Hey everyone! I’m currently in college and pursuing a career in computer graphics and I need a little advice from those in the industry. I’ve been working with Maya for about 6 months and been reading about and toying with Zbrush for a little bit as well and I’ve fully decided to become a modeler, focusing on characters but working on environments, props, etc. as well. The question I have is what kind of degree should I focus on? Many schools in southern California (where I am from) have generic animation degrees. But would it be more profitable to get a degree in fine art focused in traditional sculpture or traditional art? Then attend a more focused school of visual effects to gain more knowledge of the Maya, Zbrush, etc? (Gnomen, trade schools, etc.) I need to make a decision on transfering to a University in fall, so I just wanted to know what the people who actually do the hiring or are in the CG industry think. Thank you so much! Looking forward to your input!!
Go get some fine art and sculpting ‘hard skills’. The CG stuff is a variation. Also without Art History and backgrounds like that you will not be able to understand a lot of concepts either. And others who do will always have an edge on you. A lot of CG ‘artists’ think that pushing sliders and knowing menu’s is earning them a dime. But it’s the concept behind that which pays. Bottom Row is for slider jokey’s and the Top Row for the artists who add that extra bit of magic.
my2cents and taking cover
Rainer
There is not much of a substitute for a person that understands and can manipulate real matter… like clay, stone, metal, charcoal,graphite,ink or paints. If you read close, many job postings mention a traditional training/skill as a benefit when looking for an applicant. Playing with sliders and dials is needed in CGI, but as stated above, there’s another level of knowledge underneath all of them that tends to speak for itself. Unfortunately, traditional art methods are somewhat hard to teach and take a long time of personal dedication to learn.
Good luck to you!
In my experience a talented modeler is required to have a level of knowledge in other areas of 3D…
Someone referred to as “slider jocky” would also be considered a generalist, and a senior generalist would go beyond presets.
However the skills a senior modeler is required to have include knowledge of how to improve modeling work flows, therefore understanding other 3D disciplines e.g lighting, shading, rendering, animation, rigging, uv layout and texturing.
To gain all of these skills will take roughly 3~5 yrs experience in the industry.
Even then some may skill consider you mid level depending.
As for the traditional skills, well ever wondered why there aren’t any digital masters to rival the traditional masters?
IMO its because traditional skills will take you the rest of your life to master, and digital skills keep changing all the time therefore programs become easier to use and effects which used to be developed by instituitions are now available from the comfort of your desktop.
I say go for it 
speacialise! but keep an eye on all those other skills, because they make you more valuable in productions.
hope that helps,
right click throws grenade, ctrl to crouch behind cover 
Thanks for all the input everyone! As I had assumed, it seems like getting a degree in traditional fine arts, will really benefit me in the long run. I really appreciate all the advice. At least I know what direction to head in now. Please, if anyone else has any more opinions or advice , let me know. I want to get all the info I can. Thanks a lot!
I have two degrees. One in computer animation and one in graphic design. I’d trade them both for a BAA of fine arts. It would have moved me along much more quickly. The animation degree is useless unless you actually want to be an animator, which I definitely do not. Go with fine arts and play with ZBrush and Maya in your down time.
db
I used to work in blender but now I prefer zbrush. My mentor advised me to finish art school to gain more knowledge about body sculpting. It is also worth reading examples of student works, more information It is difficult to get a job without art courses, so I recommend completing them.
Hey everyone! I’m currently in college and pursuing a career in computer graphics and I need a little advice from those in the industry. I’ve been working with Maya for about 6 months and been reading about and toying with Zbrush for a little bit as well and I’ve fully decided to become a modeler, focusing on characters but working on environments, props, etc. as well. The question I have is what kind of degree should I focus on? Many schools in southern California (where I am from) have generic animation degrees. But would it be more profitable to get a degree in fine art focused in traditional sculpture or traditional art? By the way if you need to create worksheet template, you can use worksheet generator and easely create at storyboardthat.com . Then attend a more focused school of visual effects to gain more knowledge of the Maya, Zbrush, etc? (Gnomen, trade schools, etc.) I need to make a decision on transfering to a University in fall, so I just wanted to know what the people who actually do the hiring or are in the CG industry think. Thank you so much! Looking forward to your input!!
Yes, although the visual arts industry has made a huge step forward since its inception, we still have room to grow in this direction. There are many good colleges, but if you don’t study and strive to learn more, nothing good will come of it. Always remember that.