The proliferation of animation and special/digital effects on television, in movies, computer games and at amusement parks has sparked tremendous interest in all types of animation-related education and training. AWN receives, on average, 50 emails every month, from readers all over the world, asking the same basic question -- "I really want to work in animation. Where should I go to school?" I tell each one the same thing: "An animator's most important trait is his or her ability to be resourceful and self-sufficient. Now, go bother someone else."

While I've never actually responded to any reader like that, I have told many that there is no simple answer to their question and only after considerable effort and fact finding can they arrive at an answer that has any real meaning. The process of finding the right school usually raises many more questions than answers. AWN's Animation School Database and free, downloadable Animation School Directory should help point one in the right direction to get those answers in a timely, organized fashion.

Finding the right school is hard work. Grab your phone, a glass of your favorite beverage, sit down at your computer, roll up your sleeves and consider some of these recommendations:

1. Determine your interests and future goals.
What do you really want to do with yourself? What type of animation are you interested in? What style, what technique? Do you want to work for a large studio, or do you want to develop the next great computer game? Sit down with some people whose opinion you trust and, as best as you can, figure out what you're really interested in and where you want to be five, ten and twenty years down the road.

2. Are you looking for "training" or "an education?"
While this may sound funny at first, the distinction is important. Many excellent schools offer specific training programs in numerous areas, such as 3D animation with Alias|Wavefront's Maya software package, or digital illustration with Adobe Photoshop. Training courses cover specific subjects, teaching students how to do "X,Y,Z." If you want to learn how to do computer compositing or to create Web page animated graphics, you find a training program and go learn how to do it. Training programs are usually much shorter in length, ranging from a few days to many months. However, if you are interested in a more immersive, theoretical, as well as practical, understanding of animation and related fields of study, a longer, more in-depth program is what you are looking for. These programs are usually from one to four years, with a course of study covering a wide range of subjects, including, in the case of many universities, core courses not even associated with your major.