university of southern california. or american unis in general.

[na§tee]

usc: yay or nay? shit or good?
oh lordy. my life is a mess.
i don't know what to do so i am thinking of MOVING! AWAY! BACK TO UNIVERSITY! IN AMERICA! FAR, FAR AWAY!
to do a masters and all that.
i hear the film school @ usc is very good..
granted, i haven't really researched film schools properly but i am very interested in doing a masters in production - some sort of course where i can learn both the creative and the business side of film production. yeah.

i have no idea how the "system" works. or how much it is. or if international students can get support. i have a first class degree! master of arts in film&television and psychology. yeah. i dunno. give me some money!
the application calls for some crazy things such as "GRE" and "TOEFL" scores. WTF? how do i even get these scores if i haven't done an american undergraduate degree? how do i calculate this? i know i should contact the admissions office directly.
semesters! some of the courses here start at weird times like feckin' spring.. [i]spring! i've never heard of having two start dates for a degree course before.

it's sort of a big decision. i don't even know if these masters are accepted as a good higher level degree. cost of living. visas. your president. being allowed to stay in the country legally. taxes. what taxes?

oh, maybe it's a stupid idea - i don't know.
if anyone knows of any other good film schools i would appreciate comments, too!

[Yorkshire~Rose]

I'm no expert on this subject but my friend is currently in a similar position as you. She has a degree and a masters in Psychology and currently has a job - but detests it. She wants to go to the US to study for her PhD and has already applied to a few places.

She has to have excellent GRE scores (they don't seem to give a monkeys about what class degree you have). She has just started studying for these exams and she says they are really tough.

Good luck though anyway! I hear that NYU has a good film school too though.

[na§tee]

She has to have excellent GRE scores (they don't seem to give a monkeys about what class degree you have). She has just started studying for these exams and she says they are really tough.
they're exams? yikes! studying? gosh. better google it. i wonder how long it took her, all of the processes? it seems so elaborate - 3 letters of recommendation, test scores, your "most emotional moment" on paper [eh? - for realz!]. here it's a matter of having a good previous degree, and ticking a few boxes. maybe a referee. previous dissertation/thesis. bleh!
thanks for the advice - it's making better sense.

[Yorkshire~Rose]

You might find this site helpful re: GRE - it's the site my friend got all her info from.

http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menuitem.3a88fea28f42ada7c6ce5a10c3921509/?vgnextoid=85b65784623f4010VgnVCM10000022f95190RCR D

[kll]

usc: yay or nay? shit or good?
oh lordy. my life is a mess.
i don't know what to do so i am thinking of MOVING! AWAY! BACK TO UNIVERSITY! IN AMERICA! FAR, FAR AWAY!
to do a masters and all that.
i hear the film school @ usc is very good..
granted, i haven't really researched film schools properly but i am very interested in doing a masters in production - some sort of course where i can learn both the creative and the business side of film production. yeah.

i have no idea how the "system" works. or how much it is. or if international students can get support. i have a first class degree! master of arts in film&television and psychology. yeah. i dunno. give me some money!
the application calls for some crazy things such as "GRE" and "TOEFL" scores. WTF? how do i even get these scores if i haven't done an american undergraduate degree? how do i calculate this? i know i should contact the admissions office directly.
semesters! some of the courses here start at weird times like feckin' spring.. [i]spring! i've never heard of having two start dates for a degree course before.

it's sort of a big decision. i don't even know if these masters are accepted as a good higher level degree. cost of living. visas. your president. being allowed to stay in the country legally. taxes. what taxes?

oh, maybe it's a stupid idea - i don't know.
if anyone knows of any other good film schools i would appreciate comments, too!
usc film school is really good. it's an expensive school and housing is really expensive, but it's very good. i'm contemplating moving back down in that general direction and housing costs are my main concern. it could be a good jumpstart for you.

[na§tee]

usc film school is really good. it's an expensive school and housing is really expensive, but it's very good. i'm contemplating moving back down in that general direction and housing costs are my main concern. it could be a good jumpstart for you.
[thanks y-rose for the link, btw! been looking at questions all day!]
kll - ta. hmmm. expense expense expense. i just researched nyu and tuition fees are about $20,000 dollars/year there. about £10-12000. oh lordy! housing at usc is about $615/month if you want to have, you know, you're own bloody room! that could be worse, if the price is true [i suspect it will in reality be a lot higher]. about £350. i pay £220 right now to stay with 3 people student stylee - own rooms though. if i was a professional with my own flat it would probably be around the £300 mark.

i realise how lucky i was last year when i applied for and received £13,000 in support and tuition fees paid for me when i wanted to do a masters in glasgow in film and television studies - but i turned that opportunity down to go and work! look at me now! ARSE! that course was more academic though - something i didn't really want to do so i guess i shouldn't piss and moan about it.
hmm.
there must be funding opportunities out there for poor british students. i will find 'em!

[hpdrifter]

I went to USC for two years and took classes in theater and film.

Its an extremely good film school, difficult to get in to, very very expensive. I can tell you a little about the social life there if you're interested. The campus is located in a crappy neighborhood. I would highly recommend having a car. You'll want to get out of there and busses are crap and taxis are fckn expensive. I liked living in L.A.. though. Its a fun town if you don't buy in to the crap.

[beastieangel01]

come to California. I will visit you :p

[paul jones]

I'm going to New York soon because I am

[jabumbo]

californians are lame

[beastieangel01]

your Mom is lame.

[DandyFop]

The film school at USC is amazing. Go there. I'm thinking about it too. We can be room mates.

[na§tee]

hp - car! in america! oh lord. i would totally kill people. i can't even drive where i'm from - and that's an island with like 2 roundabouts! hmm! good info though.

i would totally visit everyone! bangel01 first though.

dandy! so you're thinking of applying to eh? goodness. i won't be applying until december for the semester starting autumn/FALL [gotta get used to that if i'm gonna live there] 2007. or was that nyu? can't remember. you are more than welcome to have a spot on my life if you pay me in marshmallows and white russians! :)

[DandyFop]

Actually I doubt I would get in. But it's nice to dream about.

[na§tee]

is it that hard to get in? that prestigious? are you totally screwed unless you are the bastard child of george clooney, etc?

you see, i have good credentials in terms of my degree and film experience [however limited]. oscar winning reference/letter of recommendation. but i won't be submitting a film as part of my materials - i'll be doing photographs [they say this is "okay" - no previous experience required, just need good creative flair etc] but i worry about it. hmm.

[hpdrifter]

It extremely competitive. Word is that Steven Spielberg applied and was rejected three times. Now he has his own building.

Anyway, play up your uniquenesses. I'm not sure what they are other than you're from Scotland. You're female going into a male-dominated field. All you can do is apply. I'm not sure what the percentage is that applies and gets in. I do know that it is extremely competitive.

You might also want to consider UCLA film school, its also very good and cheaper because it isn't private. It seems like you're already applying to NYU which is supposedly as good a film school as USC's.