Regarding programming:

Getting a job in the game industry depends less on your formal education than your informal education. Very few colleges teach you everything you need to know to be a good game programmer... if you want to get hired right out of college, you have to have more than just a degree.

Really you don't even need a degree if you're already a good enough programmer by the time you graduate high school. However these people are few and far between.

I'd say avoid Fullsail because it's gained kind of a poor reputation in the industry, from what I have read and heard. One of the former top PC studios has hired a bunch (two or three) of Fullsail grads because they want green people that they can pay less than they should. However the fact that Fullsail produces more degrees than qualified game programmers seems to have made it somewhat of a turn off for a lot of places.

Regarding art, I say start reading cgtalk.com forums. The line I have read over there is that it's a lot easier to get into the art side of the industry without a degree than it seems to be for programmers.

Quote:Original post by bobstevens
I'd say avoid Fullsail because it's gained kind of a poor reputation in the industry, from what I have read and heard. One of the former top PC studios has hired a bunch (two or three) of Fullsail grads because they want green people that they can pay less than they should. However the fact that Fullsail produces more degrees than qualified game programmers seems to have made it somewhat of a turn off for a lot of places.

FullSail places 86% of there students in the industry at an entry level programming job. The fact is, they don't produce more degree's then qualified programmers because the drop out rate is so high. Most classes start with 30-40 people and end up with 10-20. My class started with 28 students and is down to 8 and we arn't even half way done with the program.

In my opinion, after getting a degree in CS, that FullSail has just a good curriculum as a respectable CS degree. Most teachers from FullSail have produced games in the industry and are experts in their specialized topic they teach at school. Not only do you learn the theory but you learn how to apply it and thats what is important.

Though, in the end a bach degree in CS or game dev, will get you into the industry if you're motivated to be in the industry. If you go the CS route, you need to program a lot on your own and be a motivated self-teacher. If you go to a college like fullsail, then you need to be motivated enough to not get failed out of the program.