I am currently a student at the University of Advancing Computer Technology in Tempe, AZ. My question is with regards to the importance of having a Bachelors in getting a job in animation. I am a bit disheartened with the quality of instruction that I am receiving from the school and the majority of accomplishments that I am making are on my own. I spend a lot of what free time I have doing tutorials and such in order to improve and find that in many cases I am teaching the teacher. There have been so many cases where I am responsible for a projects completion but the instructor does not have the proper experience to either present the knowledge or teach the methodology involved. I am left to furrow through the tutorials on the internet referenced from this list or look in the appropriate books to solve my creative dillemas.

Please tell me....if I present quality work and an accomplished demo reel can I still achieve my goal of being employed in the animation field? I am presently a 4.0 student but I am unsure that the University has much more that it can offer me that I cannot learn and accomplish on my own. Does the employer look significantly favorably if the applicant has a Bachelors?

I already have obtained a Bachelors from a previous educational experience in Biology with a Minor in Philosophy. I don't know if I can justify putting myself another $10,000 in the hole for a piece of paper which might not be a necessity if I can tangibly prove myself through the media.