I'm currently attending Full Sail's Game Design and Development program, and I thought I'd drop a few lines about the experience so far, since DigiPen seems to be getting a huge chunk of discussion time.
First of all, Full Sail DOES offer an accredited Bachelor's Degree in GDD (this is a relatively new program; only the Associate's Degree was offered at the time this thread was started).
Full Sail goes on a month-by-month basis for classes; you'll never take more than two classes at a time, and each class lasts for 1-2 months. The school's learning pace is extremely fast; that's why it only takes 21 months to get a Bachelor's Degree. There is no summer (well, you get a week), but you can take a leave of absence for up to five months.
When comparing Full Sail to a standard four-year university's Computer Science degree program, I like to equate it to traveling down a river. At most schools, the river is placid and if you want to make any progress, you have to do all the swimming on your own. At Full Sail, you're thrown into a violent rapid that carries you downstream; the struggle is in staying alive, but if you can, you'll get to the end much more quickly.
Many of my classmates have dropped out or failed back thus far; out of the 66 classmates we started with in the first month, less than 20 are still here with me four months later (though several more students have failed back into my class).
Don't let the name "Game Design and Development" fool you, this degree is 90% programming. However, you do design and program your very own game as a final project with a group of 3-5 other classmates. Full Sail also offers degrees in related fields, such as Digital Media and Computer Animation, that offer other gateways into the gaming industry.
I am very happy with the education I've gotten so far. As I mentioned earlier, it can be very difficult to keep up, but after attending a technical school that I absolutely hated because of the pace (hint: it starts with 'D' and rhymes with "Pee Fry"), I'm glad to be learning so much so quickly.
When I entered the program, I had very limited programming experience (a year of Visual Basic, and that class was pretty much a joke). In three months here, I had learned the entire C++ language (though there are infinite ways of using the language and many libraries that I haven't delved into yet).
By the time I graduate, I will have had extensive experience in C++, OpenGL, DirectX, console programming ©, optimization (assembly), math (calculus, linear algebra, physics), and specialized programming fields such as artificial intelligence, data structures, and tools programming. I will have created my own game from scratch and will be ready to go out into the world and show everyone what I'm about.
Are you listening, Obsidian?
Anyway, check out the website and see what you think. If you're not serious, if you don't plan on sleepless nights and hard work, then don't bother. If you have the necessary drive, this school can help you achieve your dreams.
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This is my first post, but I promise to have a decent avatar and signature up soon.
