your dream school. You can alternate studio terms with terms where you work full-time at Hunt Design, Sanchez Kamps, or other graphic design firms. This is your chance to get a fantastic education at Art Center</p>
<p>The problem with Art Center today is the money. I don’t know the percentage of students who pay for the education themselves via loans vs. the students who get the money handed to them. Seems like many of them will be on the hook for years to come.</p>
<p>A big issue is the ACC acceptance rate. They think it’s great that they accept 63% of the students who apply. But think about it, they accept 63% and then boil of the lesser quality students (yes, it strengthens the quality of the student body) but the students that drop out still have to pay for the loans they made in good faith. So now you have a body of students who are underwriting the school without strengthening their future. They are much likely to default on their loans making it difficult for the students who can make it. They need to bring the acceptance rate down to about 12%. Making sure that the students have the chops to get through in advance. Oh but wait… that would give the Student Aid Department something to do.</p>
<p>That post is from 2005.</p>