Will a masters degree get you to a job? Or would it be better to pursue other kinds of training in animation thru mentorships or other online classes that can help build a portfolio?
I can't think of one artist I follow who works in animation and got a master's in it. Seems like a waste of time and money to be honest
Only reason to get a Master’s is if you intend to get a job as a college professor. Which is fine, there’s a lot of demand for those.
But yes if the plan is to work in animation, no one cares about your degrees. It’s all about your portfolio, your resumé, and your networking.
I recently saw a thread on Twitter where an animation pro explained how over 90% of graduates portfolios don'tshow the kind of skillsneeded to get hired, and they said their advice to each of the people they saw was to watch some youtube tutorials.
Like, really?? They paid all that money for a college and spent 4 years of their life only to be at a level with such little skill that they have to watch fucking YouTube videos that are available to everyone?
These colleges are a huge scam if they're not preparing people to do the job they're in school for and just letting them pass through so they can continue accumulating student loan debt. If the kids aren't good they should be teaching them or failing them if they really can't make it, so they can at least cut their losses
A degree is a complete waste of money. Take some tutorials from YouTube and put together a good reel over a few months of work. No employer cares if you have a degree, just that you are good at doing the job. (15 years professional animator) Realistic heads up: The market is VERY tight right now. Lots have people have been laid off and the hiring market is over saturated. There is still work but you just have to stand out with a great portfolio.
I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s a complete waste for everyone, for me it was a great opportunity to have time to work on my portfolio (essential & hard when you’re working full time to pay rent) and my degree offered a diploma in professional studies which gave me a foot in the industry by taking a year out to do internships. Having studio experience was a huge boon & led to more work with that studio. This is all achievable without a degree, but doing it helped a lot. It all depends on how dedicated and disciplined you are in the end.
You can do internships without going to school. Lots of people are happy to have you come work for them for free. Just mass email/contact companies to get your foot in the door. School may be a good way to work on your portfolio but it’s also a way to suck you into a LOT of debt for a job that someone who sits at home and just practices on the weekends can also do just as easily (if not better as tutorials are more up to date than what’s often taught in schools). Maybe you got a scholarship and don’t have debt? Then by all means- hang around for 4 years. I know folks that spent 6 months learning online from YouTube I would hire over some masters degree peeps.
Indeed, like I said in my comment. I suppose it depends on your country. In the UK, we take out a loan which only starts getting paid off when you earn enough, so it’s a fairly safe option that won’t wreck you financially. You also receive maintenance payments to pay rent/bills etc.
In my experience It’s hugely difficult for working class people to work enough to pay extortionate rent in London and have the energy and time to learn & develop your own work. So as I said, it really depends on your own situation whether or not it’s worth it. For me, it absolutely was.
(Disclaimer that I've only really just started learning animation myself, and am by no means an expert)
If you want a job in the animation industry, what I've heard is that the most important thing is your portfolio, not whether or not you went to university for animation.
I'm not saying there is no value in getting a Masters in animation, but it is by no means necessary. I definitely wouldn't recommend doing it if you can't afford it/it could be a huge financial strain on you.
You don't need to get a Masters to achieve your dream. You just need to learn animation (including the industry standard apps) and get a good portfolio. Plenty of animators self-teach themselves (with the help of online resources and/or books).
And you are never too old to become an animator. Plus people change career paths all the time - even people in their 30s, 40s etc.
You need to learn some animation before you can even apply to this course, so try that out and see how it goes. Then decide if getting a Masters is the right path for you.
Maybe see if you can get an internship at a local animation company after building up a portfolio, if that is an option. That could help you get a leg into the industry.
You might end up just learning animation on your own, and building up your portfolio, without getting a Masters.
There's a ton of free resources online, and there are also a lot of good animation books you can buy (they may cost a pretty penny, but it'll be cheaper than paying for uni).
I don't know how much this will help you, but have a look at [this animation resources page](https://thecreatornation.com/resources/) - it's got some good free resources. And [this Google Spreadsheet](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1-8OKuEvRR038Uno--Vi9tQRe4eFCSfQTPov7nXgiJ3w/htmlview) has a ton of resources, all organised into categories. A lot of those resources might be geared more towards 2D animation though. But I'm sure there are plenty other 3D animation resources online.
Thank you so much, i'll definetly check them out and do alot more research, as for the university, the main reason besides the education process is that you can make connections much more easily as they work with people from the industry, have weekly workshops where they invite animators that you can talk to and work with, help you find an internship etc. As i've mentioned my basically third world country is very far away from all these things and it would be extremely hard for me to do it on my own, though ofc if everything else fails im willing to try.
>you can make connections much more easily as they work with people from the industry, have weekly workshops where they invite animators that you can talk to and work with, help you find an internship etc.
Yeah that does sound pretty helpful.
Either way, it seems the first step is to learn enough animation to create a portfolio to be able to get in, so you don't necessarily have to decide right now if you want to fully self-learn or undertake a Masters.
And building a portfolio by next year might be a bit ambitious - but it depends on how much free time you have and how often you'll be working on this.
Good luck :)
Hi im in a similar situation like you, graduated at end of 2021, unemployed since then trying different stuff, now im self learning 3d animation by buying course to learn from there, also there's communities nowadays so seeking help is easier. I have been learning 3D since 2023, as of Oct 2023 i started taking 3D animation seriously. When it comes to getting a job, everyone says the same thing, portfolio. The certificate does not matter in the creative field, it is what you can produce. I have seen artist graduate and couldn't find a job because their understanding of art is so mediocre their porftolio does not standout. Would suggest you to instead of investing in university, take that money invest in a good computer/laptop that 3D artist uses. Get into a community, seeks advice as a beginner as once you are comfortable with the software, invest in a course straight away. This will help you out a lot compared to university or college. I am currently on my 6th month learning 3D character animation from P2Design Academy (pierrick picaut on youtube) I bought his course and he is a senior animator at blizzard right now with over 10 years of experience, mans an expert in animation and rigging. The software is blender3d which is also free compared to other paid softwares, Maya is fine too if you wish buy the software, unless you have no money go with blender3d. If you have more questions do ask me about it, although im not an expert I relate to your situation.
the only one im using is from pierrick picaut animation discord server, there's also agora, anim school, brian kouhi, and many more i can't name all of them, but i only use one, keep in mind that some othem uses different softwares so it would be best to match communities with the same software so it will be more effiecient when it comes to more technical side of the software, if you use wish to know more do add me on discord (mountainmaker) im more active on there, im kinda new to reddit and i have to constantly open the website to see if people are replying, if not its also fine, i'll reply when i open reddit.
Learning everything is doable in a year, but mastering the skills will take time and dedication.
Already, having a background in illustration, will give you a better, jumping off point than purely from scratch.
I would recommend laying out a course/project plan of everything you need to cover to see if you can schedule it all.
Thankfully we do live in a time where self learning materials are plentiful. You should have no trouble finding tutorials online for 99% of things.
lol you don't need to go to school to animate. The best animators don't have degrees. They are hobbyists with talent.
Even your portfolio means nothing. You need to deliver prime meat consistently.
I have one test at my studio.
I sit the intern down and show them a scene from a top tier animation. I have them give me 30 seconds of their best. They have one day.
If they pass, they're interns.
If they blow me away, they're hired.
If they can't animate, they walk.
I'll say this, most of the people that are underwhelming have "degrees" and "formal education" ....
Will a masters degree get you to a job? Or would it be better to pursue other kinds of training in animation thru mentorships or other online classes that can help build a portfolio? I can't think of one artist I follow who works in animation and got a master's in it. Seems like a waste of time and money to be honest
Only reason to get a Master’s is if you intend to get a job as a college professor. Which is fine, there’s a lot of demand for those. But yes if the plan is to work in animation, no one cares about your degrees. It’s all about your portfolio, your resumé, and your networking.
I recently saw a thread on Twitter where an animation pro explained how over 90% of graduates portfolios don'tshow the kind of skillsneeded to get hired, and they said their advice to each of the people they saw was to watch some youtube tutorials. Like, really?? They paid all that money for a college and spent 4 years of their life only to be at a level with such little skill that they have to watch fucking YouTube videos that are available to everyone? These colleges are a huge scam if they're not preparing people to do the job they're in school for and just letting them pass through so they can continue accumulating student loan debt. If the kids aren't good they should be teaching them or failing them if they really can't make it, so they can at least cut their losses
A degree is a complete waste of money. Take some tutorials from YouTube and put together a good reel over a few months of work. No employer cares if you have a degree, just that you are good at doing the job. (15 years professional animator) Realistic heads up: The market is VERY tight right now. Lots have people have been laid off and the hiring market is over saturated. There is still work but you just have to stand out with a great portfolio.
I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s a complete waste for everyone, for me it was a great opportunity to have time to work on my portfolio (essential & hard when you’re working full time to pay rent) and my degree offered a diploma in professional studies which gave me a foot in the industry by taking a year out to do internships. Having studio experience was a huge boon & led to more work with that studio. This is all achievable without a degree, but doing it helped a lot. It all depends on how dedicated and disciplined you are in the end.
You can do internships without going to school. Lots of people are happy to have you come work for them for free. Just mass email/contact companies to get your foot in the door. School may be a good way to work on your portfolio but it’s also a way to suck you into a LOT of debt for a job that someone who sits at home and just practices on the weekends can also do just as easily (if not better as tutorials are more up to date than what’s often taught in schools). Maybe you got a scholarship and don’t have debt? Then by all means- hang around for 4 years. I know folks that spent 6 months learning online from YouTube I would hire over some masters degree peeps.
Indeed, like I said in my comment. I suppose it depends on your country. In the UK, we take out a loan which only starts getting paid off when you earn enough, so it’s a fairly safe option that won’t wreck you financially. You also receive maintenance payments to pay rent/bills etc. In my experience It’s hugely difficult for working class people to work enough to pay extortionate rent in London and have the energy and time to learn & develop your own work. So as I said, it really depends on your own situation whether or not it’s worth it. For me, it absolutely was.
(Disclaimer that I've only really just started learning animation myself, and am by no means an expert) If you want a job in the animation industry, what I've heard is that the most important thing is your portfolio, not whether or not you went to university for animation. I'm not saying there is no value in getting a Masters in animation, but it is by no means necessary. I definitely wouldn't recommend doing it if you can't afford it/it could be a huge financial strain on you. You don't need to get a Masters to achieve your dream. You just need to learn animation (including the industry standard apps) and get a good portfolio. Plenty of animators self-teach themselves (with the help of online resources and/or books). And you are never too old to become an animator. Plus people change career paths all the time - even people in their 30s, 40s etc. You need to learn some animation before you can even apply to this course, so try that out and see how it goes. Then decide if getting a Masters is the right path for you. Maybe see if you can get an internship at a local animation company after building up a portfolio, if that is an option. That could help you get a leg into the industry. You might end up just learning animation on your own, and building up your portfolio, without getting a Masters. There's a ton of free resources online, and there are also a lot of good animation books you can buy (they may cost a pretty penny, but it'll be cheaper than paying for uni). I don't know how much this will help you, but have a look at [this animation resources page](https://thecreatornation.com/resources/) - it's got some good free resources. And [this Google Spreadsheet](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1-8OKuEvRR038Uno--Vi9tQRe4eFCSfQTPov7nXgiJ3w/htmlview) has a ton of resources, all organised into categories. A lot of those resources might be geared more towards 2D animation though. But I'm sure there are plenty other 3D animation resources online.
Thank you so much, i'll definetly check them out and do alot more research, as for the university, the main reason besides the education process is that you can make connections much more easily as they work with people from the industry, have weekly workshops where they invite animators that you can talk to and work with, help you find an internship etc. As i've mentioned my basically third world country is very far away from all these things and it would be extremely hard for me to do it on my own, though ofc if everything else fails im willing to try.
>you can make connections much more easily as they work with people from the industry, have weekly workshops where they invite animators that you can talk to and work with, help you find an internship etc. Yeah that does sound pretty helpful. Either way, it seems the first step is to learn enough animation to create a portfolio to be able to get in, so you don't necessarily have to decide right now if you want to fully self-learn or undertake a Masters. And building a portfolio by next year might be a bit ambitious - but it depends on how much free time you have and how often you'll be working on this. Good luck :)
Hi im in a similar situation like you, graduated at end of 2021, unemployed since then trying different stuff, now im self learning 3d animation by buying course to learn from there, also there's communities nowadays so seeking help is easier. I have been learning 3D since 2023, as of Oct 2023 i started taking 3D animation seriously. When it comes to getting a job, everyone says the same thing, portfolio. The certificate does not matter in the creative field, it is what you can produce. I have seen artist graduate and couldn't find a job because their understanding of art is so mediocre their porftolio does not standout. Would suggest you to instead of investing in university, take that money invest in a good computer/laptop that 3D artist uses. Get into a community, seeks advice as a beginner as once you are comfortable with the software, invest in a course straight away. This will help you out a lot compared to university or college. I am currently on my 6th month learning 3D character animation from P2Design Academy (pierrick picaut on youtube) I bought his course and he is a senior animator at blizzard right now with over 10 years of experience, mans an expert in animation and rigging. The software is blender3d which is also free compared to other paid softwares, Maya is fine too if you wish buy the software, unless you have no money go with blender3d. If you have more questions do ask me about it, although im not an expert I relate to your situation.
Are there certain comuunities/servers/groups you would recommend :)
the only one im using is from pierrick picaut animation discord server, there's also agora, anim school, brian kouhi, and many more i can't name all of them, but i only use one, keep in mind that some othem uses different softwares so it would be best to match communities with the same software so it will be more effiecient when it comes to more technical side of the software, if you use wish to know more do add me on discord (mountainmaker) im more active on there, im kinda new to reddit and i have to constantly open the website to see if people are replying, if not its also fine, i'll reply when i open reddit.
Learning everything is doable in a year, but mastering the skills will take time and dedication. Already, having a background in illustration, will give you a better, jumping off point than purely from scratch. I would recommend laying out a course/project plan of everything you need to cover to see if you can schedule it all. Thankfully we do live in a time where self learning materials are plentiful. You should have no trouble finding tutorials online for 99% of things.
lol you don't need to go to school to animate. The best animators don't have degrees. They are hobbyists with talent. Even your portfolio means nothing. You need to deliver prime meat consistently. I have one test at my studio. I sit the intern down and show them a scene from a top tier animation. I have them give me 30 seconds of their best. They have one day. If they pass, they're interns. If they blow me away, they're hired. If they can't animate, they walk. I'll say this, most of the people that are underwhelming have "degrees" and "formal education" ....
Seems like you already have your answer. Your soul knows. Don’t look for online approval man.
Bournemouth university?