Should i attend the art institute

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The school is a joke and worst of all, it is a unaccredited "school". To waste your college years at a place like this truly sad. Do not, under any circumstance, attend this school. Go to an accredited university and have a real college experience. Whoever created this institution has done a great disservice to thousands of well-meaning students.

It's embarrassing telling people where I went to school and even more embarrassing on the resume. There isn't a single day that goes by where I do not curse myself for going to this school. It haunts me daily. If you are reading this and are considering attending the Art Institute, please heed my advice: This school will not give you an education, it will give you a useless and worthless degree.

The first year we actually did stuff relevant to our major, but after that it was pointless filler classes. Without those filler classes there was no way my degree would have taken 2 years to finish. Career services was non-existent. I would go to the office and they would work with me and then they would quit leaving with no one to help me.

They also lied to me; The advisors told me that my pell grant would cover my entire education and that it was free money from the government. They failed to mention that the amount is limited each semester They said there was an "error" with financial aid and asked me to take out private loans.

I refused and the school told me I did not have enough money. They told me if I didn't take out private loans I would be expelled. After 1 year of their shenaningans I unenrolled and never looked back.

Its a complete joke. And then all of a sudden you're kicked out with no explanation. I went to every department. They told me to call a number. I ask for the number. Lost all my aid and my apartment because i had loans out for living Then i go to request my transcripts because I had to move miles back home. Dont waste your money".

Everything was going so well; I rented a motel room so I could attend the interview, I got accepted, I kept in constant contact with the staff who was very nice , one of them even helped me find a great place to live, which is the apartments that are literally a stone-throw away from the campus. That was one of the most horrible moments of my life. I was calling the numbers of the staff I stayed in contact with frantically only to get a "this number was not available".

I called HQ, told me what was happening, I was in tears, and they told me to apply for the online classes.

What also amazed me is that not even the staff knew it was going to happen. They said it was just announced one day that they were closing and one of the nice people who helped me get there had a meltdown and they had to walk her out. I had a break down and spent the next 2 days shivering and vomiting. My nerves couldn't take it Please contact your Student Finance Counselor if you have any questions.

Federal Direct Loan Repayment Plans Depending on your overall federal loan amount that you need to repay along with your current financial situation, there may be different repayment options available to you. This federal resource will provide all of the information you need to be better informed of your repayment options for your federal loans.

Options may include, Standard, Extended, Income Contingent and Income Based repayment plans, depending on your situation. Not all plans are available to all students. While we typically suggest choosing a plan that repays your loan the fastest, generally the Standard plan, the Income Based and Income Contingent plans might be best for you right now. If you have further questions, please contact a Student Finance Counselor at the school for assistance.

Please know that the federal government has the right to change the terms of each plan at any time, including eliminating and adding plans. Students also have the right to change plans, per federal regulations, as needed. Entrance Initial Counseling for Student Loan Borrowers Before receiving a student loan, first time borrowers must complete an entrance counseling session.

This quick and easy interactive counseling session provides useful tips and tools to help you develop a budget for managing your educational expenses and helps you to understand your loan responsibilities. This entrance counseling session can be found on the Federal Student Aid website. Exit Counseling for Student Loan Borrowers Direct loan exit counseling will explain your rights and responsibilities as a direct loan borrower.

Exit counseling information is also located on the Federal Student Aid website. Financial Aid Cost of Attendance The financial aid office uses an estimate of direct and indirect costs to determine how much financial aid a student may be eligible for. Direct costs include tuition, fees, and some books and supplies. Indirect costs include estimates of other living expenses, transportation and personal expenses.

Examples of the cost of attendance estimates used can be found by clicking here. Information in NSLDS is accessible to schools, lenders, and guarantors that are authorized users of the data system. Students are also able to log in and access all of their federal loan and Pell grant information. State Grant Assistance Students attending this school are not eligible for state education grants at this time. Student Loan Information Published by Department of Education Additional information about financial aid, including your specific loan information, can be found by visiting the Department of Education Financial Awareness Counseling along with the Federal Student Aid page.

Military Education Benefits We are committed to helping you—our military service members, veterans and your families—understand the financial investment you are making by pursuing a postsecondary education, along with helping you to understand and uncover the financial aid options for which you may be eligible.

Our Military Brochure provides a summary of the most common military education benefits, including links to the federal sites for more detailed information. In addition, the brochure describes the Financial Aid Shopping Sheet Shopping Sheet that will be provided to you to assist you as you make the important decision to continue your education.

A personalized Shopping Sheet will be created for you in accordance with the Principles of Excellence as outlined in Executive Order For illustrative purposes, please review the Shopping Sheet template prescribed by the Department of Education to participating schools; your Shopping Sheet will follow this format. The Art Institutes offer qualifying military students numerous military education benefits that can help you acquire the knowledge and skills you need to put your passion to work in design, media arts, fashion and culinary careers.

The Military Student Loan Benefits document provides you with an overview of the special benefits and repayment options for your student loans available from the U. Department of Education and the U. Department of Defense. For additional information about military education and housing benefits, explore our Education and Housing Benefits Guidelines.

If you served on Active Duty, you might be eligible for education benefits offered by the Department of Veterans Affairs. If you are currently serving in the military, you may be eligible for funding offered through the Department of Defense Tuition Assistance program. Check your eligibility status and the amount for which you qualify with your Service prior to enrolling. For more information on these benefits, visit www. To learn more about educational benefits for military personnel and veterans, please begin with our military pages here.

The Financial Aid Shopping Sheet Web Page The Shopping Sheet is a model aid award letter designed to simplify the information that prospective students receive about costs and financial aid so they can easily compare institutions and make informed decisions about where to attend school. Further information on the Shopping Sheet can be accessed here. The College Scorecard Web Site A planning tool and resource to assist prospective students and their families as they evaluate options in selecting a school and is located at here.

First and foremost, learning a skill via reading is great. A majority of artists copy their work and technique from other artists in their beginnings. There is nothing wrong with it. So, to buy a book as a means to teach yourself is great. Do it. It helps. Now to buy a book under the notion that it will be used in conjunction with being taught by an artist is another thing entirely. If the teacher is apt and good at teaching, they'll use the book as a guide to illustrate what they're saying. Again, very useful.

Unfortunately, The Art Institute fails at this as well. Not only is the teacher unreachable or often, uninterested in teaching, but, the book you're told to buy is never On the whole, this wouldn't matter, if they weren't so expensive.

Often, the "lessons" are based on pretty basic, step-by-step instructions that can be found literally anywhere on the internet. You buy an over-priced book for a class that has no teacher, to learn information that you could have gotten for free.

The Art Institute is a for-profit school, obviously. So, when it comes to milking you for money, they'll do it. Be it with unnecessary books, fees or signing you up for classes, even after telling them Cal Arts, on the other hand, is legally bound to use whatever profits are made or at least a large majority on enriching the school.

Therefore, Cal Arts has a vested interest in giving students a proper education, because the better their programs, the more students they get, etc. The Art Institute's profits are spent on advertising and paying investors with little put back into it for enrichment.

Once you have enrolled and taken out every loan the U. This is why they cattle -all prospective students. The school enrolls as many students as possible to profit from the student aid they generate. Whether those students pass or are educated is an afterthought. Finally, if you've decided that hey, the education might not be great, but, at least I'll have a "college degree" after all this mess Technically, you're right, you would get a degree, if you pass all the overly easy, rudimentary classes and train on all their outdated software, you would definitely get one.

Tragically, the degree you do get Actually, they might even reject you out of hand for having attended such a rancid place.

Look, I understand that you want to earn money from your talents, that's the dream. If you are a member of the media who has a news inquiry, please contact our Media Inquiry Desk at or aiinewsroom studioenterprise. Overview Interior Design. Overview Advertising. Learn what other scholarships you could apply for.