<p>I've been accepted to all three programs and I'm very excited, but I am completely overwhelmed with deciding. They all seem like such great schools.
For me, money is a huge deciding factor, however they all come down to a relatively similar price (USC the cheapest, then Chapman, then NYU). The only thing is, if I go to NYU I have to do a liberal studies program for the first year and I would have to take my film classes that summer semester.
I am visiting USC next week and I have already seen the other two. What I'm really looking for is the best option for having success in the film field (the school with the best opportunities). Also having a supportive community and really focusing on film is very important to me. (Is it true you don't start film classes until your sophomore year at USC).
Any perspective from anyone else in my position, or anyone else who chose USC, even if your not a film production major, would be great!</p>
<p>Thank you for any responses!</p>
<p>USC film school is #1 in the country for a reason. It should be your first pick out of those three regardless of price but the fact that is is also the cheapest to attend in your situation should seal the deal.</p>
<p>I absolutely agree on the facts and the cost. It’s just I’ve heard a lot of rumors (which I don’t necessarily believe), saying the kids in the program are very aggressively competitive and people are snobby. Though it is people at other film schools saying these things. Do you go to USC? I’d love to hear what you love about it.</p>
<p>I don’t know much about the NYU program, but might be a good idea to be in SoCal to study film… SC and Chapman both have great programs!</p>
<p>Generally speaking, the higher ranked a program, the higher the caliber of students and the more competitive people will be. I haven’t heard from any of my SCA friends it is really like that though, everyone helps eachother out. As far as the snobby thing goes, USC is a private school so there will be an element of that but it wouldn’t be any worse than NYU. In fact I’d say NYU would most likely be worse. That is a minority of USC though so it shouldn’t be a deciding factor really.</p>
<p>I’m in the accounting school which like SCA is highly ranked(#4) so the caliber of students is really really high but everyone is super helpful and I’ve never felt that people are competitive with eachother since we know this is USC and we’ll all have awesome jobs lined up before we graduate (I had mine lined up 3 semesters before graduation).</p>
<p>I think when you tour the facility, attend a class and talk to students at the school there will be no doubt in your mind which to select. Please go to the cinematic arts website and read the list of famous alumni. It is page after page. </p>
<p>George Lucas donated $100 million dollars to build a great complex with has the best equipment, sound stages, cameras, etc. In addition there is a $50 million dollar animation building. It is not just a complex, but there are gifted faculty and alumni who return to lecture and mentor students. Many graduates also provide internships. The library has collections from some of the cinema greats. The Warner Bros. archives are the largest cinematic collections in the world. </p>
<p>Another feature of the school is the collaboration with the top notch USC School of Theatre and the historic Thornton School of Music. Creative, imaginative and talented students are your peers. </p>
<p>As opposed to NYU SC has a real campus filled with flowering trees, courtyards and fountains. Housing is varied from suites to doubles. There is a cinematic arts floor or eight residential colleges (dorms) with a faculty master. These follow the Oxford plan.</p>
<p>The campus now has two metro stations which can connect you to “downtown” three miles away. There are galleries, hotels, bistros, theatres and the Disney Concert Hall, home of the Los Angeles Symphony. </p>
<p>Academic excellence does not end at the Mississippi River.</p>
<p>USC and NYU are both very good programs (I think USC’s is much better), but if you’re deciding between those schools you’re really deciding between New York and L.A. Where do you want to live and work most?</p>
<p>Chapman doesn’t belong in the equation as far as quality of program.</p>
<p>At USC you ABSOLUTELY DO NOT wait until sophomore year to start taking film classes. You will take the famous 190 intro to cinema class with Drew Casper your first semester. If USC is cheapest for you I think it should be an easy decision unless you want to work in NYC.</p>
<p>You will enjoy walking through the SC film school. About as close to feeling like a real “Studio” as you can get.</p>
<p>KitKat,</p>
<p>You would be nuts to turn down USC film over any other program. :-). It is, without a doubt, the best in the country. 2 years ago, S1 got accepted to NYU’s Tisch Film, but got rejected from USC’s film production (also got into Northwestern and LMU’s film school.). We consulted with a lot of people, including a few people inthe industry. Everyone in the business said USC is far and away tops. (One guy was a producer who guest lectures at USC and UCLA.). He said S1 was better off minoring in film at USC than getting a major anywhere else. You need to look not only at the school but the location. Besides, NYU’s financial aid is gawdawful. </p>
<p>BTW, it all worked out great for son1! He got into the BCA…a joint major between the business school and the film school. He gets the best of both worlds…all the insights of the film school and a practical, marketable business degree from one of the best business schools inthe country!</p>
<p>Thank you all for your posts. They were very informative! I was leaning towards USC before, now I’m pretty certain. I just have to see how I like the campus/people.
Also, I don’t have any scholarships there (at least not yet), only a very generous grant. Does anyone happen to know how likely it is that the grant will stay close to the same for four years (if the EFC fluctuates 1-5 thousand dollars)?</p>
<p>If your EFC only fluctuates 1-5 thousands dollars, your grant won’t vary any more than that. USC is getting more generous year by year so I don’t think you have too much to worry about.</p>
<p>kitkat, efc depends on many things. If you have a sibling in college now that will soon graduate, that will have an impact on aid. If you have more siblings on the way, that helps with aid. You can talk to FinAid to get an idea of what to expect.</p>
<p>I agree with your “leanings” towards USC for film. It’s amazing.</p>
<p>Okay great, and hopefully there is still a possibility of getting scholarships!</p>
<p>Chapman is a conservatory program. It is all film from the get go. Younare making films first semester freshman year. My son had taken 18 film classes bynthe end of sophomore year, had directed several films and had shot many many ore. (He is a cinematographer.) quite different from “wow! You get to take a film history class”! And USC encourages cutthroat competitive while Chapman emphasizes collaboration and USC owns your films while Chapman leaves all rights with the film maker. Does that matter? Yup. Yup, it does. The student gets to decide what to send to festivals, put out of the web, put on that all so important reel. But USC is more prestigious for what’s that worth. Many I. The I dusty think USC students are arrogant and badly trained. Chapman students are known to be able to come on set and know their way around. If you have your heart set in directing or screenwriting and think you are the best thing ever, try USC. Kf you are interested I other aspects of film production and want to just “make movies” without haing your heart. Rosen because others are more aggressive, Chapman may well be a better choice.</p>
<p>Kids, that’s really nonsense. Perhaps you are impressed with you own experiences at Dodge. That is fine. But I wonder why so many Chapman fans are so defensive? What do you have to prove? Attacking a program that literally thousands have loved and thrived in is silly and unfounded. Plus, the added value to students who choose USC is the education they get from a rigorous BA degree. It seems you are suggesting those who want more of a trade school should perhaps go to Dodge?</p>
<p>The industry, despite your claims (or I think they are your claims–perhaps typos?) is predominantly USC-centric. This industry admires and rewards smart and creative. Whatever university challenges the student the most is probably the one he/she should attend. Sometimes growth depends on getting told your work needs to improve, right?</p>
<p>KitKat can’t go wrong at USC, of course! We did Explore on Thursday. Son was extremely impressed with the facilities, history and glamour of SCA. It was fantastic. But today we spent the day at Dodge (Preview Day at Chapman) and I must say, it was pretty amazing. DS met students, saw their senior projects (his area is animation/digital arts) and talked with faculty. DS was floored. Much to my surprise, both H and I were, too. Son said what impressed him most was that the Dodge students were “extremely centered” and focused, and all had done <em>tons</em> of collaborative work across discipline lines since their first months in the program. They had done multiple internships, and several had jobs lined up already. The senior projects were amazing. I think the program also has a lot to offer. </p>
<p>At USC, though everything was very impressive, students told us that the various programs were a bit more isolated from one another (film students said they didn’t work much with animation/vfx kids, and vice versa). I am no expert on the SCA programs, of course (just reflecting on what they told us). They did not show any student works. We had actually contacted a broker last week about taking equity out of the house to cover USC (in case son really felt it was a better place for him), but he’s decided that the work ethic, energy, intense collaboration and down-to-earth-team work he saw at Dodge fits him far better. He is walking on air. </p>
<p>So…I think there are wonderful things at all three of these programs and no doubt USC will be a great place for you (esp with the FA differential, it’s no-brainer). But for those of you reading this thread in the future: Do not rule out Dodge only because it’s less prestigious and has less history. There is something really special going at Dodge. Those kids are on fire. The work ethic we saw there was inspiring. </p>
<p>Good luck in your decision, KitKat. You will of course be very happy at USC. Congratulations. :)</p>
<p>NYU’s program tends to avant garde films. USC is, whether you are a critical studies or a production major, more mainstream. Chapman, at this point, isn’t on that radar screen. (kids…before you come out swinging…don’t…three generations in the business). </p>
<p>No school can guarantee jobs in the industry. No school precludes a job placement. But given the choice you always pick number 1…be it a program, the candidate for the job, the one with the best grasp of the product.</p>
<p>And yes, congratulations on having the ability to pick and choose. Enjoy college.</p>
<p>I’ll add even more grey area to the decision factor…</p>
<ul>
<li>Chapman is creating its own production studio, not sure if anyone has mentioned that yet.</li>
<li>Not sure I believe how much I hear that SC students don’t get much work making films.</li>
<li>The entertainment industry works on who you know and your connections!</li>
</ul>
<p>The idea that Chapman is seen as ‘close’ to USC in the L.A. film industry is a joke. I don’t know how far apart the actual educations are, but USC is not losing the battle of perception. USC is WAY more bankable in the business, take it from someone who has worked there.</p>
<p>Los Angeles Times Re: Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University wants to overtake USC and NYU:</p>
<p>[Dodge</a> College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University wants to overtake USC and NYU - Los Angeles Times](<a href=“http://articles.latimes.com/2011/apr/10/entertainment/la-ca-chapman-20110410]Dodge”>Film Studies: Chapman University wants to overtake USC and NYU)</p>