Hi, I decided I need to learn some form of 3D rendering program as Sketchup doesn't seem to cut it for portfolio work now I left uni and was wondering what programs are good to learn. Ease of use and results would be great and also compatibility with other programs Thank you

3D rendering program, or 3D modeling program? These are two different things.
 
A 3D modeling program would be something like 3DS Max, Maya, XSI, Cinema4D, Lightwave, etc.
 
A 3D rendering program would be something like Mental Ray, Vray, Brazil, Maxwell, Final Render, etc.
 
In my opinion, 3DS Max and Maya are at the top of the food chain when it comes to modeling. They are the most popular and most widely used. And because of that, there is a huge user base, so it's easy to find lots of tutorials and help communities online. And for rendering, Mental Ray and Vray are the two most popular rendering engines.
 
For ease of use, I think Maya and Vray are easier to learn. At least that's what I've heard anyway. I use 3DS Max and Mental Ray, and I can tell you that there is a steep learning curve. But with all the free tutorials out there online, and all the training DVD's that are available, it won't take long to get up to speed. When I was learning Max, I had to read books. There weren't nearly as many training DVD's available as there are now. So it's really pretty easy to quickly learn just about any program these days.
 
For compatibility, that all depends. What programs do you need to be compatible with? Pretty much all 3D programs can read and write to .obj format, so there's no issue there. But if you need to be compatible with Autocad, you should go with 3DS Max. It can import and export .dwg and .dxf files.

Cheers for clearing up the differences between modelling/rendering programs. I studied Architectural Technology at university but was mainly self taught in all the design programs. I taught myself Autodesk AutoCad and am able to draw 2D drawings quite decently and some basic 3D drawings (even though it feels like I only scratched the surface of the program as there are so many tools).My brother is a graphic designer and uses Cinema4D, but as I use an Autodesk program already I thought that 3DS Max might be a good option? I learn most things through a few online tutorials and trial and error and when I look at 3D modelling drawings it looks quite intimidating to jump into these programs.