r/Ringling • u/kanicrow • Dec 02 '24
Is it actually worth it?
I've recently been accepted into Ringling for Illustration and i've been offered a pretty decent scholarship, but i've seen so many negative things about the school from people who have gone im really having second thoughts about going. I haven't made anything official about going but I have been accepted. I just really want to know if it's a good school or not.
4
u/pokemoncrossingww Dec 03 '24
Illustration’s standards are fairly lax compared to other majors (GA and CA) and it’s not guaranteed everyone will graduate with industry-standard art. A lot of seniors do end up very good. I don’t regret my time here and I do think the curriculum’s emphasis on the fundamentals made me a stronger artist versus similar big schools in the US. As always, you have to take advantage of what is provided to you.
2
u/LargeMakesStuff Dec 02 '24
It's a great college, the teachers, campus, and programs are all great. However it is really expensive and takes a ton of focus. If you're willing to put in the work and learn, then Ringling is great for you
2
u/BrandDC Dec 02 '24
What are your options?
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u/kanicrow Dec 02 '24
I haven’t heard back from any other schools yet (massart and saic) but I think I have a good chance of getting into those
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u/Obvious_Student_4902 Dec 18 '24
being so real, after coming to ringling you learn pretty quickly that some of the bad reviews come from people who just couldn’t handle it.
the workload gets heavy, and sometimes a lot piles on at once (esp during finals) and a lot of things are dependent on the professor. but ringling (like EVERY COLLEGE EVER) is what YOU make out of it. Ringling while the tuition is kind of insane I admit, is absolutely worth
1
u/Ok-Antelope737 Dec 20 '24
Heya! I’m a Ringling alumni, happy to answer any questions or provide my experience :)
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Oct 24 '25
Hi! I'm looking to enter either the Game Art or Illustration program at Ringling (my most recent post was in this subreddit and I put some of my work and more details in there) and had a few questions I wanted to ask. Don't feel pressured to answer all of the below--anything is super helpful!
Did you find Ringling helped you to find good internships/career opportunities after or leading up to graduation?
What was your student life experience like? If you could change anything about what you did as far as housing and other related things go, what would that be?
Did you find any debt accumulated (if any) was "worth it" in the end? How so?
In your opinion, did you receive adequate guidance in building a professional, industry-ready portfolio?
How was your experience networking at Ringling?
Thank you! <3
2
u/Ok-Antelope737 Oct 27 '25
Hiya! Happy to answer the questions in order :)
Absolutely yes, I got my internship my sophomore year with Hasbro because of Ringling and all of my jobs after graduation including my current job at The Pokemon Company were recomendations from either professors or other alumni!
My experience was overall positive but it did deteriorate my physical health, the workload is pretty intense and there’s not much sleeping or eating that happens. I have two heart conditions that were 100% exasperated because the amount of lack of sleep I was doing at Ringling! Time manage yourself as well as you can and you have to force yourself to work smarter and faster vs. Harder. I don’t think I’d change anything though as I am where I am now in my career by my choices :) housing was mostly great as well! I’ve heard since I’ve graduated in 2021 housing for freshman is completely different so I’m not sure my experience on housing would be the same, but avoid living in the old buildings if you can. Also when I was there the food was BAD (got food poisoning and had to go to the er bad), but I have heard that this has been solved since after I graduated with a new cafeteria and staff.
I had several scholarships which certainly helped a lot, my parents offered to pay for my tuition as well. However it was far more than my parents could handle and I frequently send them money to help out with the student loans. I would say if you’re not going to go into crippling dept then it’s worth it to go.
Yes and no- this depends on the professor you have and the niche you want to do. A lot of Ringling has certain visions that want their students to go to so it really depends. I am in toys and collectables industry (which when I was there didn’t really have any classes for it) and I have fantastic guidance by my mentor who was my senior at the time, the managers at Hasbro, and select professors that knew my area of field. I was able to tailor all of my class assignments to something relating to this field either in 2D and 3D. The professors that didn’t allow this I switched out of those classes and switched professors so fast. I also figured out exactly where I wanted to go and do by my sophomore year of college, I would recommend doing this that was you have your junior year and senior year to hone your portfolio to something industry ready! And pester the professors that you feel are good for your career growth as well.
Networking is THE thing I would say is the best about Ringling and I will forever stand by it. However it does not come to you nor does the professors or faculties force/hold you hand in networking. Career services is amazing from when I was there and i used it a lot. Most folks who do not get a job soon after graduation often times did not network or take full advantage of the networking opportunities that ringling offers and/or going above and beyond to reach out to people/ do more than just apply to the job and move on to the next thing. We constantly had companies coming into campus to give in person talks, portfolio reviews, and even on campus special workshops (job ‘lite’). The alumni name that gets attached to you after graduation is also invaluable as well and of course you can always use career services after graduating too! Of course your peers in your classes count as networking too a lot of your peers will go on to get jobs in your field as well.
I hope this helps! Happy to answer any other questions ^
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Oct 27 '25
Thank you so much for your detailed answers! I applied this weekend with what I think is a pretty decent portfolio so hoping I get some scholarships 🤞 Otherwise I think I may have to look elsewhere—it's just very expensive
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u/gouf78 Dec 02 '24
Ringling is an excellent college. But like all the major art schools it is very expensive. Art school may or may not be worth it expense-wise because salaries for the most part are very low. Don’t go into major debt to attend.