Further studies in photography/ documentary

<p>Hi, <br>

I'm a mature student from Singapore and I'm hoping to pursue documentary photography in Europe.<br>

I've pondered at moments if it was necessary to pursue this degree as alternatives have been to take photography courses as at the end of the day, constantly putting the skill to practice and field experience are the most important.<br>

I also had other ideas in mind as to possibly studying anthropology and hopefully meshing both photography and anthropology into one. I actually came from an interior-architecture/design background and it's only recently, I've actually considered taking a different path and following what I really want.<br>

The medium of Photography has really opened my eyes to the world and became a tool for communicating with people and knowing people's lives which is fascinating. Can anyone recommend any schools in Europe which I can look into the possibilities of pursuing this path?<br>

Thank you in advance!</p>

<p>First of all, if you don't already have a college degree I highly recommend that you pursue one, almost regardless of the field. At least here in the U.S., a college diploma is equivalent to what a high school diploma was a generation ago. Many jobs require a college degree and if you don't have one you won't even be considered regardless of your qualifications. Not fair, but true.<br /><br />As for anthropology, when my son was entering college recently, the running joke at many campuses was what do you call an anthropology major after graduation? A barista. it seemed that they all ended up working in coffee shops. It's just a field where there are few job opportunities outside academia. If it's your passion, go for it, but you might want to consider the practical sides of the field.<br /><br />As for photography, you don't need a degree at all to be a photographer, either in documentary work or otherwise. Yes, take all the courses you can and read everything you can and learn everything you can. If you want to get a degree and you're not sure what degree to pursue, make it photography. But many, maybe most, photographers are self taught. And most photographers are self employed, not in full time permanent staff jobs, so you don't have to worry as much about passing arbitrary job requirements like a degree.</p>