AboutSean Trapani Expertise I am a professor of advertising at the nation's largest art and design school. I teach general advertising courses, copywriting and brand theory.
Experience I have 15+ years ad agency experience as a copywriter and creative director. My experience covers general agency work, such as consumer print and broadcast, as well as specialized communications such as directory advertising, recruitment advertising and employee communications. My work has received dozens of awards, including ADDYs, Silver Microphones, Tellys and others.
Question Hello Mr. Trapani and happy new year
I need your help in finding an advertising school that would be a good fit for me. I live in the bay area and have considered the academy of art university in s.f, the miami ad school (s.f campus), and the san francisco art institute. I have done a lot of research and they all seem to be good schools, and the people i have asked tell me their opinion, so i would appreciate an answer from an expert. I have to admit that i am questioning the academy of art university's reputation (i heard they were sued in 2004 by several students). I also heard that miami ad school is a very tough school, and i admit that scares me a little bit. Not that i am afraid of challenges but i would like a school that welcomes beginners and not expect me to do a top notch work right away. I have no experience with adobe software or any other designing software, i only know that advertising interests me and i have the ideas to be successful in this field. So, which of the 3 schools would you recommend and which one focuses on portfolio preparation the most? I also would like to know, generally how hard is it to learn the software? Is learning the software the most challenging part of advertising or is it coming up with ideas?
Thank you very much,
nasos
Answer Hello, Nasos
I'd recommend Miami ad school, hands down. I consistently hear the best feedback from the field about that school; and, part of the reason is that it is not a diploma mill.
You're right about it being tough. But Julliard is tough; and Harvard is tough; and the Marine Corps is tough. But nothing worthwhile in this world is easy. Some schools - I won't mention names - are easy. But you've just wasted 2 years of your life and tens of thousands of dollars. You'll never work in advertising by going to a school with an easy curriculum - it will be written all over your now, potentially, worthless student portfolio.
The tough question you have to ask yourself is, Nasos, how badly do I want this? Advertising is a tough business. You work with some of the best communicators on the planet, with razor sharp wits and boundless imaginations. If you think you've got the right stuff to play with them, you're going to have to prove it...to yourself.
Go to Miami ad school. Bust your butt. Fail a class. Learn the lessons of that failure and don't let it beat you.
Go, go, go, my fried. Life's too short for what if's.
