Don't get discouraged. You have some really good work here that shows you've been putting in the time, and it's great to see that you're working traditionally as well as digitally. Try to find portfolios or artwork from artists who have been accepted to the school you'd like to attend, or find working character designers in the genre you'd like to work in, and study from them. Character design is more about storytelling than drawing figures, portraits, poses, and costumes. It's more about how you communicate ideas about your story through characters. Start to study storytelling and how character designers use shape language, color, and physicality to tell stories. Looking at your portfolio examples, I see some cool ideas, and some nice academic study pieces, but don't see any stories being told. From what I see here, you'd greatly benefit from the Drawing Basics Course. You can never go wrong with focusing on strengthening your fundamentals, and when you do get accepted to a program you'll have a stronger foundation to bring into that environment. Also check out Stephen Silver's book "The Silver Way: Techniques, Tips, and Tutorials for Effective Character Design." It's an excellent resource for getting into drawing characters. Hope this helps, keep up the good work! https://www.proko.com/course/drawing-basics