Applied list:
CMU- ED - rejected
Parsons - EA- Accepted
U Mich- EA
Pratt - EA
University of Toronto
Considering:
RISD
USC
Tufts - SMFA
Wash U - Sam Fox School
NYU- Studio art
Cornell - AAP - Fine Art
I known GPA is wayyy too low for these schools but I’d choose Parsons above other art schools so there is really no point in me applying to more art schools. Anyone have suggestions to what I can add and what I should remove from my list?
Cost doesn’t matter, my parents really don’t care about costs at all.
Parsons is great. We know a bunch of kids there who are doing dual degree with the liberal arts college. It’s a solid program but you have to not care that it doesn’t have as much of a campus life. Same for NYU. My DD applied to nearly the same list as yours last year with a few more schools on the west coast (we are in the PNW)
Based on what we’ve learned, your list is a lot of highly selective schools—you could add Bennington (pretty reasonable acceptance rate) into the mix. University of Santa Clara has been investing in their graphic arts and computer animation departments. Great school. Nice campus but sort of wonky location. Maybe American or Boston University. Willamette in Oregon is another. I think RISD and USC are huge reaches. Harder to get in than CMU.
I would consider Tufts a reach. This year, my DD was deferred from BA/BFA at Tufts/SFMA this year applying ED1—her stats are a little bit higher than yours higher GPA with AP level courses (they don’t push AP at her small private school)with no test scores. Atypical ECs which fits into the weird intellectual creative vibe at Tufts. She is still hopeful for RD. She carried a nearly straight A average (one B in Physics) which I think shows well that she kept her head in the game even though she was a graduating senior and everyone already had their plans locked down.
I suspect the SMFA is popping higher on people’s lists because it’s one of the few interdisplinary programs at a strong university. It is increasingly more difficult to get in as they invest in the program more and amplify it through the Tufts halo. They had increased the class sizes steadily over the past few years but the director of admissions said they are happy with the size now and will maintain it.
Brown/RISD that require you to get into both schools and there are only 15 spots so your chances are tiny even if you are amazing. I only know of one student who went through the program. That said if you get into RISD you can still take classes at Brown. Just know that last year RISD went from 27% to 9% acceptance rate with over 2x the number of applicants than before (2500 applicants to over 5700). They dissuade students to apply ED. Portfolio review is very important so make sure you do that.
If this helps, these are the schools she considered:
-UBC: beautiful school, good art department (she didn’t want Canada plus more tests)
-UC Santa Cruz: deadline has passed but it is the favorite campus for my friends who are UC professors. Forward thinking, student centered learning. Loved experiential approach and diversity. Solid art department and strong in her intended academic major (she was accepted and chose not to go)
-Western Washington University: great art department, excellent in environmental science, very under the radar state school—some surprisingly accomplished alum. DD was accepted into honors with $$. It is still her safety. downside is that it’s highly regional but she figures if she outgrows it, she can try to transfer.
Some liberal arts colleges with excellent studio art programs as well as strong art history departments. I believe they all offer the Bachelor of Arts, not the BFA. Double majoring is common, so you can combine fine art with another academic discipline if that interests you. Selectivity varies.
Hamilton, Vassar, Haverford, Wesleyan, Kenyon, Skidmore, Williams. Smith if you are female.
I would add to the list Tyler School of Art at Temple University.
We looked at most of the schools mentioned, but ruled out all the colleges that only offer the BA or BS degree, rather than a BFA.
D22 ended up not applying to SMFA at Tufts for a number of reasons… mostly, the SMFA campus is not in close proximity to Tufts. Northeastern cooperates with SMFA and is right across the street from SMFA, so D22 applied there.
Maybe check out:
Temple (Tyler School of Art)
Virginia Commonwealth (VCUArts)
Michigan
Boston University
UCLA
It really depends too on what you want to study exactly. Some have bigger programs (including ceramics, jewelry etc) and some schools have more limited choices.
Have you looked at Concordia in Montreal? They have a great art department.
My D26 is applying for a BFA (illustration/sequential art) to both traditional art schools and art programs in universities. Her stats are: unweighted GPA 3.95, 5 APs, test optional.
She applied to RISD ED and was rejected. She was accepted EA to the University of Michigan Penny Stamps School, UIUC (in-states school), Pratt, and SCAD and is still waiting to hear from Tufts SMFA and Northeastern. We are weighing the pros and cons of both types of art programs, but would appreciate any insight from others who had a similar dilemma.
Funny you should mention this dilemma. I was just asking the same question to a retired graphic designer. She said her one regret was focusing too narrowly on art during college. She thinks art students benefit a lot from the classes outside their majors–writing skills, math skills, basically liberal arts skills. She says success in the field requires much more than artistic talent, it also requires skills that will allow you to network, communicate, run a business, come across as an educated and intelligent individual. She actually recommends getting a BA rather than BFA in art if possible. You can take extra art classes to pick up specific art skills after graduation if you feel you need them, but few people seem to be able to go back to pick up the other skills.
My D22 is strongly considering UMich Penny Stamps. Anyone know about its reputation in the art and design community? Is it a difficult school to get into? I know there are only 600 or so students in the entire school but I am not well versed in the arts and would appreciate any insight from this group which seems to be very knowledgeable in this area.
I have similar questions/concerns regarding the reputation/curriculum/instruction at UMich Penny Stamps school compared to traditional art schools as I do not have a background in the arts. We will be visiting UMich this week with my D22 and hope to gain some insight, as there is not a lot of information about this program as compared to other UMich schools.
We did the accepted students tour this weekend. As a parent, we really liked the small school feel within Stamps (only about 150 in each class), and the options available for students to study other programs within other Umich schools. The students we met seemed to be involved in many activities outside of fine arts. And of course, Ann Arbor, big school, sports and spirit atmosphere, which are all pluses. We think our daughter is sold on Stamps.