Animation and Visual Effects (Career choice,University)

Hi first of all I m 17 years old and will finish scholl in two years.
After that i would like to learn Animation and Visual Effects.
I use Blender since 2 years now and I would love to go in such field.
So I wanted to ask you guys whats the best way to keep learning this, and is it a good option to go to university or should i just learn it from youtube,cg cooki etc.And also if university which would your recommend,mostly in the USA or UK.
So basicly any tips would help me a lot ty :slight_smile:

A great portfolio is far more valuable than a degree, at least where I am. However you’re quite new to this whole thing and probably won’t be able to build up your skills soon enough before you leave school and either get a job or go to university.

That said, I only started with blender about 2-3 years before leaving high school and I managed to get an internship immediately after school, and now I’m employed there. It’s not impossible, you just have to enjoy it, be passionate and curious and constantly push your limits (seriously, keep trying things you know you’ll fail at, but really try hard and you’ll surprise yourself).

All universities will try to convince you that they are the one you have to go to. Don’t believe their crap, talk to the students who graduated and also the ones that are still there. If you’re just as good as those who graduated, you’ll be wasting your time and money. If those who are there feel like they’re learning a lot, that’s great. But too often do I see schools showing great artwork turn out to be crap because the lecturers/mentors hold the students hands through everything and by the end it’s not really the students work anymore and they haven’t actually learnt anything.

And lastly, don’t limit yourself to blender. Don’t be a fanboy, see the bigger picture - users of blender, maya, max, softimage and all the rest, we’re all the same. We all believe our program is the best and none of us want to relearn all that’s taken years to know.

And remember, it’s all about who ya know :wink:

Ty so much for replieng :smiley:
Ya,but its hard to convince your parents or in this case my parents that I also can get a good paying job without a degree,unless i get a job :smiley:
But ye ty

Unless some lecturer or owner of a studio/recruiter tells you that you’re pleanty good enough to get a job, you probably aren’t that good and should look around for universities :slight_smile:

But don’t stress, you’ve got some years of school left, just keep working and improving yourself. But also do what you want - enjoy it.

Take art classes. Look for schools that offer studio art classes. You can pick up the software if you know art, but it’s tough to pick up what you need to know artistically if you don’t practice, and once you get into the software, finding time to practice art becomes difficult.