<p>We were just checking out grad animation programs/computer art for MFA degrees at USC, Pratt and SVA. I thought I would share my thoughts.</p>
<p>First as to USC. I LOVE USC. I love the area, the school and the strong reputation of the School of Cinematic arts at USC. I even liked the people that I met. What I didn't like was the program! It is very fluffy. Most courses are required with very few electives allowed. In addition, I didn't see a lot of courses offered to begin with except in art history.</p>
<p>Moreover, the end result of their program won't necessarily be a demo reel, which is what the industry requires. As a top faculty member noted, "we are a research university and getting the masters thesis done and doing research is what we emphasize." Accordingly, I was really turned off by their program,which saddened me a bit.</p>
<p>We also spent some time this week at both SVA and Pratt.</p>
<p>Both programs are suprisingly similar in requirements and course offerings;however, SVA probably provides a bit more course choices. </p>
<p>What turned me off to both of them, especially SVA, is the large number of required art history and even humanties courses required by their programs. SVA for example required two art history courses and two digital seminars,which were basically art history in disquise. Four art history courses wouldn't be that bad until you consider that students only need 18 courses to graduate with the MFA plus two thesis courses. This is akin to taking 12 art history courses as an undergrad. Pratt only requires two art history courses but has other "unrelated" requirements such as humanities.Interestingly, none of the schools would waive the art history requirements for my daughter even though she took 5 art history courses as an undergrad. They argue that grad courses are very different, which I don't believe one bit.</p>
<p>If you want to develop strong 3D computer graphics skills, you would probably need to stretch out the MFA at least by one year in order to take enough course offerings in order to achieve an appropriate skill level, which is absurd. This also substantially increases the costs of attendance by one-third.</p>
<p>Pratt was the only MFA program that we inspected that promised a demo reel as part of the program.</p>
<p>One note of caution, SVA in particular has a LOT of hidden fees. For example, they have a mandatory health care fee, an activity fee, a whopping $1200 per semester computer fee and much more. If you look at this school, pay close attention to these fees.</p>
<p>I also think that SVA is a "for profit" school. If I am right, this means less scholarships than that of Pratt. They also have more of an incentive to cut costs and make money, although I did like the facilities at SVA as much as Pratt and maybe even more so. However, despite all this, most kids that we interviewed like their program at SVA. It also had good rankings by 3d magazine.</p>
<p>As for my daughter, she felt that Pratt has a more artsy and experimental animation feel while SVA was a bit more commerical and practical. I don't know if this is true or even if I agree with her assessment.</p>
<p>I did like the trade schools such as Gnomon and Sheridan in Canada, which were also highly ranked,but you only graduate with a certificate,which has its pros and cons.</p>
<p>I will be checking out SCAD,which admittedly does seem to have an interesting program with less crappy requirements and good rankings by 3D magazine.. SCAD,however, does tend to pidgeon hole kids into subconcentrations such as sound, visual effects or animation. In addition, SCAD is in Georgia,which makes me question their contact base and reputation in NY and other places.</p>
<p>Most of the schools do NOT give strong training in traditional art as part of the MFA program. You should have a strong art background before you consider these places. However, USC did have one full year of 2d animation, which also inculcates traditional drawing.</p>
<p>As for the locations, I loved both locations where Pratt and SVA are located. Pratt is in an up and coming area of Brooklyn. SVA is in Gramarcy Park,which is a hip area with a number of good restaurants and cafes. We had some great asian food and gread Gyro wraps. I also didn't feel unsafe at either SVA or Pratt, although you always have to be careful in any big city.</p>
<p>USC itself is very nice;however just outside of USC is a bit more tenuous and unsafe.</p>
<p>In short, Masters programs should be very skill-focused, without having to take a lot of crappy gen eds.I actually liked the trade schools better than I did the MFA programs because of this. You may have a different take on these places than I did.</p>