Since I decided that I want to study at an art school, I have compiled many pages of research of many of the art schools in the United States, and some in Europe. A lot of this information was very hard to come by, and now I want to share it with you. For those of you looking for a school to attend, please read the feature-of-the-week that I will try to post. This week's feature will be the school that I have decided to attend: The Brooks Institute of Photography.

The Brooks Institute website states this as their mission: "From its beginnings, Brooks Institute has followed the philosophy of "learn by doing". Students gain the artistic, technical, and business expertise needed to succeed in visual communications. Brooks is a world leader in professional photographic and motion picture education with an outstanding faculty, and three beautiful locations in Santa Barbara, California. Brooks Institute's programs are designed for anyone who aspires to a career in photography or filmmaking as well as working photographers who seek new skills to advance their careers. As we enter the era of global communication, we will continue to provide one of the finest educations in photography and filmmaking available."

I have found Brooks to be the perfect location to study art, particularly in the camera and film category. They also have an up and coming Visual Communications Department, with some of the finest facilities in the world. The admissions process to the school is fairly interesting. You basically go through a series of phone calls which acts as a continuous qualification procedure. The good thing is that you really get to know the admissions rep, but it feels strange because you can sense that they are testing you on everything you say. After receiving your brochure you are supposed to call them and arrange a time for a phone interview. The interview lasts about an hour and they ask you random questions, such as “If you don’t get into Brooks, what would you do?” and “List the top five reasons why you think you should be admitted to Brooks.” At any point during the interview, the rep can decide that you don’t qualify and end the process. Personally, they make it sound scary but it’s not that bad…all you have to do is just have a good conversation and sound enthusiastic.

The living situation is about the only major negative about the place. Coming from Texas, I guess I was used to a plethora of available and nice living arrangements. This really isn’t the case in Santa Barbara. Real estate is extremely expensive, so rent on the low end would be about $850 a month. That isn’t to say there isn’t anything available though. There are tons of apartments in Isla Vista, which is where all of the UCSB students live. I actually requested to live there but they didn’t find a place for me. The most important thing to do if you are going to Brooks is to be active in trying to find a place to live before you get there, and definitely don’t go through RNR Real Estate (the agency used by Brooks to house students).

If you are serious about considering Brooks, definitely take a visit because Santa Barbara is amazing. After you take a visit and decide that is where you are going, be sure and aggressively look for a place to live. There are plenty of people with houses looking for roommates as well as areas to live around UCSB. The biggest mistake I made was relying on the real estate agency.

I have been told by several pro photographers that Brooks is to photography what Harvard is to law school. They have some of the finest facilities, staff, and network connections. If you are able to sustain the cost (I'm taking out some hefty loans, which is my choice) Then I suggest you check out Brooks.

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