I didn’t get accepted into Sheridan College’s animation program! Now what?
Illustration by Garth, the Animation Tutor
First and foremost, understand that you are not alone. It is very common for applicants of Sheridan College’s Animation program not to get in the first time they apply, especially those who are applying straight from high-school. In fact, if you do actually get into Sheridan from high-school, you are in the minority! Most students take some kind of introductory College-level art program for a year or so, such as Art Fundamentals at Sheridan, or even take a gap year to build up their skills on their own or with a mentor or tutor. As a company dedicated to helping students increase their animation portfolio scores, we feel that we’ve created a better way to proceed, and that’s what this blog post is about.
It’s really worth concentrating on the fact that thousands of students apply and only a small fraction are successful in getting accepted. Keeping this as your mantra whenever you feel low about your art should keep you from being too discouraged by the rejection. As with any skill that’s worth learning, if you show up, and put in the consistent time to improve your art, you’ll see the results. This isn’t rocket science — that comes later!
If you did not get accepted it most likely means you are not ready for the program yet, or perhaps didn’t read the portfolio requirements properly. If you’re just one to five points shy of the cut-off mark, then you’re extremely close. Now is the time to concentrate on which areas you can improve (informed by your marking sheet and confidence with each of the pieces) for next year if you wish to reapply. Consider that if you were accepted despite not truly being ready for the program, you would fall behind, at best, and at worst, you might have to leave the program or suffer mental health problems as you feel underprepared. It would end up being far more frustrating to be in the program sooner than to take some time to improve your skills beforehand. You want to minimise your stress as much as possible for your first College experience.
The Big Question: Is Animation Right for You?
I find that there is a distinction between people who are primarily fans of animation, versus those that actually want to develop the skills to work in the animation industry. There is also a distinction between the characteristics of animation students and what they’d be best suited to specialising in within the realm of animation.
I’ve made a very professional looking graph (😄) to help illustrate this point:
Now, as with all graphs of this type, understand that this is a spectrum and that you will likely oscillate between different modes at different times of your life. The two archetypes circled on the right of this graph are those who will typically ask more questions, and express their curiosity in a broad sense about the craft and technique involved in the creation of animation. They want to get beneath the surface of the processes involved. The archetypes on the left are also incredibly interested in animation, but are happy to remain some distance away from the making of. They also are likely to care more about the finished product rather than the process; they typically view animation from an outside perspective, however immersed they may be in the moment of watching it.
I recommend that you think deeply about these distinctions, however simplified they are above. If you’ve still decided that you’re on the right side of the graph…
…You can re-apply!
Once you’ve weathered the emotional storm of not getting in the first, or second, or even third time, and you still know you want to study animation, then you should reapply. Several of our students had previously applied twice and, with our guidance, finally got accepted the third time. We have also had students who studied something completely different in University but wanted to switch gears to animation, and they have also been accepted. If you stay dedicated and are persistent, you will drastically increase your likelihood of getting in. Compare the artwork you create for the next year’s portfolio with other successful students’ work. Many students who are just starting out as artists would like guidance from professionals, and this is the role that PortPrep can play. If you struggle with creating consistent work, improving your skills regularly, and keeping on track to complete the required portfolio assignments, we can provide a level of accountability and feedback for you. With passion and drive, you can do it on your own - but sometimes you need to put the hours in first, and then the passion and drive comes once you feel more confident in your craft, and we provide some varied pathways for you to grow as an artist.
Use your previous portfolio’s feedback
If you had applied previously, you’ll also have received a score for each assignment. Use this feedback; reflect on how you can apply it. Create a study plan to improve your weakest areas and practice as often as possible. The worst thing you can do is to repeat the same mistakes.Practice every day
Practicing every day is a lot for almost everyone. Everybody prefers making original stories or characters than simply practising to improve their skills. However, it is incredibly valuable to have time for practice solely for the point of improving. Even if you draw just 30 minutes per day, it is so much better than not drawing at all. Create a routine where you will draw consistently. When you wake up, before bed, after work/school, watching TV. Just practise.Watch Tutorials
There are millions of free tutorials out there. Pull up the ol’ distraction central, otherwise known as YouTube, and use it productively by finding a helpful tutorial, and follow along. I have linked several in my Animation Resources page, and regularly add to it. There are incredibly detailed and specific tutorials out there. You can even get good short tutorials on TikTok and YouTube Shorts!Get more feedback!
Ask a friend, family, or people online. Even if you ask a non-artist for feedback, they will probably find something you missed. Just make sure you don’t ask someone who is too nice with feedback and will just love everything you do. Conversely, be careful about asking someone who will give you too much feedback and will melt your self-esteem. I recommend our Animation Tutor Discord channel - everyone is there to improve, grow. They’re very smart and kind. Our Discord has so many good resources for improving your art. You can learn a lot just lurking from afar.Look at other animation portfolios
There are so many portfolios on Youtube. In fact, there is almost an endless supply of animation portfolios. Some brave people even post their rejected portfolios. If you need some inspiration for reapplying I recommend watching some videos about students who get rejected one year but accepted the next. Our Successful Student Interview playlist on our YouTube channel also has a ton of portfolios that we discuss with our students in-depth. We encourage you to frequently compare your own progress to the quality of the successful portfolios you find — we’ve linked a couple of them above this list.Take art lessons or get an art mentor
Hey, that’s our cue! This is everything we’re all about at the Animation Tutor! We fill the spot between underfunded, overly varied high-school art courses, and the high-level of skill and proficiency with classical art traditions desired by programs like Animation at Sheridan College. We help to properly prepare students for this rigorous discipline by letting them in gently, and without some of the bad practices that can be picked up by peers in an introductory art program, such as burnout and time management issues. Garth is our primary animation instructor, and he both graduated from Sheridan College, and is currently a full-time animator when he’s not teaching our students! If you’d like to have a call with him any time, just click here and book a time. Or if you’d like to explore on your own, you can check out our Animation Classes, our Personal Mentorships, our Bundles, or even our Summer Camps (virtual | in-person in Guelph, Ontario).Prior to submitting your next year’s portfolio, make sure to book an Extensive Sheridan Portfolio Review. This item is one of the few options we offer that allow your portfolio to be reviewed not just be Garth, but by our team of wonderful past successful students that are currently studying Animation at Sheridan. Having more eyes on your work has been incredibly valuable, and our students couldn’t recommend it enough when we launch this option in 2023!
Have a look at some of our Past Student’s Work for inspiration — these are all collected from successful past applicants (some of whom might be the students reviewing your work in the Extensive Sheridan Portfolio Review). We are so proud of the level of artwork that we’ve assisted students in creating throughout all of our programming.
Thanks for reading, and we hope this has been helpful and encouraging - please let us know in the comments below! We’ve linked some of the items mentioned in this blog post below - we hope it helps!
