If you enjoy drawing, animation, and computers, a perfect career choice for you may be in animation. Once you have decided to become a computer animation major in college, you have decided to embark upon a journey that may take you into some of the most influential film animation production studios such as DreamWorks and Pixar, or to work for a famous magazine like Vogue, Sports Illustrated or Cosmopolitan. Computer animation is involved in nearly every aspect of the entertainment, film, business, and publishing worlds. Graduates of computer animation programs are highly sought after and highly paid. Majoring in computer animation means that you will take art, animation, and computer technology within your major core courses in college, usually in your junior and senior year.

As a computer animation major, your freshman and sophomore years may seem like drudgery. It will seem this way because you will need to take numerous general education courses that may not seem like fun, or be as fun as art and animation. Courses like math, science, sociology, psychology, and history are part of what make you a well-rounded student and a better animator in the long run. You will be able to tell better stories as an animator because you will have a deeper understanding of your world and the people in it. The first two years of college are a great time to work on developing your communication skills with a speech class, or your teamwork skills by playing an intramural sport or getting involved with a club on campus.

As a junior and senior in college, your computer animation major now becomes fun. These two years are built solely around your major, with a few electives thrown in. Depending on your school, you will have numerous animation courses to choose from. They will be courses such as computer animation, life drawing, story boarding, graphic design, video and film production, editing, film and television graphics, Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop software.  

A computer animation major also needs to take a few electives in college. Electives are great because they are basically "freebies", classes you can take in any academic discipline in the school, regardless of major. This is a great time to explore the business side of animation by taking courses in general business, business law, accounting, economics, and marketing. Many animators choose to become freelance artists. Freelancers must know the ins and outs of business in order to attract clients, keep clients, market themselves, and pay their taxes. Even though these courses may sound boring, it is foolish to go out into the business world without this knowledge.  

As a computer animation major, you may want to think about doing an internship. Although an internship cannot guarantee that you will be hired by the company once you graduate, it will give you invaluable experience that will last a lifetime. You usually must be in your junior or senior year to obtain an internship, especially with the more popular or famous companies or studios. Be sure to create a portfolio that you can use as a calling card when you go to interview for an internship.