To answer your question, Gustavo, I didn't dislike it. Well, at least some of it. There were parts of it I liked and parts that really disappointed me. At this point I don't think it was worth the price, but I haven't turned in any of the assignments or asked for much help from the advisers so I could be wrong.
On the plus side (in no particular order):
- it covers a lot of different topics (some better than others),
- the newer booklets were easy to read and well illustrated
- the "free gifts" were of better quality than I thought they would be,
- the one question I've asked of the student advisers was answered promptly and the answer was helpful,
- I liked the instructors - never met them but they seemed nice when talking with each other on the audio CDs and DVDs,
- the DVDs were informative, and
- the audio CDs were interesting.
- some of the booklets were too old - a few were WAY too old. I think over 20 years old is too old for a textbook This was the biggest disappointment for me,
- some of the topics weren't covered in enough detail so I had to do a lot of additional research,
- there should have been more DVDs on more topics, They updated the videos from VHS to DVD but they were the same old videos - mostly pertinent, but they could have added at least one new one,
- I didn't find the audio CDs as instructive as I thought they should have been, They were mostly interesting, but .....,
- I thought each lesson should have its own CD - sometimes there were several lessons on one CD and sometimes a lesson was split over 2 CDs, and
- I didn't find the comprehensive exams very helpful.
- The school claims that you can continue to ask questions of them after you graduate which would be a plus, but of course I'm not there yet so don't really know.
- I noticed in the older booklets that they had a page of "homework" - pictures you should take to reinforce the lessons - I don't know why they left those out of the new books. I think it would have been very helpful.
- I finished the reading, audio, and DVDs in under 4 months, but one of those months I hardly touched it and the time includes a lot of additional researching. I mostly did the course on weekends. (What I'm saying is that it didn't seem to be a lot of content for the money.)
- I learned a lot from the course which to me is more important than liking the course, but I think I could have learned the same information for less money and possibly learned it better. I did a lot of research before I took the course and I couldn't find one self-study course that offered the structured learning that NYIP offered and I needed that to get started. I should have looked harder because there are some out there. Some for more money and some for less. Update 09/20/2012: for two examples see my posts Fundamentals of Digital Photography 2012 and Karl Taylor's Free Photography Mini-Course.
4 comments:
Hi Martha I am happy to have found your blog and I read the whole thing (for the most part) and was able to take away quite a bit of valuable information and I wanted to say thank you! Thank You! I am a NYIP student, although I am only on Unit Two, and it has been over one year, i had a few things happen in my life holding me up but now I have finished the test for Unit Two and just need to turn in the photos for the class, I noticed you did not do it that way and decided to take the tests and do the photo projects at a later date and I thought to myself, that may be the best way for me to do it as well. Is that really working out for you? Or do wish you'd rather turned them in at the end of each Unit? I am just curious. Anyway, thank you again for your interesting and very informative blog. It has helped me to want to get thru this course. I did want to mention to you that I feel the same way about maybe doing a little more research and perhaps not going for this course, I too paid all at once and received the materials and gifts in a lump sort of package, I think we could have done better somewhere else, but may not have gotten a certificate. By any chance do you know how important that certificate actually is?
Thank you for everything,
Sincerely,
Carly
Hi, Carly, It’s nice to hear from a fellow student! I know how easy it is to get distracted and not make time for the lessons.
I’m glad you found my blog informative and interesting enough to read past the first page. I hope as you go through the course you can come back to my blog for each lesson as I’ve tried to include links to pertinent websites for many of the covered topics.
I did try to do the tests right after I finished each unit which is what I would recommend, because the tests aren’t that helpful in the learning process so you might as well get them out of the way.
I didn’t do the photos after each unit but I don’t recommend that for most students because (1) it’s too easy to not do them at all, (2) I have heard that it takes quite a while to get feedback on the photographs (thought I can’t personally attest to that) and I think you’d want the feedback before moving on to the next set, and (3) you’ll probably have to review each lesson and supplemental research before taking the photographs (actually, this is probably a good thing if you have the time.) I’m such a procrastinator that I’m not sure I’ll ever get them all submitted.
I don’t really have any knowledge about how important the certificate is. I suspect it’s not very valuable though I have read that it looks really nice hanging on a wall.
Good luck in your studies.
Let me know how you’re progressing.
Martha
I too am a student. I am completing lesson 5 and sending in the photos. I did all the test first, and now am getting around to sending in the photos. I wish that they could be submitted online. Since shooting digital, it would be easier (and faster) than using snail mail.
I just have a two more to send in and I am done! I think the course was great, and I did learn alot.
Good luck.
Hi, Carrie, Thanks for commenting. I think it's a rather old-fashioned of them not to allow the assignments to be submitted electronically. With only two more assignments to complete you're close to getting your certificate. Good luck! Soon it will be time to say Congratulations!
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