Tribeca Flashpoint College Reviews

"This school helped me NONE! Sadly, I recently found out that they took away their accreditation. Now if I wanted to I couldn’t even transfer my credits over to a REAL SCHOOL. I should’ve listened to my parents and gone away to college. I’m totally screwed"

"Attended from 2008-2010 in the VFX/Animation discipline. You could tell this school was still trying to find its footing. It was not accredited yet, though near the end of the 2nd year we were offered a summer course that would give us an accredited Associates Degree, so that's something. There were constant tours going around, some lead by the president at the time, Howard Tullman, and others by admin staff I guess. All I really learned was where to find good tutorials and how to torrent programs (from students, of course, not staff). Some of the staff had genuine talent and while I appreciate their teachings, I would not credit the school with what I learned. The head of my department is no longer there, nor is most of the core staff. From everything I've read in the last few years, this school has not improved. I never received a single job offer despite extreme dedication to my degree and praise from my instructors, nor have I received any sort of Alumni help since. There is no way they actually meet the a 70job placement post graduation they boast about. In my second year an instructor was hired on who told us on his first day he didn't know the software we were using (Softimage XSI at the time) and any questions we had he would shake his head and say he didn't know. Near graduation, they ask graduates to participate in a video promoting the school. some students opted to do it but we all knew were just part of the propaganda for this school, none of us believed what we were saying; we just trying to make the school look good so companies would hire us. There was also a job fair one Saturday with a decent amount of companies there, but it all felt like a show; none of them looked remotely interested in us. Career Services had, what I think were, top notch people but they didn't know much about these industries. One job I was set up to interview for was for a t-shirt making business, not a company just a business. I didn't get it but I do know who did and I'm positive it was not an "industry job". Most of the 3D modeling and post production skills I have now I've developed on my own, The school's association with Columbia should have helped it become better, plus their association with Tribeca (which happened at the end of my 2nd year) should have made the school take itself more seriously but it sounds like it's still a disorganized, money snatching, free for all."

"Where to begin with this utter disaster of a school?! First and foremost the school is very disorganized. The program I had in my two years promised us one thing and then we got something even some of the teachers didnt even know how to teach. Also, almost all (but maybe 2 or 3) teachers were rude, arrogant, and acted like they knew everything about filmmaking and were robbed of major awards. Understand that this school as bitter faculty that wished they were world class filmmakers and ended up at a two bit trade school teaching just to put a roof over their head. Their filmmaking "dreams" were crushed so they resorted to teaching.. this is not the type of teacher you want embracing your creativity, trust me. If you are in chicago, please, look at Columbia, DePaul or Northwestern. Your money needs to go somewhere where you will get your money's worth.. flashpoint, AI, any trade school will be a total rip off. Otherwise, learn by yourself and invest that money in a film. I had the camera operator from Ferris Bueller's Day off tell my entire class that film degrees don't mean anything anyway and he is right. I have been working in film for 20 years and had 15 years behind me when i began at flashpoint and I can tell you, i took nothing new away that I didn't already know and im telling you.. its all elementary education in film.. you can save your money and your parents money and learn all on your own. Semi decent cameras to learn cinematography are now super cheap, video editing software, cheap.. invest in the gear and just go out and learn. Networking can be learned on your own.. if you want to understand business, do what i didnt and this school does NOT teach (correctly) and audit a business class in film at depaul or columbia.. stay as far away from this place and do not believe their lies in their marketing and tours of the campus. All of my past, current and future success in the film industry is all from my own self education,motivation and determination. I do not credit flashpoint even 0.1% of my success and I never will. Save your money, look elsewhere or learn on your own and put your educational money into a film. Just look at other reviews on this site and others.. the proof is in the pudding.. most students were fed up and felt robbed.. listen to us, we are trying to help you with one of the biggest financial decisions of your young adult life.. stay away from here."

"The school is a joke. The classes were overpriced, and the school is nationally accredited meaning that your credits will not transfer over to a legitimate school. My department chair in Film was rude and very unapproachable. From what other students told me, I heard she talks about her students behind their back. School director is a corny guy who walks around wearing tuxedo vests and cheesy 80s slick back hair tells you want to hear. Some alumni were hired as Admissions and Career Services employees eventually were fired. That's a great way to treat your alumni. Lots of better options like Columbia, SAIC, or The Illinois Institute of Art."

"TRIBECA FLASHPOINT COLLEGE IS THE WORST COLLEGE ONE COULD EVER ATTEND!!! They are extremely unprofessional, rude, and racist. They will suck up your money and drop/kick you out. When I started at Tribeca half the staff quit. There are no academic advisor and no dean. I was told a few hours before I was supposed to start my second year that I had been dismissed. They deleted all of my accounts and refused to speak to me on why I had been dismissed. The teachers tell your business to other students and faculty without your permission. I missed a week of school once to go out of town for my uncle's funeral and one of my teachers told me that I shouldn't have gone to his funeral because his class was way more important. He also told me and countless other students that we should stop hanging out with certain people because he simply did not like the student. One of the faculty members was referred to one of my classmates as "the little Mexican boy who sits in the corner." I was lied to repeatedly by different staff about us having a dean, later to find out the person who basically runs the school is the student resources director. She is literally supposed to be in charge of clubs/activities. She's the one who emailed me saying I had been dismissed in a very vague email that had 3 sentences. She sent this email 2 hours before I was supposed to returning for my 2nd year. The list goes on honestly. I know this review is trash with writing, but I think it gets the point across for the most part. The school sucks. It's shady, for profit, the faculty is rude, disrespectful, and unprofessional.... JUST DO NOT GO HERE. IT'S A SCAM."

"there was no support for middle of the road learners and no support for jobs from their job placement programs. When I contacted them after graduation they stated that current students have first rights. Money was pretty well wasted and their loans where not interest tax deductable. Maybe lisa madigan should look into this private school also."

"This program has many gaps that need attention. Basically the school pushes out the weak and takes their money, while the rest who do make it to the end of the program may or may not get what they are looking for. In the end the school is very expense for the value of education. I wouldn't recommend this school to anyone. We all know you get what you put in however, at college your suppose to have a supports system and that just isn't the case here. I wish i could say better things about it but i can't. There are good people running at the school, the school itself isn't what it appears to be."

"Not only did 1-2 student(s) receive a job from our class, you will be struggling to pay back loans for the rest of your life working in a totally unrelated field. It is NOT WORTH IT to attend here, it's more expensive than a 4 year school and the only thing you leave here with is a lifetime supply of debt. Everyone I still know from school is working some other job with thousands of dollars of debt working jobs that their entire pay checks go to their loans with only $20 to keep for himself. It's absolutely ridiculous, heed my words, do not attend here, you will only leave with a lifetimes worth of extreme anxiety and stress that eventually may lead to you needing medication to combat the overwhelming stress of struggling to pay back the school, I know SEVERAL of my classmates who need medication because of the stress they now have. Save yourself the life of trouble, it's not worth it."

"I attended for one year of the program. My main complaint about this school is that the administration failed to inform the class of 2016 that the focus studies that we had been told we would be engaged in for the second year had been dropped and the program was completely changed. Had I known that, I never would have chosen this school. I specifically talked to the admissions dept. about focusing on producing, and during the first year, there was not one single class that focused on that. Sure, there were a couple of classes where group projects occurred and I was able to experience the producer role, but with no guidance whatsoever. Everything I learn, I taught myself. As far as the quality of the faculty, the best teachers I had were adjuncts (and they are treated like crap by the administration). The full time staff in the film department is spotty. Often times emails with important questions go unanswered. I am an older student who has spent my life in the working world and I truly expected a higher degree of professionalism. Not to mention that I was paying cash for this experience and I expect a certain amount of accountability from the school that I was paying. For the most part, the administration (mostly the woman who is the film department chair) treats students with little regard. She has a huge ego (which her resume does not really support) and treats students as if they are an inconvenience to her life. The entire program is in complete disarray that is obvious from the way schedules are changed at the last minute and teachers are not really informed of the changes in their syllabus in time to prepare for the first day of class. Fortunately, there are a few people in the faculty that are truly interested in teaching skills to the students. I learned much from them. I loved working with most of my classmates. But in the end, they simply can't teach me what they promised to teach me and I found I can better learn it on my own using the contacts I developed in my first year. I will put the $25,000.00 I will save in tuition costs towards my first film. It's a shame that the administration does not pay any attention to the complaints of the students. Also, as others have noted, this is a FOR PROFIT institution. Actually the main shareholder is a private equity firm. That should tell you a lot. I would never send my child to a school run by a private equity firm. All they care about is turning a profit. Which, if they don't get a handle on the experience they are giving the students, is going to get more and more difficult for them."

"Quite possible the worst decision of my life to give my time, MONEY, and energy to a profit factory. Make no mistake, you are not getting a job with anyone worth working for after you graduate here unless you already have previous industry experience or a wide network in which to get a foot in with. You will waste shit tons of money on a degree that does not transfer ANYWHERE, and you will learn skills that you can learn elsewhere for much less coin. Yes the campus and marketing strategy is flashy and is designed to keep you energized and keep you feeling like the 1st place trophy winner your parents tell you you are, but you suck, this school sucks, and you should just go to Columbia, a school that actually gives you a worthy degree and allows you to learn important social skills and other liberal art skills (i.e college level math, writing, research, humanities, etc..) that are essential to being a self-sustaining member of society post-graduation. Please do not make the same mistake I have, my friends have, and hundreds of starey eyed high-school graduates keep making, and that is making those fucking investors RICH. This place is a FOR-PROFIT EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION. Your education, and you in general, are entirely SECONDARY TO PROFITS. That is the way this place was built, and that's the way it is ran. Look at the fact that the administrative staff has substantially changed EVERY YEAR. The main people who founded the place are LOOONG gone. That alone should tell you how shaky things are. It's all about making the shareholders happy. And that involves taking a lot of your money. Stop making share holders happy."