The Art Institute of Pittsburgh (York, Hamburg: rent, loans, how much)

[Pat_Ace87]

Hello everyone!!!

I'm seriously thinking about applying to The Arts Institute of Pittsburgh for a BA in photography. I am, however, suddenly doubting whether that's a good idea. I've read in previous posts that it's just a money scam, but there are also those who swear by their programs, and how much success they found after their graduation.

I don't expect to find fame and fortune, neither do I expect everything to be perfect right off the bat, but I'd really like to know if it would be worth my time and money to apply here. If there is anyone out there who graduated from one of these institutes (there are various across the US) could you please give me a small run through of your experiences at the institute??!!

Thank You everybody!!

[Internet Superman]

I had a girlfriend Ashley that went there.

They taught her just enough to be dangerous.

She made a portfolio and took some pictures and drew some pictures and painted some pictures and that was about it.

She got married and lived in the Suburbs of Pittsburgh for a couple of years and could not find a job in her field.

When her husband divorced her, she moved back to our small town and I took her in for a while. She was kind of crazy. Finally I gave her the boot and she went off on her own and I guess she is doing well, because she never returned.

Going to school is all in what you make of it. You have to understand that unless you are very famous and people are willing to pay for what you do, you will never be successful in what you do.

Unless you are willing to move to a large city like New York city, and live on next to nothing for years at a time and prove yourself, then there is no way for me to tell you that you will be successful in what you do.

Graphic arts and design and layout will pay money if you get a job somewhere - where they do printing. But in a small town, you will starve before you make enough money to even buy food doing graphic arts.

You will not learn everything there is to know by going to a school. All the school does is gives you a basic knowledge of that particular field and gives you a opportunity to advance as you get more real world experience.

If your only goal is to go to school somewhere and then come back home and expect a job to be waiting there for you - you are sadly mistaken.

The only school that could prepare you for that is Hamburger College at McDonalds.

Only you can decide on what you want to do for the rest of your life and chances are you will change your decision many times over the span of a lifetime. Some people going to college changes their major as many as 3 times in 4 years.

If you think that it might be something that you are interested in, why don't you first move to a city where you can find a job in that field and try it out before you go to school. You might find out that the glamorous side of the job isn't always the same as the work side of it. What is fun to you now - because you do not have to do it for a living, might not be fun when you are facing dead lines and pressure from your employer to produce x amount of work per a week.

I had a childhood friend - Ricky, who went there and loved every minute of it. He came home and could not find a job and had to live in the basement of his sisters home with her husband and 2 children. He ended up moving back to a large city to get a job and I have not seen him since. As long as you have someone that you can fall back on when times gets tough, it might work out good for you. But if you were in a big city and you couldn't make enough money to even pay your rent and you had no place to live, and still had school loans to pay off, then going to a art school might not be such a wise decision.

[iwonderwhy2124]

I have a friend who is about to graduate from the Art Institute with that very photography degree. She does not have a job lined up and is many tens of thousands in debt.

Unless she moves to NYC, gets lucky, or "knows somebody" I doubt that she will ever recoup her investment in her education.

Good luck.

[Hopes]

Like any art school, you have to be willing to move where the jobs are available. It's not realizistic for a Pittsburgher to expect to find an art job in Pittsburgh. That's the problem with Pittsburghers---they so very rarely move away. So most of the complaints you hear from the above two posters are because of Pittsburghers who expected to stay in Pittsburgh.

To give you an idea of how necessary it is to move from Pittsburgh after graduating, check out these Craig's List job listings for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Pittsburgh:

classifieds - craigslist

classifieds - craigslist

classifieds - craigslist

BIG DIFFERENCE!

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by Internet Superman

Graphic arts and design and layout will pay money if you get a job somewhere - where they do printing. But in a small town, you will starve before you make enough money to even buy food doing graphic arts.

There's a critical shortage for graphic design workers in New Zealand. The country is desperate for English speaking immigrants with education and experience in graphic design.

Living in New Zealand is a dream that can become a reality for anyone who is qualified for any of the fields classified as critical demand for the country.

[creepsinc]

My ex spent a ton of money for an Associate's degree from the AA of Atlanta (it's a chain). She soon found out it was useless in her field (photography) and last I heard, she was a receptionist. Just a warning.

[Hopes]

Creeps, I always thought you were a woman!

[creepsinc]

Originally Posted by Hopes

Creeps, I always thought you were a woman!

REALLY?!? What made you think that?

Anyways, I still could be. Just because my ex is a "she" doesn't mean anything.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by creepsinc

REALLY?!? What made you think that?

I never get gender right on the internet!

Originally Posted by creepsinc

Anyways, I still could be. Just because my ex is a "she" doesn't mean anything.

That's sooooooooooo true!

[creepsinc]

Originally Posted by Hopes

I never get gender right on the internet!


That's sooooooooooo true!

Sometimes I think we should have a thread where we all post our pictures. It would be pretty funny to see what all the regulars actually look like.


Edit: this post is about photography (and City-Data itself), so it's not OT.