All right, as you can tell from my title, I like to draw and I was hoping to use this to my advantage and major in Industrial Design in college. (I will be a senor in high school this August) I mean, it makes since, try to go and do what you like to do as your career. Anyway, everyone else says that I should go into Mechanical Engineering instead because my G.P.A is so high (I have a 4.0 total G.P.A right now) and because everyone wants to hire an engineer. I guess they think that art school is for slackers and that I don't belong there. 

Is there anyone out their in college who is in art school and/or majoring in Indusrtial Design and how do you like it.

Just wondering. Making all of these big choices makes my brain hurt 

I know nothing about art..but my roomies bf goes to RISD and is an Industrial Design major, he'll be a junior this year, hes doing an internship with Nike this summer and has already had a couple of job offers 

i went to art school.........twice. 

i didn't do industrial design, though. i got a BFA and an MFA in graphic design. i only got a masters cause i wanted to be a college professor. Otherwise, a BFA would suffice.

i'd highly recommend either major. If your an artist at heart, engineering will probably suck the life out of you. Graphic and industrial design will both give you the opportunity to utilize your creativity, but are practical enough to easily avoid the life of a "starving artist." Both have alot of similarities to engineering in they also require problem-solving, precision, use of materials, and a little bit of math. In high school, i had a 4.0 too...and i got a perfect on the ACT in math, so when college came around, everyone was pushing me to go engineering as well. While i usually function quite well relying on my left brain, the needs of the right brain won out. i never once regretted that decision.

i'd say that you should do what you think you would enjoy the most. Would you rather be a freak or a geek? Don't let people tell you that art school won't place you in a job, or isn't as practical as engineering. That is definitely not true.

If you have any interest in hearing any more of my thoughts on the matter, or about my experience...PM me. Good luck with the search! 

Quote from: 12thmonkey on July 12, 2006, 09:44:25 PM

Graphic and industrial design will both give you the opportunity to utilize your creativity, but are practical enough to easily avoid the life of a "starving artist." Both have alot of similarities to engineering in they also require problem-solving, precision, use of materials, and a little bit of math.

i'd say that you should do what you think you would enjoy the most. Would you rather be a freak or a geek? Don't let people tell you that art school won't place you in a job, or isn't as practical as engineering. That is definitely not true.

I'd like to second a lot of what 12thMonkey said. I got a BFA in computer animation and have been thinking about a MFA but I don't know what I could learn in school that I can't learn at work.

I was in a similar situation leaving HS (never got that high a GPA though) I was on an engineering track my whole life until I realized I wanted to be an artist. I wound up going to an art school (SCAD) where I got to immerse myself in all the artsy things (like life drawing and sculpture and color theory)  I'd been missing out on.  It was fantastic, and I never worked harder than trying to make a project come out exactly like I could see it in my head. We put so much pressure on kids so early to choose "good" careers where they'll make tons of money but be miserable.

Anyway, it turns out that engineer is no longer as stable a career as many people thought. What's stable anymore? And yet I have found good jobs and make a decent living over the last 7 years I've been working and I love what I do. There's tons of call for someone who can blend art and engineering, design and praticality.

-James

ps. if this seems long and rambling it's because it's something I'm passionate about and it's late (we deliver final renders next week)

First off, don't sweat it.  Your teachers, your parents, and especially the institutions are pushing for you to jump right out of high school, "decide what you're going to do for the rest of your life", and then go learn about it in some stale classroom.

Well, I have news for them:

#1)  There is no such thing as a "career" now.  You're going to have to be flexible, and capable of as many things as possible.

#2)  Most college graduates are leaving school saddled with $20,000 to $60,000 in debt.  So before you even get a "real job" you're already in "real debt".  Not a good thing.

#3)  If you plan on working in a hands on environment such as industrial design, machine work, etc. you're not going to learn about it in school.  In these fields most businessmen, including myself, would rather hire someone who knows their way around their field, not a virgin straight out of school.

#4)  The most current practice is not found in college.  It's found out in the real world where people are actually doing it.

#5)  How much you earn is a question of how creative you are at marketing your skills, and how you apply them. 

Realize, going to college is not a ticket to the job market anymore, and it is not a ticket to life.  College is a tool, like the rake and shovel in your shed.  When you need to know something it's an option available to you.  You're not going to be a "failure" if you don't have that little piece of paper that says you're "something". 

If you think you need to pull a tool out of the shed then go to school.  However, there are other ways to learn.  There may be someone in the field who would be willing to apprentice you.  I suggest that before you rush off to college to "become something" that you step back, take a deep breath, and experience life.  There is a whole lot to experience, so don't confine yourself to one little area.  Whatever you do, don't let them push you into something you don't want to do.  Also, don't let them push you into specializing, that's a great way to end up with no applicable skills when your job gets offshored.

Normally I wouldn't post this, but as an example - I was in the guidance counselor's office once...  I remember he asked me "What do you want to do with the rest of your life?" in relation to a career.  What a stupid question!  How do you expect a someone 13, or 18 for that matter, to decide what they're going to do with the rest of their life?  

I also remember him telling me that I "would be a failure" and would "never make good money" if I didn't go to college IMMEDIATELY!.  Well, I have zero debt, sleep well at night, enjoy life, and make more than he does.  Oh, I dropped out of 7th grade, have no GED, no diploma, no college, no job title, and haven't seen the inside of a classroom since. 

So I ask, what's the rush?

Hey, remember last year when you flipped out at that other kid named "Mister Seven"?  That was funny...

Anyways, as a mechanical engineer I'm obviously going to vouch for that major.  You will be unstopable if you get a B.S. in mechanical engineering and then go to grad school in industrial design.  If you are talented (seems like you are) and you are intelligent (seems like you are) and you have a lot of creativity, you could get picked up by a decent company and get to design excellent stuff.  Industrial design is where art meets mechanical engineering.  Its kinda beautiful actually.

-Turd.

Quote from: Turd Ferguson on July 13, 2006, 04:37:25 AM
Hey, remember last year when you flipped out at that other kid named "Mister Seven"?  That was funny...

Anyways, as a mechanical engineer I'm obviously going to vouch for that major.  You will be unstopable if you get a B.S. in mechanical engineering and then go to grad school in industrial design.  If you are talented (seems like you are) and you are intelligent (seems like you are) and you have a lot of creativity, you could get picked up by a decent company and get to design excellent stuff.  Industrial design is where art meets mechanical engineering.  Its kinda beautiful actually.

-Turd.

Definitely look into a dual degree or something because by the time your out of college 2010, a lot of people will have degrees and if you can market yourself as a ME or a  ID person, I think  you will have a better chance at finding something you like, if not something that will help you get by until you find something better. And grades in high school mean nothing in college, you can be a straight A student in high shcool and be a total failure in college. There really is no comparison btw college and high school, I never understood why they, counselors and such, always tried to make an assumption that a kid will be smart as hell in college because he has good high school grades. but anywyas ill stop typing haha

I liked art and to draw when I was in high school, but I was a major slacker.  I maintained a B average and got a scholarship to a 2 year junior college in drafting and design.  When I finished that, I looked at jobs and found the average drafter worked at a moblile home trailer plant (i.e. crappy pay).  So I decided to go to the U of AL and pursue civil engineering for a while, mainly because I knew I could make money after school.  I hated it...  I lasted untill I was a senior in civil but my falling gpa (I came close to flunking out) made me decide to switch over to business and marketing. 

Talk about a waste of credit hours!  I was a senior in civil and switched to business and hardly anything transfered.  But at the time I didn't care because I hated engineering that much.  I learned then that doing what you like is what is important, not what you think will make you money.

Well to make a long story short, I graduated in marketing and used my engineering experience to get a job in the marketing dept of an engineering typr company.  I do photography, publish a magizine, handle all tradeshows and company events... a creative job that fits me very well.  I thank the Lord almost everyday i'm not an engineer, haha.  Stick to your gut, and don't worry about too much about money after graduation.  A satisfying career is something that some people will never know.

First off, I agree with what everyone that has said you don't need to know what you want to do now.  You're in highschool, you really have no idea what is what, and you really don't have the info or real world experience you need to decide what you want to do when you grow up. 

I know many people who went to college thinking they wanted one thing, then after being exposed to it in the class room or even the real world, changed their minds and went a different route.  I'd say about half of my freshman computer engineering class changed majors/schools after the first year, so do what you think is right now, but if you change your mind later it's no big deal. 

I would also recommend a school that has a good co-op/inter program that puts you in the working world ASAP to give you a better idea as to what you want to do with your life early on.

As for going for engineering or art, it really comes down to one question: "do you like math?", or more importantly: "do you like calculous?" 

It's total crap that you need to be a hard working person to be an engineer and a slacker to be an art type.  I am one of the biggest slackers I know, bigger than most of my art buddies, but I am still a fairly successful engineer.  Likewise, I know some art people who are very hard working and constantly strive to be the best.

Do what you're good at.  Do what you enjoy.  No matter what.  I should have gone to art school, but I f'ed up. 

Great thoughts so far. Would just like to say, do what you want, and remember, what you do now isn't something you're locked into forever.

My situation was similar... different subjects, but similar in that I had really great marks in high school and what I wanted was to be a writer.  With my grades people said I should be looking at med school or law school, but I got a degree in journalism instead.

Spent a couple of years as a newspaper reporter... it was a great job, I learned a whole lot about the world, but the money was crap.  So off I went to law school. It's never too late to change careers. I have no regrets at all. I could have gone to law school a few years earlier and probably would be making more money by now but then I wouldn't have had those experiences, and probably would have regretted not trying to make a go of writing for a living.

I just want to add something as a college student who was tricked temporarily into going to a 'nice' college.

As long as you aren't going to some middle of nowhere community college, its really not the college you go to that matters, its what you take out of it. Unless you are going to MIT or Harvard or Yale.... and thats only because of the name, not necessarily what you learn. Remember that college only helps you get your first 'real' job, after that its all about "what have you done and what can you do" and not "what was your gpa 3-5 years ago".

Also if you can get in with an employer who will pay your tuition... like I did (after I realized how dumb it was to go to a $25,000/yr school)... then do it. If it takes you a bit longer to graduate no big deal, because when you do graduate all your pals will still be paying off record loans.

Whatever you are in debt for... the bank owns. If you are in debt for your education... the bank owns you. Don't let them trick you with a "but theres no payments until you graduate and then you can pay it off at your own pace" bull. Sure you could, but they want you to take your time so the interest accrues. I have gotten my last loan down to ~$3000 from $8000 over the past 8 months, but I would have been done by now if it weren't for interest.

Interest CAUSES inflation, it does not fight it.

Good luck!

Wow, thanks for all the info. 

Chances are I will be majoring in Industrial Design because I want to be a car designer. I think I've always wanted to be car designer and I probably wouldn't forgive myself if I didn't try and pursue my dream. Whether or not it ends in victory ( ) or disaster  () is yet to be seen

Also (just in case you cared) Atari had a contest for designing a car for their new Test Drive video game and I entered because I wanted to get some money for college and because I draw cars all the time anyway.

this was my entry:
http://www.atari.com/tdu-contest/img.php?up_id=183



And yes Turd, I remember when I scared away "Mister Seven". But thats what he gets for stealing my name 

Actually, if you are a white, male attorney, every law firm you talk to will still care about what your law school GPA was 6 years ago.

Don't ask me how I know.

Quote from: Jake D on July 13, 2006, 10:46:06 AM
Actually, if you are a white, male attorney, every law firm you talk to will still care about what your law school GPA was 6 years ago.

Don't ask me how I know.

This goes for white female attorneys too. But for most other careers, I agree that no one will really care where you went to school or what your marks were after you graduate. I never had a newpaper even me if I even passed j-school, they just wanted to know if I could write.

I wish merit and ability still mattered in my profession.  Two of my very good friends are black and they both have 1st tier jobs making six figures and they change jobs whenever they feel like it.  They are absolutely shocked that firms care about my grades in law school (and my grades were higher than theirs). 

Oh well.  Fooking grade nazis can suck it.   I just can't wait to get some of them into the court room.