Hard Light Productions Forums
Off-Topic Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: Fineus on November 01, 2002, 01:31:55 pm
-
The time has finally arrived when I have to decide what the future shall hold for me. University Courses. At first everything was simple enough in school with your standard English, maths and so on. Now it's not so simple. I want to go into website design and graphics, however the UCAS search for "internet" courses alone brings up 290 results.
Most of my searches have come up with something that looks promising at first but then goes on to talk of coding browsers and so on. I don't want this, the only code I'd like to see is PHP or other webpage driving code. I'd also like the freedom to bugger about in Photoshop as and when I need to.
However, these somewhat hard to find criteria are somewhat hard to come across. So I'm turning to you guys once again to try and help me out. Does anyone know or know of someone taking a course similar to what I'm talking about? Even the smallest bit of information would be incredibly useful at this stage. And for those of you in the US or whatever thinking "eh?" - I'm in the UK, so only people who know about the UK Uni system can be of much help. Sorry :)
Thunder sits back and holds his breath for some kind of miracle answer....
-
Its probably more in depth than you want, Thunder, but here you go:
http://www.herts.ac.uk/extrel/UGP2003/faculties/art/ba_ssam.html
-
UCAS?
Anyway. Generally, most things with "internet" in the name are idiot courses for the computer illiterate- one step beyond coloring in pictures. Look for "computer graphics", "Webmastering", "advanced" in the name, HTML, PHP, Java, Flash, Shockwave, and the sort.
-
If you were here in the US I'd say to look for computer sciences or computer engineering or something like that. But you're not. So this post is pointless.
-
And therfore spam :)
Anyway,
Originally posted by Stryke 9
UCAS?
University and Colleges Application Service. I'm sure you can imagine what kind of stuff they do.
Well, I passed my first year of geology alright, but a couple of months in to my second year and I've decided to bite the bullet, quit Uni, and go and join the RAF instead. Like I told my professors, university wasn't right for me and I wasn't right for university. Ho hum.
On the plus side, I've got a substantial slice of my student load left over - which I intend to spend largely on fireworks :nod:
-
Originally posted by Thunder
The time has finally arrived when I have to decide what the future shall hold for me. University Courses. At first everything was simple enough in school with your standard English, maths and so on. Now it's not so simple. I want to go into website design and graphics, however the UCAS search for "internet" courses alone brings up 290 results.
Most of my searches have come up with something that looks promising at first but then goes on to talk of coding browsers and so on. I don't want this, the only code I'd like to see is PHP or other webpage driving code. I'd also like the freedom to bugger about in Photoshop as and when I need to.
However, these somewhat hard to find criteria are somewhat hard to come across. So I'm turning to you guys once again to try and help me out. Does anyone know or know of someone taking a course similar to what I'm talking about? Even the smallest bit of information would be incredibly useful at this stage. And for those of you in the US or whatever thinking "eh?" - I'm in the UK, so only people who know about the UK Uni system can be of much help. Sorry :)
Thunder sits back and holds his breath for some kind of miracle answer....
I'd suggest looking for Communications-related courses... generally speaking, Uni's are reluctant to teach 'just' PHP or HTML style code, because that gets superceded fairly rapidly as new standards are developed... to get anywhere in the industry, you'll probably need to do some in-depth stuff on the theory behind it all - stuff like network protocols and transfer methods. The other reason is that most of my lecturers - and those in the department - tend to frown on teaching 'just' webcoding... hence it isn;t a full on course here, and we're one of the top uni's for CS in scotland, and probably also Britain.
-
sorry, can't help you here.
try looking for "Web Design" though
-
This, as they say, is where the plot thickens. I would search the ucas courses for Multimedia, multimedia devolpment, computing multi-media. Many courses, like my own, are a standard computing course until third year (degree year) at which point you choose what secton to specialise in - i.e. Multimedia, Internet Technology, Programming, Artificial Intelligence. These type of courses give you good grounds and qualifications in computing and of course allow you to specialise once you are getting the really important stuff (3rd year). :) Hope this helps.
-
Originally posted by aldo_14
and we're one of the top uni's for CS in scotland, and probably also Britain.
heh, don't look now but we're right behind you. Actually, behind and to the left. Go Caley go!
-
Originally posted by vyper
heh, don't look now but we're right behind you. Actually, behind and to the left. Go Caley go!
:p ("http://www.cis.strath.ac.uk")
NB: Thunder, this won;t be of massive use to ya (I'm guessing you'd rather stay down South - though it is cheaper up here :D), but you can get an idea of what to look at for your prefereed uni/s
http://www.cis.strath.ac.uk/admissions/
-
Originally posted by aldo_14
:p ("http://www.cis.strath.ac.uk")
NB: Thunder, this won;t be of massive use to ya (I'm guessing you'd rather stay down South - though it is cheaper up here :D), but you can get an idea of what to look at for your prefereed uni/s
http://www.cis.strath.ac.uk/admissions/
Oh you soooo know ppl only go to strathy for the union :p
http://www.com.gcal.ac.uk/
More importantly: http://www.caledonianstudent.com/main/asylum (http://www.caledonianstudent.com/system/file/407/image/macarena_1936223217_671190.gif)
Wheee! Uni p1mpage! :nervous:
-
Originally posted by vyper
Oh you soooo know ppl only go to strathy for the union :p
B]
Hah! Bollocks mate, this is the second hardest voerall degree course in Scotland, and the top CS course (as told to me by every person I asked beforehand)
Besides which, the Union's pish.
-
Originally posted by aldo_14
Besides which, the Union's pish.
:wtf: All seven floors of it?!
-
Originally posted by vyper
:wtf: All seven floors of it?!
Aye. Haven't been in it since the very start of this year. and that was only to get lunch.
-
:ha:
Well, I'll admit I never go to our union, but then again I never drink during the day and at night I'm usually at other places with mates.
Hmm, anyway, I wonder *bellows: THUUUUNDER!* - did u get anywhere with ur application yet?
-
Well thanks for all the info guys! If you can - keep it coming!
Aldo is right, I am kinda looking to keep myself based in the south (hell, I like it here) but on the other hand I'm not desparate to stay at home.... then again, moving out isn't a priority either (if I can leech from the parents... why not ;)).
I've got a load of information to go through with this though, thanks gents :)
-
Originally posted by Thunder
Well thanks for all the info guys! If you can - keep it coming!
Aldo is right, I am kinda looking to keep myself based in the south (hell, I like it here) but on the other hand I'm not desparate to stay at home.... then again, moving out isn't a priority either (if I can leech from the parents... why not ;)).
I've got a load of information to go through with this though, thanks gents :)
Of course, if you eneded up at Strathclyde, there's a good chance I';d end up tutoring you in one of the labs....... whether that's a good thing is up to you to decide :D
-
Originally posted by Thunder
Aldo is right, I am kinda looking to keep myself based in the south (hell, I like it here) but on the other hand I'm not desparate to stay at home.... then again, moving out isn't a priority either (if I can leech from the parents... why not ;)).
why don't you come to America to study?
-
The logistics - it has crossed my mind briefly but getting there, settling in - it's no small task and I no longer have the time to consider it. Besides, there's been no mention of support for students wishing to work overseas - no doubt I'd have to trash all the research I've done and filling out of forms so far and do something entirely different. All in all, it can't happen now.
Edit: Mikhael, I do like the sound of that first link you sent me... Have you any idea how much programming is involved in the course? (as I've said before I'm looking to avoid software programming where possible - outside of HTML and other web based languages) - even if that's kinda unfeasable (I'm willing to try, but I'd be doing it for the first time there...).
Anyway, that seems like a good start - thankyou very much :)
-
I dunno if this is a good idea or not, but I'm gonna ask it anyways. Do you know what career you're shooting for in specific? If so, try and find the youngest people with those jobs and ask them. "What classes did you take? Which do you wish you'd taken? Which were a waste of time?"
It won't give you the golden list, but it may give you a better idea on what to take. I dunno :blah:
-
Yeah, that's the problem really - I was reading through the UCAS thing a while ago after realising I had to choose something (and after much grumbling about how easy future doctors had it - there's only so many doctors courses out there and they'll all teach the basic stuff).
However I finally realised that since I enjoyed computers I should take a course I enjoyed even if it wasn't what I eventually want to do. At least with some kind of IT related course I can gain a lot of IT skills (especially web design) which will no doubt be enjoyable for the future, if not serve me after that. It might not teach me physics but I can say for certain that I don't want that road. So I may as well go with what I have the most desire to do now, then worry about specialising as time goes by after University.
So in short, an internet related course with graphics creation as a side choice. I can cope with programming if need be but not for preference. So long as the majority is internet based and includes a fair amount of HTML etc... I'll be happy. I can enjoy that much ;)
-
Originally posted by Stealth
why don't you come to America to study?
Stupidly high tuition fees?
-
Bah, just lie and say you're in state.
-
England may have the same problem soon, the Uni's say they need more money, max student dept total for a whole course could go up to £40000. Thunder I imagine you'll manage to get into Uni before that comes into effect.
Scotland seems safe for now as long as you are Scottish.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/2386055.stm
-
Originally posted by Thunder
Mikhael, I do like the sound of that first link you sent me... Have you any idea how much programming is involved in the course? (as I've said before I'm looking to avoid software programming where possible - outside of HTML and other web based languages) - even if that's kinda unfeasable (I'm willing to try, but I'd be doing it for the first time there...).
Anyway, that seems like a good start - thankyou very much :)
Let me get in touch with my buddy Makali. He's enrolled in that curriculum right now. He's the guy I forwarded your question to. I do suspect, however, that there will be a bit of software programming though. You really can't do any sort of dynamic web stuff without a modicum of programming knowledge. When it comes down to it, PHP, Java, and Javascript are just bastardisations of C/C++ and VBscript is a bastardisation of VBA which is a bastardisation of VB.
I'll let you know what I find out. It'll be monday before I talk to him, though. He's kind of adamant about avoiding the computer during the weekends, preferring stout. :D
-
Thunder, I got a response back for you. :D
From Makali:
Hmm, well firstly the course isn't entirely geared towards web design...
however, it does feature prominently. You might be disappointed if you
sign up on this course just to create web pages, but then creating web
pages isn't really University degree material, it's more of a GNVQ/HND
subject.
Students on our course aren't expected to know much about computing beyond the basics; this is pretty standard as far as I can figure. We work with dreamweaver for the first couple of years, then if you choose the WebArts elective in the final year, you have to do -some- hand coding (but nothing drastic). The course is as much about theory and contextual analysis (finding where things fit in the sphere of the arts & media) as actual
proficiency in creating things. That's what the 2nd year of the course is
about. The 1st year is basically an introduction to the concepts and
issues, as well as playing with the software. We work with Director,
Dreamweaver, Photoshop, and also with sound and video packages though to a lesser extent (now that there's a separate Electronic Music course, we don't do music any more, for example).
I was on a different course and at a different university for the 1st
year, but I heard that the students did some VERY SIMPLE Visual Basic, but
this hasn't been touched upon in later years. There's a bigger emphasis
on the Internet and web-based media every year. We're learning a little
bit of javascript right now in WebArts, and we had to do some Lingo
(Director's scripting language) last year, but again, the course isn't
about programming. In the final year you can choose whether you want a
BSc or a BA, and if your friend doesn't like programming he might be
better suited to a BA which has an emphasis on the arts and the intuitive
side of the course, rather than the technological and strict side.
There are no exams, it's 100% coursework. You might find that good or bad, according to your style, but it's by no means the "easy option". However, the grade structure is basically:
1st year:
grades don't count towards final award (you just have to pass)
2nd year:
grades don't count towards final award (you just have to pass) unless...
3rd year:
if your grade is lower than your 2nd year grade, the best 25% of your 2nd year grade is added onto your 3rd year grade.
What I did last year is below; I believe the 1st year follows (very) roughly the same format. These are just the assessments, though. The lectures swung around pretty madly and we learned about everything from usability on websites and interfaces to narrative and hypernarrative, to the "military-industrial entertainment complex" and the effect of cyberculture on feminism. You couldn't ask for more variety. Plenty of tutorials on Lingo, HTML, Dreamweaver, whatever you like.
Digital Practices
- Beyond the Mouse: create a physical artefact that interfaces with a computer. My group made a voodoo teletubby, believe it or not.
- Practitioner Study: create a pamphlet or simple web site studying the work of either an area of study related to the course, or a single practioner. I chose H.R. Giger, others chose David Lynch, Pixar, Baz Luhrman, etc etc.
- Photomontage: create a suite of 3 related montages using photoshop. Themes last year included online rights and september 11th. You get a pretty free reign.
Digital Media
- Urban soundscape: Create a piece of sound (or music) that brings to mind the city. Could be futuristic, or contemporary, could be moody, or funny. Last year we had some guy just hand in some water droplets, someone else taped a conversation at a bar and dubbed in loads of city sounds over it. Myself and Ketan did "tuning through the city", using a radio tuning metaphor for a non-linear narrative (phew!) Half of this assessment is the soundfile itself, the other half is a graphical score representing the sounds you used.
- Imaginary city: video or animation, somewhat related to the soundscape. We did a moody 3D Studio animation piece, others took out camcorders and mixed it together in Premiere. Someone even handed in a flash animation.
- Personal project: Anything you like, in HTML, as a real object, or a Director file, a video, whatever you like. I modelled a graphical file browser, my friend Barbara made an interactive diagnostic tool for doctors.
- CV project: Director or HTML portfolio and CV of your work to date. This was quite fun to do after you have at least 2 years of work to show off.
Interactive Hypermedia
- Home Control Project: using dreamweaver, design the prototype interface for a home control project. Realistic or futuristic, some people created control systems for a Scooby Doo haunted mansion, others the BatCave, while more simply chose a normal family.
- Essay: answer one of 4 questions.. last year they varied between analyses of various websites, to discussions of narrative or interface design.
- Entertainment Artefact: Fancy-talk for "a game". Director-based. My group ended up making a hired-assassin game where you lay complicated traps to kill people. You don't have to actually make the game, only a prototype showing off the interface, how the game works, etc. They didn't call it "a game" because you can also do things like executive toys, or arty things like the stuff on SoundToys.net
Cybercultures
- Essay: Again, one of 4 questions. I chose "Cyberculture and Memetics". The grade for this was split 50/50 between the essay itself, and what they called an "information map". You had to graphically show on an A3 sheet your research sources. So basically they're trying not to put too much emphasis on essay-writing. Even in the final year, you never write more than about 5000 words.
- Group presentation: You're given a subject taken from a hat (literally!) and you have to research and present your findings, speculations, and answer questions for about 10 mins. I had to speak about the book "253" by Geoff Ryman. Someone else got "The panopticon and surveillance society".
- Interactive artefact: related to the subject of the presentation, individually create a real artefact. I made a spinner-based tool for creating stories alone or in groups. The idea was the spinner would tell you what the next paragraph should be about (like, describe a character, introduce a new one, make two characters interact, change the scenery, etc). Other items were more fun. One was a brain inside a computer monitor. Loads of variety.
-
Sorry for the messy formatting and stuff, Thunder, but there you go. If you have any other questions, I'll pass them on.
-
Thats great, I'm in the middle of an essay at the moment (hence my being on HLP ;)) but let me read through it and let you know. Cheers!