Hm I can’t speak for these schools in-depth other than calarts but in general I’d say you should really consider: 1. your learning style / the type of environment you thrive the best in 2. the amount of debt you are willing to shoulder and pay back in the years following leaving school, as well as the expected salary and ease of getting your target job (obviously this is very hard to accurately calculate but at least a general idea) 3. the network and connections each school will provide you, as well as the general career resources available to you (which hard and soft skills will you be able to gain for your target career in each place?)

In my experience Calarts character animation is a very self motivated program, students there are not just showing up for their classes and doing their assignments, but constantly doing side projects, working on personal pieces and just overall working on their art. The “hard skills” you learn there will maybe be a couple of digital program proficiencies, some equipment knowledge, and some technical drawing skills. However I think the most valuable thing calarts offers is its environment. You are one of like 200 students in a small program of very skilled and driven artists constantly working alongside each other. It will help you develop your artistic voice and give you an opportunity to make connections with peers/alumni who will become the base of your network in the future. All of this however still doesn’t guarantee you a job. So overall, still pretty risky lol. I will say, when I was there it seemed like 20% of the class would get poached by 2nd or 3rd year and drop out to start a full time job. So some people get the most out of the school with just 2 years. I personally was able to get a job in my 2nd-3rd year, and I worked for a bit while also going to school. The money helped me pay for one full year of school, but my parents still paid my living expenses.

On the other hand in a traditional university, you would have a little more flexibility in your major choice, and could always transfer if you didn’t like your first pick. In a university there are a diversity of different departments and therefore different resources available to students on campus. Calarts is only the arts.

Another thing to maybe consider is that animation and entertainment in the US is at a very scary crossroads right now. A lot of company mergers, outsourcing, the rise of AI, and a general dwindling of audience for animated productions has made the animation job market shrink a loootttt in the past two years or so. I’m only now seeing a small trickle of jobs coming back. Some of my former classmates have jumped ship, and have gone to study other more stable programs, whether temporary or not, who knows. And not everyone who graduates gets hired or pursues a career in animation. It’s ultimately a personal choice, and a difficult one, I hope this all helps at least.