07/27/09

Mediocre school at best

by kat0012

I am just about to finish my Master's Degree in Fashion Merchandising and I am very disappointed in this school and frustrated. There is no job networking, placement, or assistance offered. There is no real education given. Often times I would be the only native and fluent English speaker in my lecture classes. This makes a lecture difficult to have and the teaching rudimentary. If you are looking for a real education and real knowledge for your field, don't spend the money to come here. It does not get you anything more than what AI or SFAI could provide. It is a lot of money to leave feeling like I have learned nothing and actually feel that I have gotten dumber in my time here......

• Pros: None that I can think of after two years
• Cons: Absolutely everything

09/26/08

Do your homework

by KBfilmmaker

Academy of Art is definitely a good school to check out. Depending on the program you're interested in you may find that some of their programs are much better than others. One of my good friends is in the graphics design program and totally loves it. Good quality teachers that know their stuff and great resources. I looked into the film department here and although the program is "good enough", i think that if you want a good film school in the San Francisco Bay Area there are definitely others to consider as well. One that I've been really impressed by is the producing/directing program at Berkeley Digital Film Institute. Overall, the Academy is fine, but I wouldn't limit yourself just because they have the most money to advertise. I'd definitely do my homework before deciding.

09/14/06

Inside Info

by dorotheej

used to work here and take classes so I know the inner workings. First off the people who teach here have no teaching credentials or training. That's just so that they don't have to pay more to better qualified people. Also, the teachers are supposed to be professionals in the fields they are teaching. My teacher designed computer programs for a living, and the class was not about computer programming. The classes I took happened to be unhelpful. Some classes are probably good while others are very poor. (I only had poor classes, so that's my guess.)

Also the people in the department I worked in are very religious. The annual christmas party for employees is even held in a church. The school even kicked a student out for writing a first draft for a screen play that contained too much violence. To find that information on the internet use the search words: "sfgate academy of art"

So if you want to attend a very conservative school with a very religious office staff that is big on censorshipm then this is the school for you! Don't forget the credits at this school won't transfer to other schools."

If you search for the words "sfweekly academy of art" on the internet you will find another interesting article about the school.