Did you miss our live Q & A about the upcoming online year long certificate program last week? No worries! We recorded it for you! Click here to watch the recording for yourself!

If you’re like me and you prefer to read than watch, I’ve put together some of the questions and answers that came up in the call.

If you’ve taken the Graphic Novel 6-month intensive, is there a lot of overlap with the course material? i.e.: what new things would I learn from the full-year certificate program?

The full-year certificate program is distinct from the 6-month graphic novel intensive in that it offers 9 distinct classes that are designed to develop specific skills and ideas.

In contrast, the 6-month graphic novel intensive is meant to support members through the process of creating a sustained work or ambitious project like a graphic novel.

There is some overlap in course materials about professional practices and getting your work to print but they are designed to lend well to each other.

Does each assignment from each session lead up to the final project?

There are four assignments (one for each 6 week learning period). They are imagined as separate from each other but we hope each one develops skills that will help students accomplish their final project.

How much of the courses are in sync and how much is self paced? Are there class meetings at particular times?

All course materials are offered a week at a time to pace people through the content. Students are able to access them at any time and once they’ve been released, they will be available as long as the lights are on at SAW. There will be a weekly zoom call that will alternate between 2pm and 8pm ET (week day to be determined). In the past students have also self-organized to meet up and draw together in a studio hour.

Collection of 2020-21 online certificate student responses to exercises in Tom’s storytelling class.

Is this a program that can fit in with a person that works full-time? What’s the weekly time commitment (roughly) for the Certificate program?

We have designed the course for people who are working full-time. There is a lot of content available week to week but there are directions about what is essential to engage with and what is bonus material. We recommend a minimum of an hour to engage with each subject, each week after the first weeks (which are loaded with content to get peoples started). Ideally students would be able to engage up to 15 hours, including time to work on exercises and personal comics projects.

Like anything, you get out what you put in. We’ve found that students benefit from exploring above and beyond the essential course material.

Would it be nuts (or is it even doable/acceptable) to overlap the 6-month graphic novel development intensive with the year-long program? Do I need the context of this certificate program to do well in the graphic memoir program?

Its doable but not necessary. We think of the 6-month graphic novel development intensive to be a follow up to the year-long program: through the certificate course you’re able to develop essential comics making skills that you can then put into practice in the graphic novel course or graphic memoir group.

Neither is essential for the other but some students have found that they don’t have the skills ready to make the comic they want within the graphic novel course and would have benefited from building up there skills through the year long program.

Zines from 2020-21 online certificate students.

In comics 101, there is a materials page and it mentions to obtain a Kolinksy or Windsor Newton #2 brush, do we need it for the 2021-2022 year?

This year inking with Justine is being offered as an optional course rather than a requisite for completing the certificate. That means the Kolinksy or Windsor Newton brushes will not be needed unless you choose to participate in her class.

What size are assignments supposed to be if done on paper and what size are assignments supposed to be if done digitally?

Details for assignments will be made available each teaching block and will vary.

That having been said, we encourage students to use what is available to them rather than specific materials to avoid unnecessary costs. Each instructor will make recommendations based on their knowledge and experience, and information about historical industry standards will be made available but there are little requirements.

‘On What Matters’ 2020-21 Year-long Anthology of Certificate Program student work. Cover art by student Monica Sturdivant.

Do we send all compulsory assignments to the saw email or does each instructor have their own email?

The requirements for assignment submissions are made clear in the course materials. Rather than email submissions, students will be asked to upload their work to Dropbox for instructors to access.

If you've already taken some classes and been working in comics, is the Comics Intensive still a good idea?

Yes! We’ve had a number of students come to the year long after taking week-long intensives, short courses and engaging with the free resources or developing work on their own for a long time. Each has mentioned the benefit of focusing their time and energy to deepen their knowledge and skills.

We hope that the course can be adapted to anyone’s needs and we’re open to working with individual students to find the best pathway for them. Don’t hesitate to reach out before or during the course for guidance about what that might look like.

Are the instructors on the SAW network? For example, if you watch an instructor’s video lecture and you have questions, is there a way to get those questions answered? For the inking class: do we like take videos of ourselves inking to get feedback on our technique, stuff like that?

Absolutely. Each instructor will be in the network at least once a week and will join a zoom call at least once a week during their teaching period. Tom and Emma will be in the network daily to answer any urgent questions. While students are encouraged to post photos or scans of their work for feedback, videos of process like inking can definitely be shared to the network.

How many classes are required to receive the certificate?

The course is comprised of nine individual classes and four assignments that are required to receive the certificate.

2020-21 online certificate program assignment 3 response by Holly Curcio.

Is there a page that explains each of the different price points? Are we paying per class? Is there a payment plan?

SAW offers courses at sliding scale pricing. That means we ask students to pay at the price point they can afford based on their income. As a non-profit we prioritize opportunities for everyone to succeed. If you can pay a little more, please do. If you can’t afford the minimum pricing, reach out to find out more about scholarship opportunities.

The cost is for the entire course and can be paid on a monthly payment plan across the year.

So, what do people do with the certificate? What is the benefit to a certificate? For a young artist can it help them get into a university program? Do people with certificates publish comics? Do they work in the industry? What are “graduates” of SAW doing now?

The certificate is one way to distinguish the year long program from other courses offered by SAW. It offers a broad overview of the comics making process and encourages exploration over the 9-months that isn’t possible in our shorter courses. At the end of the course you have something material to show for the time spent in the form of a certificate.

For young people this program might help them get into a university program by helping them develop their own artistic interests in a safe and supportive environment. It would help them build a portfolio of comics work.

People who’ve gone through the year long program have gone on and continued to do many things in comics and art more generally including (just to name a few!):

Writing, drawing and inking for mainstream and independent comics publishers (like Sally Cantirino or Miranda Harmon);
Self-publishing small press comics;
Further post-graduate study in comics (like Carly Shooster);
Art direction in children’s book publishing (like Tif Bucknor at Candlewick Press);
Illustration (like Elli Rhodes);
Marketing;
Graphic Design;
Sign making (like Eric Taylor);
Teaching (like Emma Jensen at SAW)!