Art School admission 2019

@sbgal2011 Yes thats what i meant. Got you! I had read some posts saying they already heard from VCU with the EA for scholarship. So we assumed something went wrong. All the other EAs we have already heard from

sbgal2011 how is yours enjoying vcuarts?

@stones3 DS enjoys VCU very much, but the Art program didn’t give an initial good impression. The art classes last semester were very demanding of course,but it was frustrating for him because the professors did not give him much guidance and feedback on his projects. One professor didn’t even give the students any grades on their projects. They got a midterm grade, which was the only clue about how they were doing, and at the end they got their final grade. To this day we have no idea what his grades were on any of his projects. Nothing on blackboard (professor didn’t use it). I admit that I was not very happy with the program at that point. DS struggled for a while, to be perfectly honest. The other class was a little better because the professor did provide some feedback. Anyway, DS got through the classes and did very well in his other classes (art history, FI, Gen Ed class).

He is now 2 weeks into the new semester and things are going much better. The art classes are challenging but the professors he has this semester are more hands-on and actually provide much more guidance and feedback than the ones he had last semester. So things are looking up.

Our biggest concern is whether or not DS will get his first choice major. I guess that process starts somewhere around mid-term time. I know he has to submit his portfolio and then will be notified of the decision, but the time table of when this all happens is not clear to me.

I will keep you posted!

Followed your admissions journey last year-thanks for hte update. Glad your are enjoying Ringling. My daughter is going to precollege this summer before her junior year. She started out wanting to go into 2D animation but leaning more toward an illustration degree now. Hopefully this summer will help her tease that out with the drawing for animation and storyboarding for animation courses.

sbgal2011 happy to hear he is doing well now. Daughter had similar issue with one teacher foundation year but worked through it. I think it was around mid april our D was told results of applying for her major. Good luck.

D got her acceptance letter from VCU today. No word of any scholarship.

Hey I just got my first acceptance from MICA! They offered me the Creative Vision Award scholarship of 46k, with the possibility for more in March. I’m international with 3.5 estimated GPA, 118 TOEFL, communications design/graphic design major, and applied around second week of January just a few days from the deadline. I’m really glad to hear from them this early. I didn’t expect this at all, especially when I’m still applying to other schools! Waiting for more good news from Pratt, Parsons, CalArts, SAIC, and will be applying to CCA and SVA tonight actually!! SO PUMPED!! Super glad to finally post this news on this forum, been just a reader for really long. I’ll probably go for Pratt, Parsons or CalArts if I get accepted to any of those. But still!!!

Congrats @coolmichelle and best of luck for all the other schools!

@pastelrain I wanted to thank you for being so open and honest during your college app process. It was a wealth of info for my son and I as we progressed through this crazy process.

If you wouldn’t mind answering a question regarding Ringling: How do you feel about the Ringling/Sarasota region? Do you find that kids leave campus to experience the area much? Do you ever head out to eat, see a movie, go to the beach?

My son has been accepted at several schools so far. (Motion Design/New Media/Visual Effects major) As of now, his favorites are SVA, Ringling, SCAD, SAIC and RIT. He is accepted to all but RIT. (applied RD, still waiting.) He has received some nice merit packages (Ringling being one, yay!) and some not so good (I’m looking at you, SVA ?).

He is social once he is comfortable in his environment (may take a month or so) and is not at all a partier. But my husband is convinced that he would enjoy an environment where he and some friends could walk to get sushi or coffee if they wanted to. My husband did not love the Sarasota area as much as I did. I thought it was nice and just enough for a student not looking for a Party Central style atmosphere. We were both VERY impressed with Ringling and think he would do well there. The area is the only concern.

Again, we truly appreciate all the info you’ve provided us with. Good luck with your second semester!

Has anyone heard back from Parsons or Pratt (regular decision)? ): so anxious

My daughter is also waiting on those two. As you probably know, the official word is that both will notify by April 1. Still some waiting for us. good luck.

My D attended Ringling for computer animation.

Sarasota is beautiful. The actual downtown is quiet compared to some other schools perhaps-- it’s mostly art galleries, boutiques and small places to eat etc. but there is also a big new mall, close to Wal-Mart and all the usual chain stores plus Sarasota is very close to Tampa with Busch Gardens and other attractions…
You do need a car to get around for the most part but it usually isn’t hard to find someone with a car and get out if desired. (My D was one with a car and always happy to accommodate and I’m sure you can get a bus or uber also).
Siesta Key is one of the best beaches in the world.
It does get hot and humid–so does SCAD. But a computer lab stays nice and cool…

The Ringling facilities are absolutely top notch for computer work. I’ve personally never seen better.

Ringling computer animation was a fabulous experience for my D. It was very hard work. A LOT of work. She actually didn’t spend much time off campus between school work, impromptu low key parties, campus events and clubs. But she says didn’t miss anything–she was too busy. School was full time work.
She made a lot of friends quickly-- everyone is an artist so there is common interest from the start.

Look up the student work from the various schools to make the final decision. Some comparisons might help make the final decision.

@gouf78 Thank you so much for the reply. Art school is not for everyone. A lot of parents scoff at the idea that we are willing to send our kid to a $$$ school for gasp a BFA. It always feels good to hear from others who have done the same and are willing to share their experiences and thoughts.

I agree with everything you’ve said. Perhaps having my husband read this will change his mind. (He was very impressed with Ringling, just not Sarasota.) I plan on having him spend some more time in the region for accepted student’s day this year. It was Easter when we first visited so a lot was closed.

Also, we have been comparing all of the things you mentioned above…I lean heavily towards Ringling, but it is ultimately my son’s decision to make. A second round of visits is in order for his top choices. He is fortunate to have so many great schools to choose from.

Thanks again!

I’ll also add that Ringling has terrific career services. All top companies visit for recruiting purposes.

SomaRathore --Congrats! that’s quite an achievement. It’s a great design program.

Hi everyone! Just an update that my D has heard from all four of her schools (MICA, SAIC, CCA and SFAI) and has decided to attend SAIC. She said that it was a tough decision but ultimately she is the most excited about SAIC, that she felt comfortable there and that Chicago is a great city. I will point out that it certainly helped that she did the pre-college program this summer.

She did receive a very good package from them but there’s still a significant gap because the school costs so damn much. I have reached out to the school for some advice, and we are just in serious belt tightening mode. Best of luck to everyone who still has decisions to make. Exciting times!

Hi, all. I haven’t posted in a while. Congrats to all posters and their students for acceptances to colleges to date.

Background info - my D is a HS senior who is interested in studying art. Applied to 3 art schools (Pratt, Ringling, and RISD) and the rest are colleges and university with a reputable art programs. To date, she has been accepted to Pratt (illustration) and Ringling (VR) along with a 3 other safety schools. She applied to the remaining schools as RD so there will be no other news until mid to late March.

I would like input from parents who already have students in colleges and universities. I thought I read in past threads that most art colleges don’t take AP Art credits, am I recalling correctly? She needs to register for AP exams by this weekend. She will take AP exams for Chemistry, European History, and Calc AB in May. I would like her NOT to do the AP Drawing exam. She completed 8 pieces to date for her concentration, and doing 4 more by end of April does not seem realistic given the time requirement and she is already spread so thin with her classes and ECs.

Thanks in advance.

@cag60093 Congrats on the acceptances so far! My D is a freshman at Pratt and loves it. She did not have many AP credits to begin with but she did place out of the first level of English. They accept a max of 9 credits from AP tests with scores of 4 or 5.

@NYart15 Thank you. I would love to hear more specifically about your D’s first year at Pratt. Can you share what classes your D took last semester and what she is taking this semester? What is her major? How’s dorm living/school food, etc? Will she live in the dorms next year as well? What’s the social scene like? We visited D 2 years ago and liked the campus and the students who led the tour. They were mature and professional.

@cag60093 my oldest is a junior at RISD. Their policy is similar to Pratt. They also took a max of 9 credits (basically 3 classes)., They applied (2 - I think her History APs) as classes in her liberal requirements. She also had Art History and Studio Art APs and they took (1) and put it in as an Art Elective.

This helped free up her schedule a bit and has made it easier to do a concentration in English Lit/Writing.