Is Art School Worth It? Here are 6 Things You Should Know Before Going to Art School

Is going to art school worth it?

This is the common question that often pops up when it comes to art school discussion.

Is true you do not need a degree to be an artist, in fact you should not be going to art school for the sake of a degree. Going to an art school is a unique experience, I completed my B.F.A and M.A at two different art schools on two continents. Art school was a great experience for me, but I am not here to be biased, there are some things I wished I knew before I decided to enroll in art school.

Deciding to go to any college is a big decision and is not something anyone should take lightly because it can cost you a fortune.

If you are still wondering ‘is art school worth it’, let me share with you from my personal experience of the things I wished I knew before going to art school.

#1: Art school is expensive

Besides the tuition fees, accommodation and meals, you have to take into consideration other expenses such as materials, tools, books, printing, equipment, software, travel, and more!

The average tuition fees for art school in The United States is around $42,000. Before going to art school, I highly recommend getting as much info as you can about the facilities available and equipment provided on campus. Some schools loan laptops to students throughout their studies, along with other equipment such as cameras, lighting, tripod, recording device, etc. Check if there is a fee for the loan, and take note into the cost addition.

When it comes to the facilities, look around the studio space, workshop, and library. If you are paying $42,000 per year, the school should have a well-equipped workshop space, including CNC machinery, 3D printer, laser printer, and more.

However, there is a way you can save a ton in art school, your golden pass, the student card! For example, a lot of software offers affordable price subscriptions for the student using a university email address. Even in some stationary shops, they do offer student discounts, so make it a habit to ask everywhere you go if they offer a student discount, you’ll be surprised!

#2: Time Management

Most creative projects are time consuming, knowing how to manage time is key for each project. Being a night owl or pulling an all-nighter are common in the art school, but this practice is unhealthy.

During the first 2 years of my Bachelor program, I was terrible with juggling multiple projects at once and ended up pulling a lot of all-nighter because I thought I worked best at night. I was wrong, my productivity decreased each evening and began to fall behind. As a result, I couldn’t give my 100% on each project and ended up doing the bare minimum just for the sake of completing it before the deadline. Not my proudest moment.

Although some of my best memories are from the all-nighter we pulled at the studio with Disney movie marathon in the background and danced to Taylor Swift’s Shake It Off at 2am to stay awake. I am not here to encourage this vicious cycle that ‘all art students must pull all-nighter’, if you can avoid it and have at least 6 hours of sleep, you are the real MVP.

Starting my Junior year, I learned how to prioritize and manage my project better. I had only 1 all-nighter and that was because of some printing issues.

Whether you are more productive in the morning or evening, please make sure you have enough sleep. Don’t pull an all-nighter for the sake of doing it, it is really not worth it. Your physical and mental health is more important.

Your professor would not care if you haven’t slept for days. If you missed a deadline, that is on you. So please, learn how to prioritize your assignments and projects, do not leave everything till the last minute!

#3: Feeling Confused Post Graduation

With everything in life, you start something with an end goal in mind. In art school, you spent most of your waking hours working on your school project, leaving you with no time to think about your plan post graduation.

During my junior year, I took part in a 6 months internship and that was the closest ‘real world’ practice experience I had in correlation with my degree. The experience was anti-climatic and little to no creative experience at all. I started to doubt my career path, if I wanted to pursue a career similar to my degree after graduation.

It is normal to feel more confused than ever, because you are now exposed with so much more skills and new knowledge, you will be questioning your interest or passion all over again.

Art school is the opportunity to explore and make mistakes. Some people discover their interest early, but some are overwhelmed with choices and struggle to decide what interests them the most.

The key is to lower your expectations post graduation, getting into the creative industry is competitive and the payment is a joke at the start. Most likely you will start as an intern and slowly work your way into a full time position.

Which brings me to my next point, will your degree guarantee you a job?

#4: Your Degree is Not the Golden Ticket to Your Dream Job

Unfortunately, this is the harsh truth. Your degree does not matter, what will get you the job is the connection you made and your portfolio.

But consider this a positive outlook, because your degree does not define the career path, don’t let the title on your degree restrict you on exploring your potential career opportunity. The best part about being in the creative industry is the flexibility to apply your skills in different fields.

If you are a graphic designer graduate, don’t limit your career as a graphic designer only, see what other possibilities you can do with your skills. You can become a UX designer, product designer, branding designer, marketing designer and more!

The bottom line is, don’t go to art school hoping that the degree will be the key to success. It is what you do with your time during your studies, seizing opportunities and the pave you set for yourself that will lead you to a successful career journey.

#5: Fierce Competition

You will be surrounded by creative talented people, and it can be intimidating. You might feel like an imposter and start comparing your work with others. This will only drain your energy and spoil your motivation.

Instead, see it as inspiration and what can you learn from their work? What makes it good? Is it the story behind it? Is it the color palate? Try not to get carried away with the toxic competition around you and focus on your work.

Remember, you are still learning so don’t aim for perfection. Isn’t that the whole point of going to art school, is to learn and improve your skill?

It is easy to get caught up with fierce competition in art school because everyone is seeking validation and recognition of their work. Yes, it helps to get award recognition and publicity, but do not let that get in the way of looking and focus on your own creative process!

#6: Accepting Criticism and Not Taking it Personally

Nothing will crush your soul as much as receiving criticism right after presenting your work. You worked so hard for someone to just simply point out all the flaws in minutes. It can be triggering for some because it might seem personal.

Criticism is direct and it can be harsh, whereas feedback is pointer on how you can improve. No matter how good of an artist or designer you are, you are bound to receive criticism. What’s important is how you react towards criticism, to understand from it, or brush it off and don’t take it personally.

What if you disagree with the criticism? If you have a valid reason to defend otherwise, or weigh out your reasoning, go ahead. It is only natural wanting to defend your work because you know it best, but if you step aside from the presenter point of view and evaluate how you are presenting your work, maybe you missed out a certain point. So, don’t jump to the conclusion right away, try to understand where the criticism is coming from and note it down!

Don’t worry, it gets better in time after getting used to presenting your works for a while.

Conclusion

Now, going back to the question, is art school worth it? How do you feel after reading my insights above?

Art school is there to expose you to new knowledge, skills and experiences, it is not a place where you become specialized or find your true voice as a creative individual right away. As cliché as it sounds, It is a journey of creative discovery.

But again, art school is a huge commitment with no guarantee of career prospects. There are many successful artists and designers with no degree who are successful in what they are doing. They managed to master their craft and become expert at it, making them more marketable.

Remember, what gets you hired at the end of the day is your skill, portfolio and experience, not your degree.

I hope you find my sharing helpful, if you have questions you want to ask relating to art school, feel free to leave a comment below!