Frequently Asked Questions

CG Spectrum has a unique system of teaching which allows you to excel by providing:

• Direct access to industry mentors who have worked on major films and games
• Personalized job-focused career training and support, even after graduation
• Additional career services (career planning sessions, CV/portfolio reviews, job application help, interview preparation)
• Private 1-on-1 or small group classes (max 4 students)
• Mentorship and live weekly calls with top film and game experts
• Classes that are 100% online (study from anywhere!)
• Recorded video critiques of your mentor working within your file

Beyond this, CG Spectrum is a community! When you enroll, you automatically become part of our supportive online community of students, alumni and mentors all over the world. You'll be able to get feedback on your work, answers to questions whenever you're stuck, collaborate on special projects and challenges, and have the opportunity to build your professional network from day one. 

Watch the video to learn more about our school:

Learn more about how CG Spectrum works by clicking the button below:

HOW IT WORKS

If you are serious about a career in film and games, invest in your future and join CG Spectrum where you can focus your skills and hone your craft by getting the attention you deserve.

Want evidence of our students' success? Check out our community spotlight blog. 

Course fees are listed on each individual course page. Choose the course you're interested in and scroll down to 'Pricing' to see course fees.

Find Your Course

There are four steps to apply to a CG Spectrum program:

1. Request an application by filling out the form on the apply now page.

Our student admissions team will process your request within 2-3 business days and invite you to continue the application process if you know the specific area of study you are interested in pursuing.

(Please note our office operates Monday through Friday EST, or North American hours.)

2. Complete the Full Application.

Once you know details like your field of study, start date, and preferred payment method, the admissions team will send you a full application form.  This will help us get to know you better and also get you ready for enrollment. 

3. Sign contract and make payment.

Once your application is approved, we'll send you a Student Enrollment Agreement.  Please review the agreement carefully as it outlines all of our school policies. 

Once you sign this contract and send us your payment, you will be officially enrolled and will receive an invitation to start our onboarding process!   

4. Start learning!

As the start date of your course gets closer, you will be invited to take a brief onboarding course in Canvas, our learning platform.  Through that course, you'll learn how to download required software, log into slack, and other important aspects of your program.  You'll also be matched with your industry mentor and receive your weekly Q&A call time.

Ready to kick-start your career?

APPLY NOW

CG Spectrum offers non-accredited certificate courses.  Our sister company, CG Spectrum Institute (or CGSI), is registered with the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA)–Australia’s independent national quality assurance and regulatory agency for higher education, and offers accredited Diplomas and Bachelor's Degrees in Animation & VFX, Digital Art, Game Development and Business Management. 

CG Spectrum is also certified through The Rookies, and ranked as one of the Top 50 Best Creative Media & Entertainment Art Schools in the World–out of more than 500 schools. 

The Rookies Certified Schools are independently reviewed and assessed by invite-only, ensuring only the very best schools are accepted and the accolade remains exclusive. The accolade identifies schools that offer the highest quality education, and are best suited to prepare students for a career in the creative industries.

CG Spectrum is also an:

• Unreal Authorized Training Center
• Unreal Academic Partner
• Unreal Connector
• Toon Boom Authorized Training Center, and;
• Houdini Certified School.

Additionally, CG Spectrum was ranked #2 Online Art School by The Rookies, and listed in Creative Bloq’s Top 5 Best Animation Schools.

When you become a CG Spectrum student, you're joining an award-winning institution with a great reputation and even better results. 

We have different types of payment plans available including monthly, per term and upfront, however, the schedules depend on the course you are interested in studying.

Payment options are listed on each individual course page. Choose the course you're interested in and scroll down to 'Study Options' to see course payment options.

Find Your Course

Please contact our Admissions Manager for further information.

We do not offer scholarships by request. However from time to time, we offer scholarships and advertise these on our social channels and newsletter.

Please subscribe to our mailing list (in the footer below) to get updates on future scholarship opportunities that may be available to you.

For a first-hand CG Spectrum review, the best thing to do is chat directly to a student. Ask them about:

• Their experience at CG Spectrum
• How the courses & mentorship work
• CGS culture & community benefits
• What it's like to learn from industry mentors
• Career support services
• Events & networking opportunities

CHAT WITH A STUDENT

You can also check out CG Spectrum reviews on TrustPilot, Facebook, Google Reviews and our testimonials page.

Generally, no.  The only course that requires strong drawing skills is the Concept Art and Illustration Course.  If you are interested in enrolling in this program and you don't know how to draw or need to spruce up your drawing skills, we encourage you to register for one or more of our drawing-based 2-week Beginner Workshops. 

All other courses do not require strong drawing skills but it is always encouraged to work on your fine art skills.

As part of an entry requirement for this course, we require at least 3 pieces of artwork that demonstrate character/creature creations, prop or environment type artwork.

However, we encourage students to avoid painting from photographs, or photo manipulation.

Students are also required to have their own digital tablets.

For more information on prerequisites and computer requirements, head to the Concept Art and Illustration Course page.

Yes!  Send your current portfolio/website link/demo reel or Statement of Attainment from a previous College to your admissions representative.  You will also have the opportunity to share a link to your portfolio throughout the application process.  Get started on your application and submission of your work here.  

The admissions team will consult with your course mentors to assess where to best place you based on your prior skills.

Our Essentials courses are introductory and meant for beginners.  They are taught from the ground up so no experience with the required software is necessary. 

Exceptions include Concept Art Essentials, which requires drawing skills, and Effects Essentials, which recommends prior 3D basics knowledge.  Our 2-week beginner workshops are designed to help novices learn these basic skills in order to be ready for these Essentials courses. Click here to learn more about the Workshops and to register.

All of our intermediate Foundations courses and advanced Specialization courses require a prerequisite of some knowledge of the software used in the course.

The prerequisites for each course are listed on the course page.

Find Your Course

Great! Head to the application page and fill out the form. We look forward to getting you started!

APPLY NOW

We accept payment through PayPal, direct bank transfer, or Credit Card (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Google Pay, and Apple Pay are all accepted).

Additionally, students based in the US are eligible to apply for a loan through our financing partner, Climb. 

One of the many benefits of being an online school, is that we are everywhere! Borders don’t stop us from teaching the next generation of artists. So long as you have a good internet connection and a strong desire to create, you can study with us.

Our mentors are spread across the globe, covering most time zones. Classes take place via Zoom and are recorded, so they can be replayed anytime.

There is one live Q&A session with an industry mentor each week, and we provide the day/time of that class closer to your intake start date. As we have students enrolling throughout the month, we try to cater to everyone's time zones. 

We're always considerate of student locations and make sure the weekly Q&A session is within an appropriate 9 am-9 pm period, however, we are unable to cater to every student's full-time or part-time work hours as well.  You will have the opportunity to indicate what times work best for you during the application process. 

If your schedule is very busy and you need more flexibility, we encourage you to consider the 1-on-1 private mentorship option.

Online education is ideal for students who live far from a traditional animation or game design school, or those needing flexibility around work and family commitments, or those who prefer to study from the comfort of their home. (Read 5 more benefits of studying online.)

Yes, it is possible to work and study full time. However, in order to balance both commitments, it’s very important to organize and dedicate your time appropriately.

Creating a study schedule or monthly planner can be a great way to balance your responsibilities and ensure you don’t fall behind.

If your schedule is particularly busy, we recommend the 1-on-1 private mentorship option which offers the most flexibility.

We recommend students dedicate approximately 20-25 hrs a week or 2-3 hrs a day in order to get the most they can out of their education.

We encourage students to fully commit to the course so they can get the best experience possible and use available mentor time efficiently.

You may submit a preference if you are applying for 1-on-1 private mentorship, however, because our mentors also work in the industry (which means you'll be learning the latest techniques and workflows!), matching you with a specific mentor depends on their schedule, availability, and how many students they are already mentoring.

Remember that ALL of our mentors are seasoned industry professionals with years of experience. Whichever mentor you are matched with, you can be confident you will be working with a highly skilled and passionate industry professional.

Our mentors are also very active in the private CG Spectrum community, so you will have opportunities to connect with many other industry experts besides the mentor you will be working closely with each week.

MEET YOUR MENTORS

We understand why people are hesitant to enroll in online schools. Some online schools may be disconnected from their students or leave students to discuss topics amongst themselves in a forum so that they don’t have to pay instructors to be available.

CG Spectrum is a different kind of online school – we stay connected with our students throughout each week of their course.

As much as we encourage our students to post and critique other students’ work, we facilitate our student feedback to ensure that meaningful and helpful advice is being given to avoid students being misled or wasting valuable time. This is why we check in with our students every couple of days and are available if they need any assistance.

Our students have told us that they get much more feedback from us compared to what they received at expensive brick-and-mortar schools they have attended. Quite often we hear students say that they wished they had come to us first and saved all of that time and money. There is a live Q&A session with an industry mentor each week giving students a front-row seat to ask their mentor any questions they may have, listen to tips and critiques on the assignment and see how a professional would handle the task at hand.

The classes are conducted through the online portals Canvas, Slack and Zoom. Students are given a login username and password to Canvas, and this is where they can select their subjects to find each week’s content, tutorials and submission dates.  They meet their mentors weekly via Zoom and collaborate with others throughout the school 24/7 via Slack. 

To gain familiarity and skill with industry-standard tools, we require our students to subscribe to and/or purchase all required software for our courses as indicated on each course page. Discounted Educational & Student Licensing options exist for most major software, and we will assist our students in acquiring this where applicable.

CG Spectrum provides students with the tools, resources and direct access to world-class mentors, to help them become the best trained, best connected, and best prepared for studio life.

Helping students find employment is very important to us, that's why we have a dedicated Career Coach who regularly hosts exclusive career-focused webinars, Q&As, artist interviews and workshops for CG Spectrum students and alumni, and is available anytime to answer career-related questions.

Through network nurturing and an emphasis on portfolio and demo reel building, we equip students with the job skills and confidence to create high-quality work that speaks for itself. Students in the 9-month programs receive additional 1-on-1 career support, CV/portfolio reviews and interview preparation. 

The film and game industry is competitive, and the students who experience the greatest success are those who take responsibility for their career, put in the hard work to get their skills up to industry standard, leverage their mentor's invaluable expertise, and take advantage of every opportunity to excel.

80% of our advanced graduates have gone on to get great jobs in the industry. Check out some of the success stories of graduates who have worked on major titles like Avengers: Endgame, Blade Runner 2049, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Call of Duty, League of Legends and the Assassin's Creed franchise.

As a CG Spectrum student, you will be invited to join the private CG Spectrum community; a lively and supportive network of peers, mentors and alumni who work in the entertainment industry.

By taking advantage of this community and the many events that we sponsor and host (most of which are online and accessible to all), you have the opportunity to meet some of the most talented and influential people in the industry.

CG Spectrum graduates can be found working at film and game studios on almost every continent!

Some recent projects they've worked on include: Stranger Things, the Assassin's Creed franchise, Terminator: Dark Fate, Cowboy Bebop, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and so much more.

Read some of the graduate successes here:

ALUMNI SUCCESS STORIES