[joonsungwa]

I'm a senior applying to colleges this winter!
I've been the biggest optimist ever through out my high skool years..
and one of the biggest factors that contributed to that is the fact that
im not one of those typical smart- ivy-league bound asians.

ive been tryin to comfort myself by telling myself that "if i do wat i love, i'll be succesful eventually"
but i still have doubts about my dream of majoring in ART.

I mean, i consider myself to be a very motivated student and i do hav an 'okay' academic record..
but none of those things stand out as much as my artistic instincts.
ive never had more compliments in my life than i did in my art classes. (not to mention, im krazed about designing since i was a child) Am i being too unreal? hoping too much? i don't want to gamble with my future.


*i just wanted to add that a lot of asian parents now days seem to be 'deciding'
which skools their kids should go, according to the newspaper articles about 'top 10 universities'
list.... that's so stupid..

[TyneeTom]

What's up.

My name's Thomas, hello there Joon.

I am also an artist.......sort of.

But thats aside the point, what I mainly wanted to ask is.

So let's pretend you went to school to major in art.

The question is.....what happens after that major? What are your goals really, are you shooting to working somewhere? What kind of designing do you actually mean? Like drafter for Boeing? Designing cars? Designing 3d models for a video game? Designing houses?

What kind of art are you good at? Drawing? Ceramics? Like making clay kind of deal?

And what I have to tell you is,

You're gonna have to be a gambler. If you wanna take your life to where you want it you have to make a decision, and execute the plan.

Have to take risks. And if the plan fails....well thats where you then need to have the strength to get up and try again.

one more thing.

Someone once told me.

"Don't make your hobby your job."
"You'll end up hating your job/hobby."
"It's not fun anymore if it's work"

I don't know what that has to do with anything...but i felt it was important to share that bit with ya.

[P-Dog]

I'm a senior applying to colleges this winter!
I've been the biggest optimist ever through out my high skool years..
and one of the biggest factors that contributed to that is the fact that
im not one of those typical smart- ivy-league bound asians.

ive been tryin to comfort myself by telling myself that "if i do wat i love, i'll be succesful eventually"
but i still have doubts about my dream of majoring in ART.

I mean, i consider myself to be a very motivated student and i do hav an 'okay' academic record..
but none of those things stand out as much as my artistic instincts.
ive never had more compliments in my life than i did in my art classes. (not to mention, im krazed about designing since i was a child) Am i being too unreal? hoping too much? i don't want to gamble with my future.
*i just wanted to add that a lot of asian parents now days seem to be 'deciding'
which skools their kids should go, according to the newspaper articles about 'top 10 universities'
list.... that's so stupid..

Some careers in art are pretty lucrative -- if you can obtain the position. For instance, artists who work for movie studios & digital production companies aren't too shabby. I knew of someone who got a job at Lucas Arts straight out of High School, and he's been doing very well ever since. Of course, I have no idea on how tough it is to get such a position for aspiring artists. I encourage you to try to find out these things before you make a final decision, and of course pass this on to your parents as well.

You're quite talented, so regardless of whether you pursue a career in art or not, I hope you can at least continue painting/drawing.

[LucasBunny]

Hey durr, I'm an artist as well
and now I have a job in a huge photolab..just go for it
waste no time hehehehe.

No really, if that's what u wanna do just do it.

[Edward]

Shouldn't this go in the College students section?

I think you should major in whatever you want to do.. it is sometimes the case that our majors don't really matter because most people get jobs that have nothing to do with their majors.

[Juli~<3]

you should do a major in what you want to do because then you would excel. if you are made to do something your whole heart wont be in it and so it wouldnt be that good.

[Malice_Kaiser]

Hey, there. I'm an artist as well. People are always telling me to go into art for a career, but, like you, I'm EXTREMELY iffy about it. I don't wanna end up poor, y'know?

Basically how I feel... Well, I'm probably going to end up teaching English as a foreign language, and art will be a in-your-free-time type of thing. But in your situation, how would you feel about teaching art? It's so hard to find a job as just an artist, especially fresh out of college. But I think it'd be a good idea to teach an art class (an income you could probably count on) until you really are able to get a hold in any other field you're currently thinking of.

Good luck with this! Looking at your art thread I can tell you've got all the potential in the world. I'm sure it'll take you somewhere; you're damn talented.

[TyneeTom]

yeah man....anybody who can make a tiger's face from advanced crayons(pastels) must be pretty gifted. lol.

[seriatim_*]

personally you're amazing. haha i looked at your thread and quite frankly i'm jealouss


haha i'm shooting for an art major in school too but, i'm not expecting the greatest time and job opportunities. i'm thinking about going into as someone as above, movie studios & digital production companies. something around that and i mean my fall back plan is to become a teacher. it's stably financially and plus. MAJOR amounts of vacations. lol

anyways. i hope everything works out and don't let the possibility of failure keep you back. lol because then you won't get anywhere. lol i learned that. hopefully things work out for you!!


btw where are you thinking of applying?

[crackednut]

My mom once told me it was a gamble, but I convinced her otherwise
(currently doing college apps)

Its not much of a risk...UNLESS you're not the type to build a network of connections, because thats a big part of actually making a career out of art, who you know.
If you're too much of an introvert but insanely talented, you won't make it as well as someone who knows more people but may not be as 'skilled'.
You'll end up like the Van Gogh's of the art world, famous after you're dead (but if thats your thing, go for it)
You need to make a network of people who KNOW how skilled you are as well as if you're easy to work with. Create a network (grabbed this concept from this networking assignment my bro is doing for marketing)

Over the years, I think its become a lot more acceptable for people, yes even Asians, to major in the visual arts.
I'm going for Illustration myself...and my friend wants to do Fashion Design.

So...be devoted...don't slack off...don't be afraid to connect with people.
I think art school is going to be a great way of improving your skills as well as learning new things. So also don't be afraid to experiment and gain versatlity.
CONFIDENCE IS KEY!!

[joonsungwa]

thanks so much for every single responds!
it means so much to me, especially coming from ppl with similar interest as me.
i've never been so confused in my life, but i feel wayyyyy more certain about wat i wanna do now.

*can't believe i gained more advices from ppl i never met than anywhere else lol

()(_ _)()

[EYJAYJAY]

ah ive seen your artwork thread before. yes u are artistic and yep, like others said, its a gamble. i faced the same problem as you did and i took the other road simply because i had no support from parents to start off with when it comes to being an art major and also because i tend to play it 'safe'. i do regret it though. i really wish i took the chance and went to an art school for photography but it's too late right now, 3 yrs into college and doing fairly well as a physical therapy major. i'll have photography as my hobby, who knows.. maybe one day when i make enough money as physical therapist i'll take some time off and go to art school. but most of all, think it through and make sure that u won't feel any regrets for whichever decision you make.

[SoupSandwich]

I'm currently attending Academy of Art in San Fran for Computer Arts: New Media (webdesign and shiz) and it's already a competitive field.

I deffffinitely feel you. Already I owe helllla money on loans and what not. T_T Pretty tough. I definitely see the whole "Starving Artists" idea happening to me. People that try to major in Art get hosed right from the start, imo.

[sheart]

i go to california college of the arts (oakland and sf). it can be competetive, but its a really great place. we have really amazing teachers esp in the design field (look up mark fox or jason munn) it is expensive though.
well im promoting my school. its in like the top 5 schools for design or something (or so i hear)

college is a big deal, but honestly, its not like youll fail at life no matter what you choose. if you really love it it wont matter (toooo much) if you dont become a big name or something. and it shouldnt feel like a waste if you are proud of what you do anyway.
good luck!

[glow*]

I don't attend an art school but I am an art major.
My parents aren't against what I want to do but they insisted I stay where I am and make sure of what I want to do before I spend thousands of dollars and ending up changing my major.
I was going to go to art school in Cali but stayed here and decided to transfer next year.
I think that this was both a mistake and a good choice.
A mistake because I can't get the best education possible for my major here but both my parents and I know what I want to do, for sure.

You still have a bit of time to think it over and i've seen your art.
It's amazing.
I say you go for what you want because though many people think art won't make much money, if you're really good at what you do there's so many opportunities for you.
So, I say that you stick with your goals and go through with them.

[untungl]

Honestly, I've never seen an unhappy art major at my school.

Which means they change majors if they don't like it. You can too!
Just give it a try and then if you don't like it, do something else. You have 4 years.

[December23rd]

ART MAJOR?

You guys meant pARTy MAJOR right?

Sorry!

[Sou]

I'm an art major-- it's the hardest major you'll ever go for, but I think it's worth every second.

On the asian parent note, I'm two years behind in university because I went to the school my mom wanted me to go to-- and then I failed out on purpose so that she'd let me go somewhere else. >>;;

[dazzleanddestroy]

i am in the same position as you.
though, i never took any art classes my whole life.
art is my hobby.. i seem to do best in that field than any other.
if you feel this way, go for it! like the above comments, you can always change major if you feel that you can't do it.

[MaryMagdalin]

yes i wanted to do art as well
but instead i went into design and i`m going to minor in art
design is the next best bet you`ll have a high chance of getting a decent job in the field try design!

there is visual communication design which coud be a lot of drawing =)