I always knew I wanted to have a career in art. I didn’t know exactly what, but I knew it had to be something creative. As a child I was always drawing, painting, or sculpting while most of the other children were watching TV or playing sports. I lived in a small town and did small town work as I grew older. After 5 years of working in the fast food industry I knew I needed out and fast! I ended up in another small town, shocking I know, where I found a job as a waitress. One day while cleaning up a spill on the floor, an AI commercial came on one of the TV sets. It was for the Graphic Design program and I guess that’s where my design story begins.
Entry Into The Program
After requesting info about the Graphic Design program, I was contacted by a very friendly woman from the school. I wanted to enroll in the first available course so I was sped through the application process. Applying for the student loan through the government was hell, as other people before me know. We spent many hours on the phone talking about options and figuring out what would suit me best. As I wasn’t in Vancouver at the time, I skipped the tour of the school and all that fancy stuff.
Oh, yes you were accepted…sorry, your name was?
Everything was said and done except for the written essay portion of the application describing why I should be accepted into the school. For two sleepless nights, I wrote my story. As I love the English language, the essay had to be spotless and a shining piece of art before I would allow myself to submit it. Once complete, I submitted the essay and waited. Waited some more. Still more waiting. As my first day of class drew nearer, I called the school wondering if I had been accepted into the program. After being passed around by several unconcerned receptionists, the original woman who enrolled me said, “Oh, yes you were accepted…sorry, your name was?” I told her my name and she went on to tell me they must have forgotten to inform me, but I had been accepted. Saying the very least, I was slightly upset that my big acceptance was forgotten and then labeled as an “oops”.
We all wondered why these things were happening with no end in sight.
The Classes and Building
The classes at AI were pretty thorough, teaching many of us things we never even knew existed. The classes are 3 months in length and jam packed full of knowledge. I would recommend that you review it all over and over so that hopefully something sticks! For the downtown campus where I was stationed, our program was located on the top floor. This can really be a bother as the elevator frequently stops working. Another slight issue, the rooms are large but somewhat dirty which is quite strange. The computers and Internet sometimes had issues. We all wondered why these things were happening with no end in sight.
The Instructors
I would not return to this school for anything other than the teachers. All of the instructors I had were wonderful. They pushed us to accomplish things we thought were impossible and were always there in the end to congratulate us. All were working professionals and knew their fields to a “T”. Some were very strange. If anyone who went there or is attending now is reading this, you know who I’m speaking about!
The Tuition
The entire cost of the school is very expensive, including loans and whatever else you might need to survive. Make sure to consider shelter and groceries as these things are now quite steep. Those are the costs that you can at least budget for. If you plan to attend AI, you should at least have an extra $5,000 minimum to cover additional fees. There will be many! Some teachers will want you to have certain things not provided by the program, and will frown upon students who do not have them. Get them! It will make your life easier.
For me, AI was an okay experience. It gave me the diploma I required and the credentials to get hired.
The Verdict
For me, AI was an okay experience. It gave me the diploma I required and the credentials to get hired. The reason the computers, elevators and Internet did not always behave was because AI was/is moving all campuses c to one area. Some cost cutting needed to happen. This did affect my studies and there was no discount for lost time. Once you are a student you may be forgotten by the higher ups as they are looking to recruit the next waves of students. At least you’ll make friends and have awesome teachers. If I was to do all this all over again, I would save up for a couple more years and probably have gone to Emily Carr.
http://www.ameliahillyard.com/
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you say you were hired tho… what tips do you have for someone wanting to pursue design ? is it very employable? and what kind of wages am i to expect? all the info you have would be sooo much apreciated! thank you!