Tuition and Fees

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AnimSchool Tuition Costs are Competitive
More details are also in the AnimSchool Catalog, which you can download here.
AnimSchool Costs
AnimSchool tuition costs are competitive in U.S. focused animation education.
Each program track consists of 7 courses- 3 Prerequisite courses plus Introduction to Maya if applicable and 4 program courses, each course lasting a term of 11 weeks. Prices are listed in U.S. dollars. If students do not pass a class with a C grade or higher, they will be required to retake that class (possibly with a different teacher) at their expense. This will raise the cost of the overall program. There is a one-time application fee of $125, which is non-refundable under most scenarios. An applicant who is denied enrollment into a program is entitled to a full refund of the application fee. See more details about refunds below.
Students must supply their own computer hardware and 3D animation software. The personal computer can cost a few hundred to over a thousand dollars.
Decide how you want to pay
Each Term, Monthly, or EasyPay (EasyPay is low cost, but you take 3 one-term breaks during the program.)
Pay Per Term
$1,620*
Pay Monthly
$540*
deposit required
EasyPay Program
$362*
pre-pay period required
Student Loan
$77-144*
during deferred payment period
Tuition is charged to the student's account at the beginning of each term for the purposes of the tuition refund calculation.
Pay Per Term $1,620 per term
Students can choose to pay each term. This is not an automatic payment; they must submit payment Manually each term. Tuition payment is then due on the 25th of the month before the term begins.
Pay Monthly $540 per month
Our pay-per-month option allows students the flexibility of splitting the term tuition rate into 3 equal payments, to be paid over the term. There are no extra fees for this service, although we do require a tuition deposit and Automatic Payment setup.
Students on the monthly payment option must maintain a valid credit or debit card on the account. Upon acceptance to Animschool, Monthly payment students pay 1 month's tuition deposit which is held on account for the student's final month of classes. Their 1st monthly tuition payment is then due on the 25th of the month before the term begins. Payments will be drawn each month automatically, unless paused or stopped.
EasyPay Program $362 per month
We at AnimSchool do not want students to not be able to attend due to finances. What could be easier than getting an advanced education from top 3D professionals for $362 per month?
Students enrolling in a program track may participate in the AnimSchool Easy-Pay Program. In this program, students take nine months longer to go through the AnimSchool program, but pay only $362 per month for 36 months, beginning three months before classes begin. Three times during the program, the student takes a three month break, called a "recess," during which they continue to pay the $362 per month. During the recess, students continue to access the AnimSchool website and resources. They can attend General Reviews to get help (critiques), access class recordings, and attend drawing classes.

They get help from the community and instructors in the forums and student/teacher facebook group. They continue animation or character exercises and prepare for the next term.Students will need to apply for the Easy-Pay program well in advance to begin their three monthly payments before the term begins. See the academic calendar for the cutoff date. If the student wishes to begin immediately, they must pay the three pre-paid portions plus the first month to avoid having to wait for the following term. Note that completing an AnimSchool program this way takes 30 months, nine months longer than the usual 21 months.

During that extra time, although students won't have class, they can continue to participate in the school in all those ways mentioned and get help in preparation for their next course. Students are required to set up an eligible repeating payment credit card to apply, express intention to complete the program, and upon any withdrawal from AnimSchool, agree to continue payments until all attended classes have been paid for.

AnimSchool will send the Certificate of Completion only after the complete tuition under the Easy-Pay program is paid. Students may selectively avoid any term recess by pre-paying the additional amounts due during the break. If paid on the Easy Pay Program in 36 installments, an AnimSchool program costs the same (typically ~$11,935) but adds a $6 processing fee per term. To apply for the Easy-Pay program, apply as a student three months before the term begins, select the Easy-Pay option and agree to the terms of service. Students who desire to withdraw and receive a refund, may receive according to the normal refund policy.
Truth in Lending Act Disclosures
Student Loans Through ClimbCredit $77-144 per month during classes
*Financial Aid for those who qualify. Amount varies based on credit score and length of loan. After deferred period ends after anticipated graduation, payments increase to full payments of $330-420 depending on credit score, loan period, and number of classes.

Qualifying applicants can get preapproved for a private student loan from lender ClimbCredit.
AnimSchool partner ClimbCredit offers student loans for our students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents only. International students may also qualify with a U.S. co-borrower. If you qualify, get pre-approved for a ClimbCredit student loan here: https://climbcredit.com/apply/animschool

Through ClimbCredit, students can start off with low interest-only payments with full payments starting only after 27 months, or start full payments right away.

Options for ClimbCredit loans:

Non-Deferred Payments (principal payments begin when starting - higher payments, lower overall cost) or
Deferred Payments (interest only payments until expected graduation - lower initial payments, higher overall cost)

Most students taking out a ClimbCredit loan will want to choose their Full Program option for the full financing:
24 month Full Program - ( 12 mo Track + 12 mo Program)
For those who have been approved to bypass courses, they may need only 18 or 12 months worth of financing:
18 month Half Track & Program only (advanced placement approval required)
12 month Program only (advanced placement approval required)

Getting pre-approved is immediate and does not effect your credit score. After you get pre-approved you would then decide if you want to proceed with a loan. After pre-approval you can discuss the loan options with us and decide whether to proceed. Getting a loan does affect your credit score.

For pre-approval, as a starting point you can select the option “Full Program” on the 2nd page. Enter the start date for the term you want to begin. For example you can set the dates for Winter 2020: January 5 2020 - Dec 30 2021 and the full loan amount 11,435 to cover the classes. Those dates and the borrowed amount can be edited later, so that is just a starting point.

Annual percentage rates (“APRs”) on Climb loans range from 0.00%–26.47%. Interest rate caps may be lower in some states due to state requirements. APRs are charged for borrowing and are expressed as a percentage that represents the actual yearly cost of funds over the term of a loan. The APR includes a 5% origination fee, where permissible.

AnimSchool does not participate in any Income Sharing Agreements(ISA).

If a student drops out of the Track/Program, they have any usually-calculated refunds credited. Students do not incur charges for terms when they were not registered for a class. So a student may initially take out a loan for the full amount but if they later change their mind and drop out, their loan amount will be adjusted to only the terms they registered for.

For more information about student loans see the Catalog or contact Climb by email at hello@climbcredit.com, live-chat on their website or by phone at 888-510-0533 (M-F, 9am to 9pm EST)

As an alternative to student loans, we also offer Monthly payment plans and our Easy-Pay Program is available for Track/Program students. Those options are not limited to U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

* Click the Learn More button for more details.
Current prices apply to both full program and express (single class) enrollments. Easy Pay option not available to Express (single class) enrollments.
In accordance with Utah state law, students can't pay for entire program upfront.
Textbooks
Students should buy the required textbooks, and should consider recommended textbooks
Animation Program
The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation by Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas $40
The Animator's Survival Kit by Richard Williams $20
Recommended
Character Animation Crash Course! By Eric Goldberg $23
Drawn to Life: 20 Golden Years of Disney Master Classes, Volume 1 and 2 by Walt Stanchfield $40
The Visual Story by Bruce Block $23
Film Directing Shot by Shot by Steven Katz $20
Draw the Looney Tunes by Dan Romanelli $23
Timing For Animation by Tom Sito $20
Manwatching: A Field Guide to Human Behavior by Desmond Morris $12
Emotions Revealed: Recognizing Faces and Feelings to Improve Communication and Emotional Life by Paul Eckman $11
Character Program
The Artist's Complete Guide to Facial Expression by Gary Faigin $17
Recommended
Constructive Anatomy by George Bridgman $9
Human Anatomy for Artists: The Elements of Form by Eric Goldfinger $51
Python in a Nutshell by Alex Martelli $27
Complete Maya Programming - Part I $35
Complete Maya Programming - Part II $51
python.org free
Stop Staring: Facial Modeling and Animation Done Right by Jason Osipa $32
Introduction to 3D Lighting
Digital Lighting and Rendering (2nd Edition) $41 ISBN-10: 0321316312
Refunds, Withdrawal, Cancellation, and Taking a Break
Read all policies regarding payments
Cancellation, Withdrawal, Taking a Break, Refunds
Enrollment Denial: If a student is not admitted to AnimSchool after applying, they will receive a full refund of the Application/Registration fee.
Cancellation: After applying to, and being accepted as a student, by AnimSchool, and paying the $125 Application/Registration fee, students have three business days to change their mind, and withdraw from the school. If they withdraw within those three business days (ending at midnight on Mountain Time); on the third day, they are eligible for a full refund of all fees and any tuition paid, including the $125 Application/Registration Fee.
Withdrawing from a class: Prior to the start of a term, a student may withdraw from a class or from AnimSchool for a full refund of tuition paid for the proceeding term, minus any applicable fees.
After the term has started, a student may withdraw from a term. Students are obligated to pay any remaining tuition balance or will receive a refund based on the refund policy.
Students withdrawing from a course will be required to start the course over from the beginning if they join the same course at a later time.
Withdrawing from a Program: Students may withdraw from a program at any time. Students may continue to participate in AnimSchool Classes but only as an Express student. Students who withdraw from a Program may later petition to rejoin the program to be eligible to graduate. Students can only successfully petition to rejoin the Program once.
Withdrawing from AnimSchool: Prior to the start of a term a student may withdraw from AnimSchool for a full refund of tuition paid for the proceeding term, minus any applicable fees. After the term has started a student may withdraw from a term. Students are obligated to pay any remaining tuition balance or will receive a refund based on the refund policy (See refund policy.) Withdrawing from AnimSchool will also cancel Program enrollment for that student. Students who later wish to rejoin AnimSchool may do so by contacting admin@animschool.edu or calling the school. Students may need to petition to rejoin a Program.
Withdrawal Procedure: Withdrawal can be initiated by emailing: admin@animschool.edu or by calling (801) 765-7677 with a clear request for withdrawal. Withdrawal dates are based on the time of the request, so an email request will be processed based on the date and time the request is received by AnimSchool.
Upon any withdrawal from AnimSchool, the former student agrees to continue payments until all attended classes have been paid for. Any cancellation or withdrawal refund payments will be issued within 30 days.
Students who withdraw from a Program, or are administratively removed from a program may petition the AnimSchool Review Board to return to that Program. The petition should include: What happened to cause the original withdrawal or removal, what has changed, and any other information that may help the Review Board determine if a student is eligible to return. Withdrawn Students may also be eligible to continue taking classes as an Express Student.
Administrative Withdrawal: This is initiated by the school - Students may be withdrawn from a course, Program, or withdrawn from AnimSchool entirely.
Students who have not qualified for a leave of absence or opted to use an available term break and who do not select a class by the registration deadline should respond to administrators' inquiries, or they may be subject to automatic withdrawal from AnimSchool.
Students who fail to make satisfactory academic progress (fail a course multiple times) may be subject to withdrawal.
Failure to attend the course entirely, or watch any recordings in a term, may be grounds for administrative withdrawal.
Any necessary refunds will be processed within 30 days of the administrative withdrawal taking effect.
Refunds are calculated based on the term week of the stated withdrawal request (assuming that no additional classes were attended after the request or school assets were accessed or downloaded). A term week begins on Sunday at midnight, and ends on Saturday before midnight Mountain Time. Withdrawal can be initiated by emailing: admin@animschool.edu or calling (801 765-7677) with a clear request for withdrawal. Withdrawal dates are based on the time of the request, so an email request will be processed based on the date and time the request is received by AnimSchool.
Prior to the start of a term, a student may withdraw from AnimSchool for a full refund of tuition paid for the proceeding term, minus any applicable fees.
In some cases a Leave of Absence may be appropriate. Please refer to section 6.8 and 6.9 in the AnimSchool Catalog for more information.
During the first week of a term, students can withdraw from the term/class or school; however, because AnimSchool has already employed their instructors for the term, students are obligated to pay 1/3 of the agreed-upon tuition for the term, even if they cannot participate in the term.
After the first week of a term ends (11:59 pm Mountain Time, one week from the start of the term) and before the 8th week of classes begins, students can withdraw but are obligated to pay 2/3 of the agreed-upon tuition for the term.
Beyond the start of the 8th week, there is no tuition refund for withdrawing from a class.
Upon withdrawal or graduation from AnimSchool if a student has a Tuition Deposit on file or additional money in their EasyPay Prepay account, it will be refunded to them within 30 days. If they paid by Credit Card, and it’s been less than 120 days since their last Credit Card payment, a refund will be issued back to the Credit Card that was used last. If it’s been more than 120 days, the refund will be issued via Check, PayPal, or Chase QuickPay. An email will be sent to the student notifying them of these options, if there is no response within 20 days, a check will automatically be sent to the address on file.
If the refund check gets returned, lost in the mail, or hasn't been cashed within 90 days of the issue date, we will attempt to reach the student using the contact information listed on their AnimSchool account. After 1 year of the check issue date, the unclaimed refund will be forfeited.
Application fees and other fees will not be refunded.
Payments
New students must pay before the term begins, in order to enroll. Enrolled students must keep their payments current to maintain status at the school and retain access to the AnimSchool student website and assets. To register in a particular class for the following term, existing students must be current with their tuition.
Existing students must pay for the upcoming term by the 25th of the month before classes start. Students who fail to pay within 7 days of that date will be subject to having their access restricted to the student AnimSchool website. Students should then call or email the Payments Department, at payments@animschool.edu to bring their account current and resume student status. If students need to arrange a different due date, the Payments Department can work with them as long as it is within the seven day grace period. Existing students who fail to pay for the current term must contact the Payments Department and arrange payment to avoid having their AnimSchool account suspended.
Students on the monthly payment option must maintain a valid credit or debit card on the account. Monthly payments will be withdrawn automatically on the 25th of each month. If a card is declined during the attempt at processing, the student will be notified by email and they will have seven days to make a manual payment on the AnimSchool website. If students need to arrange a different date for the automatic payment, the Payments Department can arrange that as long as it is within the seven day grace period. Following the seven days, monthly payment students must contact the Payments Department at payments@animschool.edu to arrange payment and avoid having their AnimSchool account suspended.
Students on the Easy-Pay program must maintain a valid credit or debit card on the account. Monthly payments will be withdrawn automatically on the 25th of each month. If a card is declined during the attempt at processing, whether during a term or during a scheduled Easy-Pay break, the student will be notified by email and they will have seven days make a manual payment on the AnimSchool website. If students need to arrange a different date for the automatic payment, the Payments Department can arrange that as long as it is within the seven day grace period. Following the seven days, monthly payment students must contact the Payments Department at payments@animschool.edu to arrange payment and avoid having their AnimSchool account suspended.
Express students who are taking classes a la carte style, and are making monthly payments, must pay a Class Deposit, which is equal to the monthly tuition payment amount. This deposit is due at the time students register for a class. The first monthly tuition payment will be then be due the 25th of the month before classes start, regardless of the time between payments. The 2nd payment will be due the 25th of the following month, and the Class Deposit will then be credited to the last month of the term. If Express students wish to take another class the following term, they will need to pay another Class Deposit. If students need to arrange a different date for the automatic payment, the Payments Department can arrange that as long as it is within the seven day grace period. Following the seven days, monthly payment students must contact the Payments Department at payments@animschool.edu to arrange payment and avoid having their AnimSchool account suspended.
Autodesk offers free Maya software for students at accredited schools
Because AnimSchool is accredited (ACCSC), AnimSchool students get a free license of Autodesk Maya.
Autodesk offers Maya free for students at accredited schools. Instructions for downloading will be issued to program/track students after admission.
The class Intermediate Modeling /Introduction to ZBrush requires the purchase of a student license of Pixologic ZBrush. Approximately $500.
Fast "basic broadband" internet access is required. For best results, students need download speeds of 1200kbps. This will allow all students and the teacher to web-conference together in class. At the least, students should have a video stream of the teacher and one student which requires download speeds of 280 kbps and upload speeds of 70 kbps. To find out the speeds you are experiencing on your computer and connection, go to a website such as www.speedtest.net and hit the Begin Test button.
A microphone and webcam are required. You need to use a microphone and webcam to talk to the teachers and students. Online classes work best with headphones as well, but they are not required. A webcam is also used to take a picture of drawn assignments, and record live planning for animated scenes.