@NYCMomof3 and @uskoolfish appreciate the commentary on SVA & Pratt. My Illustration Major D and I are headed there for tours at the end of the month. She’s been accepted to those two and Parsons, but she still thinks SVA is #1 sight unseen based on wanting to be “the best artist she can be” sooner rather than later. She’s not so much interested in the college experience. However, I don’t think she’ll survive without making friends to de-stress with. Being from suburbs of Ohio, any NY school is going to be a big change, but we are excited for the opportunity. Still waiting to hear from RISD, as most are, but hoping one of the NYC schools are a good fit. Any other NYC advice is appreciated.
@neapmom, making friends will be easy. So many kids from all over will be in the same boat as your daughter and they will have their studies to bond over (initially). I can tell you that both Parsons and SVA are in safe areas with tons of food and transportation options. They don’t have the "campus feel " that Pratt does but sounds like that wouldn’t bother her. Pratt is a short trip from manhattan and is in a quiet area in Brooklyn. My dd best friend is a film freshman this year and she loves it. She also spends a lot of her down time in manhattan. I toured both SVA and PRATT and liked them both(we toured for animation) . We will be visiting RISD soon , if my dd doesn’t change her mind lol. If your daughter ends up in manhattan and you have any questions about the city, don’t hesitate to message me.
@NYCMomof3 thank you!!
I wonder how many of our kids will end up together??? We LOVED, LOVED, LOVED Providence. Very appealing because of Brown connection for my girl (of course we realize the dual degree program is one of her “to the moon” long shots, LOL) but even being able to keep up with her music and do some electives in gender studies is very appealing with the ability to cross-register for classes.
@moonpie , my daughter is set on going to SAIC for sculpture. She did not give an answer yet to any of the schools, but I can tell. The moment she got her acceptance letter from SAIC, she had zero interest in continuing applying to other schools on her list ( aka Cooper, CIA, and CCA). She went to a pre college class at SAIC last summer and fell in love with the school. Anybody else going to SAIC?
We are off today to go visit SAIC! My daughter is interested in Sculpture and Fashion.
I just drove by SAIC. It’s a beautiful sunny day in downtown Chicago so I’m sure you and your daughter will have a good time touring the buildings. The school, which is attached to the museum is in THE best location; a block from the lake, beaches and in the heart of downtown. It’s very easy to get around Chicago and it’s truly a great city (yes, there are shootings but no, it’s not the wild west with people running around with guns ‘shooting up the town’). SAIC is my Sons #2 choice (he said it would be #1 if we were not already living in Chicago) and received a great scholarship package and an invite to be in the Freshman Scholars Program. SAIC and the museum are like a second home to him in that he’s taken lots of classes, participated in several programs, etc. but he wants to experience ‘somewhere new’. Have a great tour today and let us know how she liked the school.
Not only a great location due to the lake and the loop - it’s also one of the world’s finest art museums. Can’t count how many exhibits I’ve seen there over the years. Just an amazing collect of art. And I’ve heard that the school gets special access to the stuff not usually on display as well! How cool is that!
@Isichitiu Mine sure loved SAIC as well, and Chigago!!! When we visited in March, there was snow on the ground and she loved it! In the top 3 for sure : ) I love the Art Institute, the museum is amazing.
Thank you all! We will definetly go to museum. Any restaurant recommendations?
Off the top of my head I would say Macy’s on the 7th floor; Seven on State. It’s an upscale food court which is nice because the food stations are smaller versions of restaurants run by well known Chicago chefs. Chicago has some of the best restaurants and they are all over the place in price range, type of of food, upscale, casual, etc. I would highly suggest you ask the concierge or front desk at your hotel (or pop into a hotel you might be walking by and ask). Hope this was helpful!
Giordonos pizza. Chicago stuffed pizza to die for. Spinach the best. There’s a Giordonos near SAIC.
Anyone have thoughts/observations on VCU Arts or Pratt-Utica? D got nice offers for each, but will take some convincing to get her heart off of Parsons or Pratt-Brooklyn. Thanks!
Pratt-Utica has great dorms and I think very good facilities. Lots of personal attention. Not too sure that it’s the most happening town. Very small program. But they give out amazing amounts of scholarship money with a guarantee of transfer to the Brooklyn campus (including a dorm guarantee, right?). Great way to get some of your Pratt education done for a lot less.
My D wouldn’t consider it because she wanted to live in NYC and Brooklyn really appealed to her. She has not come to regret that in the slightest. Had we been a bit more financially strapped it would have been a serious consideration.
Very helpful, thanks! Glad to hear your D likes Brooklyn so much- and mine too is enamored with NYC… My D visited Brooklyn (still waiting to hear about $) and liked it a lot (as well as Parsons). It’s hard to turn a blind eye to the markedly lower cost at Utica, but I also wouldn’t want her to sacrifice course opportunities by going there. Hard for me to tell from the online info but I expect it’s a narrower offering. Will see where the money comes in for Brooklyn…
@WhoDeyKC my daughter is a ComD major so she wouldn’t have been compromised - the foundation and 2nd year core studios are supposed to be exactly the same so that you can transition with ease. However, you are correct that not all the art/design majors are offererd there.
At Accepted Student’s Weekend a couple years ago, I spoke to families who were considering Utica (their kid had gotten into several top art schools) and at least one upper classman who had attended and enjoyed it. Definitely a great option for those interested. From a parent’s perspective it’s hard to ignore the cost savings. Interestingly, my D did not like Parson’s much, even though for her major it’s a great program. She loves NYC but thought that the bustle of Greenwich Village was a bit much for her on a day-to-day basis. Really happy in Brooklyn with the ability to get to Manhatten anytime she wants.
Great perspective, thanks again. My D is set on ComD as well. Sounds like a visit to Utica would be worthwhile. Personally I favor Pratt over Parsons as well for the same reasons your D did, but program-wise they both seem top-notch. Very encouraging to hear how much yours likes Brooklyn. Mine will be far from home if she chooses NYC, so the less stress, the better… but what do I know?..
@WhoDeyKC Pratt in Brooklyn is a definite campus community with guaranteed housing if you sign up in time. Parson’s has a dorm or two a few blocks away but a good number of students live off-campus (even first years). My D just felt that wasn’t the college experience she was looking for. She wanted something college-y but 100% dedicated to art/design (as opposed to a uni).
Edit to add: starting this fall, the ComD grad program is relocating onto the Brooklyn campus from Manhattan which is very good news because it means the undergrads will hopefully have access to them. Cant’ remember which dept. they are moving out to the Pfizer building in Bed-Stuy to make room for ComD. It’s a great move for both programs because Pfizer has a TON of affordable space for the institute to rent while they build more permanent facilities close to campus. The school is expanding its facilities which is always great news to hear about a college. Now if they can just get that student union completed . . . .
Thanks all for the saic suggestions! Giordanos was awesome! The school was pretty cool too!
Anyone trying to negotiate for more scholarship money? What does “the gap fee” means? My D talked to her admission counselor about her Scholastic awards and scholarship awards from other schools, and the counselor asked her to email her the gap fee.