Is Billy Blue graphics school good or not?? (1 Viewer)

[yohancm]

I want to study a Diploma in Graphic Design....

Has anyone graduated or going to Billy Blue ??

Ive heard its the most well regarded school in Sydney amongst Employers....
Do people think this is true ??

Also what do people think about Shillington College and KvB Institute ??

Has anyone heard of CATC down at Circular Key ??

It looks like a good college...just haven't heard anything about it...

Please please anyone help me out would really appreeciate it ........

thanx

yohan

 

[absolution*]

Ive heard its the most well regarded school in Sydney amongst Employers....
Do people think this is true ??

Among the people I know that go there this seems to be the case. A friend of mine went there and these days has a top notch job doing design for real estate in Double Bay. Certainly highly regarded among students as well from what Ive heard.

 

[yohancm]

yeah

anyone else heard anything ???

anyone here been to CATC, or KvB Institute ??

 

[sqawkit]

Billy Blue is not as good as you think it is.

My diploma cost 30 thousand dollars. But just because I went to "billy blue" I am guaranteed an interview with a design studio.

Ha ha what a load of rubbish.

Just heard three people with a Billy Blue degree went for an ad management job with a publishing studio and did not get interviewed.

This means that after spending 50 thousand for three years they are not only not getting design jobs but going for other positions in the industry just to get their foot in the door.

So glad I did not get my degree from that place - waste of time, waste of money.

The feed back I am getting is it does not mean a bean where you went - Billy Blue or if you taught yourself if you aint got a portfolio that has the stuff you won't get a job.

I just saw a portfolio from a person with a fine arts degree and it was fantastic.

Much cheaper degree too!

 

[yohancm]

hey thanks for telling me.....

what did you think of the classes ??
have you managed to get a job yet ??
shouldn't billy blue direect you on how to have a fantastic portfolio ??

do you think its got a good reputation with employers ?? or not really ??

what other colleges have you heard good things about ??

Id like to see your portfolio aswell, you can email me on
yohancm@yahoo.com

sorry for all the questions he he, but before i spend maybe $30 grand id love to hear more of what you have to say....

hear from you soon

thanks

yo

 

[Sunny Boy]

best way to get feedback on that sort of stuff is go and knock on a few design company doors and just plain out ask them what they think, youd be surprised at how open directors/managers are when potential students to be like ask questions like yours

 

[blktiger]

hey what about universitys? is billy blue betta then most unis? if not which uni do u think is gd for graphic design?

 

[thekm]

These colleges are there to give you skills, not buy you jobs. If you go with the attitude to become a quality designer, learn all that you can from your instructors, then success will happen. There is a difference between those that go to college, and those that don't, simply because there's a lot of merit in being introduced to the full gammut of the industry fully and completely.

Many kids can turn up to college and be able to draw, or make something look nice, but the instruction will show you how to be better, more consistent, and take you through all the mechanical processes that are part of making a quality product.

You may already be good at design in general, but you wont know how to make things really pop when you design for the four colour printing process... know about trapping, and things that will improve the success rate of your work.


Anyways... I graduated from KvB in '96. While the college back then did have a lot of issues, I really respected all of my instructors. With few exceptions, they really did have our best interests at heart, genuinely tried to make sure that we were properly prepared to be professionals in the industry.

A lot of water under the bridge since then... but I certainly appreciate what I learned there.


A few of us have gone on to great careers (most of the class were overseas students that really didn't try to apply themselves, and had gross language barriers).

It is true what they say: "what you get out of it is in proportion to what you put in".


The reality of it is: if you don't come out the end of the course a quality designer, then no, you probably don't deserve to get work regardless of where you went to school.

 

[leobirch]

You make some good points thekm and there are many things that should be weighed up prior to committing to study at a particular institution.

In graphic design your portfolio and relevant work experience is your best weapon and any institution that focuses on these aspects should be considered favourably.

If you are keen on studying in North Sydney you should also consider Australian Business Academy which has Diploma courses in graphic design for $11 100 (1 year). This course really focuses on developing a strong port folio and industry experience.

Good luck with your search.

Leo (Australian Business Academy)

 

[msh]

i also agree with everyone above that said it's not good for employment and that it gives false hopes.
c'mon.. it's an open market to begin with. Anybody that has the money to afford the expensive private school course can get there ways in. you are pretty much given the option to 'buy' a degree. who is going to be impressed with that?

you are better off trying hard and aspiring to get into reputable design courses at a reputable unis like the UTS Design or if not, the UNSW one.

 

[peacemaster]

Hello I'll go to Billy Blue in september if all go well. I'll begin by an english formation and continu in an advanced diploma in communication design multimedia stream, is someone go on the same course?

 

[pawpsy]

like thekm said, it all really depends on how much you are willing to learn and how much skill you take in, those people sqawkit was talking about probably didn't do so well and instead thought that jsut because they have graduated and have a degree that they are jsut as good as the people who have worked their asses off. I myself am a billy blue student (1st year) and im loving it! The teachers go much more in depth with students than any Uni lecturer would + they are all experienced graphic designers themselves who have worked in various design studios. I recommend it.

 

[switchscene]

Hello I'll go to Billy Blue in september if all go well. I'll begin by an english formation and continu in an advanced diploma in communication design multimedia stream, is someone go on the same course?

I'll be starting Billy Blue in March doing a bachelor of applied design (multimedia studies). I was fortunate enough to be awarded a scholarship to the college so I'll only have to pay half the tuition fees.

To anyone doubting billy blue as one of the top design schools in australia, all you need to do is speak to anyone in the design industry at any level, and they'll be able to tell you that BB's teaching methods- incorporating real industry exposure as well as creating a balance between proffesionalism and creativity, produces some of the finest designers in Australia.

However, as sqwakit mentioned, simply attending billy blue is not going to transform you into an elite designer. BB takes individual creative talent and through hardwork develops this talent and nurtures it to reach individual potential. It is up to the indivudal to work hard and achieve this. If they do not, and fail to develop themselves then simply having "graduated from billy blue" on a resume will not guarentee them work by any means.

The true calibre of a designer is not measured by what school they attended, or by how much they paid for their tuition. Instead the calibre of a designer is measure in the industry by your portfolio and experience. If after this rant of mine you are still doubting billy blue as one of the best colleges in australia, go to their website and simply click on "student portfolios".

anyone else attending billy blue this year feel free to shoot me an email, I'd love to meet some people before actually turning up to the college.
bijmin.swart@live.com.au

also if you'd like to check out some of my design stuff, heres a link to a basic online 'folio: The Switchscene Theory


cheers.

 

[blerkles]

hey what about universitys? is billy blue betta then most unis? if not which uni do u think is gd for graphic design?

CSU do Graphic Design/Multimedia (the GD single degree can be done by distance too). Uni teaches you theoretical stuff like the history and development of design, how the media industry works etc, not just how to make pretty commercial pics (which is what some ppl want).

 

[NL]

If you want to work in a top line agency it is recommended you a design degree and learn conceptual design.

1) UTS B VisComm still ranks the best in Sydney in terms of design courses for people wanting to work in the advertising industry.

2) After that UNSW COFA BDes and Enmore TAFE are about equal.

If you want to become an art director or creative director you will also need to do AWARDS school once you have graduated.

Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of good design grads doing good work from a plethora of design schools and it comes down to your portfolio at the end of the day, but from my experience in the industry those 3 courses seem to dominate the agencies' upper positions.

 

[Disgruntled7]

DO NOT GO TO CATC! DO NOT DO IT! ONLINE OR IN CLASS JUST DO NOT DO IT! don't believe me? just read their reviews on the facebook page and these two pages worth of students past and present saying how terrible it is.

trust me, i'd know, i'm a recent past student -.-"

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=1704689