Struggling parent looking for some advice. Our DD is a rising senior and is very stressed over the entire college process; from SATs, ACTs, APs, Essays, creating a college list, picking a career, etc, etc. Her passion is art, but knows the return on investment of an Art degree may not be the best option for her future career success. I’ve tried to be supportive of her desires, but also agree that the statistics are not too encouraging when it comes to a generic Fine Arts degree from a public university. I’ll get to the specifics on finances in a bit, but for now here are her stats from a strong public HS in mid-size city.
GPA 3.91 W-GPA 4.31
SAT 1310 (M-590 CR-720) Will take again in Oct
(Fresh)AP Euro History
(Jr) AP English Comp - 5
(Jr) AP Japanese - 5
(Jr) AP US History - 5
(Jr) AP Enviro Sci - didn’t test
(Jr) AP Studio Art - didn’t submit portfolio
(Sr) AP English Lit
(Sr) AP Biology
(Sr) AP US Gov’t
(Sr) AP Studio Art - will submit this portfolio
ECs are pretty weak as she struggles with a mild form of Asperger’s (social anxiety). She’s not one to put herself out there when it comes to leadership roles and is much happier just working on her art. She does run track and cross-country, but is mostly heart and not talent in these areas. She has quite a bit of international travel under her belt and has been host to several international exchange students.
Her number one desire would be to go to a top-tier Art school such as RISD, SCAD or Pratt. Unfortunately, our finances will only support 20K/year towards her college and the cost of these schools is too much for our family. The lack of merit scholarships, and the fact our EFC is considerably above 20K, simply puts these colleges out of reach.
Over the past several months she has looked at some alternative majors including environmental science, microbiology, biochemistry and landscape architecture, only to come back around to art for what she wants to do.
Where to go from here is the question. She’ll eventually figure out that RISD and the like are sadly out of reach. Unfortunately, at this moment I don’t have the heart to squash her dreams. Any advise is appreciated.
There are art departments at most public universities, and some are quite good. My daughter is an art history major (talk about no ROI!) and there is quite a selection of art courses she can/must take. There are opportunities to study abroad, but she can also take a semester at a number of other schools in the US and pays the lower of the tuition of her home school or of the school she wants to study at.
I’m hoping my daughter will pick up some other major or minor, but it is not essential (history, religion, English). There may not be a lot of jobs when she gets out, but she’ll be happy. If you keep your daughter’s college costs down and she doesn’t have to worry about paying back loans when she graduates with an art degree, she may have more options, options that don’t pay much. Teaching, museum work, public park programs. I agree that SCAD and RISD are just too expensive but those aren’t the only choices.
what state do you live in? I echo the statement that there are public universities with good fine arts programs. She could always double major as well.
I don’t think your daughter has to decide what she wants to major in yet. Unless some specific track like engineering which, given her interest, she is highly unlikely to choose, the decision on major can wait.
Even if she doesn’t major in fine art, definitely submit an art portfolio.
Her guidance counselor/college advisor should speak to her Asperger’s when writing her counselor report for her application.
If she’s stressing about the process, consider not retesting in the fall. Lopsided scores are fine. Colleges realize that not all kids are super strong in all subjects. One of my kids was lopsided like your daughter.
I was at a networking event for people of color in tech in my city the other day and chatted with an art major! She works for a company that provides educational and experiential opportunities for kids and young adults interested in technology careers. One of my coworkers was a linguistics major and is now a program manager at my tech company. I know a theater major who works as a game designer here, too.
Anyway, if she goes to a liberal arts university with lots of choices, she can always choose what to major in later. She also doesn’t have to pick a career - she’s only a rising senior. She honestly doesn’t even have to pick a career in two years or even in four - lots of people laterally move into a career and change them, as you probably know. Maybe focusing on fewer competing priorities - just the things needed to get into college, worrying about the major and career later - will make her less stressed. An art school, even a top-tier one, limits her choices in that regard.
Maybe reframing the college search in terms of the potential? Instead of all the stresses of the required items, she can visualize what it might be like to attend the college of her choice. Might be a good exercise to do with a lot of the colleges on her list so she can be happy and positive about all of them.
Why let her ‘eventually’ figure out that schools like RISD are out of reach? I think it’s probably kinder to let her know now, so she can build her college list accordingly.
Also, the vast majority of schools don’t require an impressive, long list of ECs.
My brother is a long time prof at an art and design school. Over the years, he’s seen many students come and go who had no potential to earn a living in an arts related field – mainly due to a lack of actual talent or work ethic.
This is touchy but would your DD be open to a third party evaluation of her skills? Not an art school admissions officer/recruiter – but a professional. And would she be willing to alter her plans if indeed, her talent level and/or expectations weren’t superior?
As for your family’s financial limitations, that’s reality and DD needs to know that an expensive, in-residence art school experience isn’t possible. Best of luck to you
What does your D plan to do for a living with an art degree from RISD, Pratt, etc, that she couldn’t do with a generic fine arts degree from a conventional type of college?
I remember sitting at parent orientation for my youngest. The president of the college was addressIng us. He said that he kind of flipped out when his child had called to tell him she was switching majors to art. “What will you do about health insurance!?” He said he as happy to report that she had a job, related to art, with health insurance. As with any field, landing that job is about getting some good experience while in school nod not just finishing a major. Make sure she uses the career services program and her profs to get some good summer and part time experiences. And yes, look at the schools with low costs. Finally, keep in mind that lots of kids change majors. My own loves art and has added it as a minor.
I would let her major in art. As noted, most public universities have art programs. There are jobs in the art “industry” or related…but she will definitely have to be willing to take entry level positions, etc.
Find out what she wants to DO with her art degree. If she wants to just continue to paint or whatever, she can do that forever as a hobby too.
Would she be interested in graphic design? If so…what about RIT?
Another option is the Art and Technology programs at various schools. UT Dallas has one called ATEC, at Texas A&M its called Visualization. It is computer based art. There are jobs for this degree in gaming and the movie industry. It might be something that your DD is interested in.
When you think about ‘art’ as a career, it may be true that there is limited earning potential for someone who wants to sell their art. But as careers and job options go, there are actually lots of options and jobs out there. Graphic designer, art director, visual merchandiser etc. These types of jobs are plentiful at consumer goods companies and ad and design agencies, and virtually every company out there has some type of graphic department, even the financial services firms. If art is her passion, let her explore that. And I agree with the poster who said many state flagships have strong art departments
So many kids find other things that grab their hearts when they go to college. There are many aspect of art/ studio art/ digital art/art history/ art education/ graphic design etc. Agree that especially with a limited budget, a school that lets her taste other fields is appropriate. Good luck.
I agree, let her major in art if she wants, but please be clear about how much you can afford now. Do not let her apply to an unaffordable school not knowing that she will not be able to attend with big scholarship money. Go visit your state school, make an appt with a prof in the art dept to talk about the program and have her sit in a class. See if admissions can arrange an overnight with an art major.
First off, thank you for your replies. We are in Washington and will be visiting WSU and UI next week. This was planned when she thought Landscape Architecture was on the short list and both school seems to have pretty good LA programs. LA is pretty competitive and she’s not ready to commit to that career path just yet. I’m sure it will still be beneficial to check out the campus’ even though I’m not sure those size schools would be a good fit for her.
Don’t know of any stellar Fine Arts program at the local publics, but I’m sure there are some. We did check out a local LAC and they had only 6 graduating seniors in the Fine Arts program. I may be biased, but I thought DD work already surpassed the graduating seniors work and thought she needed more like minded and artistically talented students around her. I’m not saying those student weren’t artistically talented, just that there weren’t enough of them. Not sure all LACs will be similar, but I didn’t come away impressed considering the cost of regional LACs such at Whitman, L&C, PSU. I know they are all great schools and she would get a well rounded education at them, but again cost is a big factor and I don’t believe she’d qualify for more than 15-17K in merit scholarship at these type of privates. At least that’s what my research seems to indicate.
It’s unfortunate, but I’m afraid finances are going to play a limiting role in her choice of schools. Our net price at the average private is in the 40-50K range which realistically means 20-30K/year in loans. We can’t sign up to those kinds of Parent Plus loans as there are 2 more rising stars behind DD that will be on this bridge 3-4 years down the road. The thought of DD graduating 50-100K in debt with a Fine Arts degree is simply not smart in my book and as her parent I can’t support that type of decision even if she could get a co-signer for the loans. The internet is full of these sad stories, especially since the great recession.
As for in-state publics, we’re full price which should be doable with the small merit awards available based on her GPA/SAT scores. She may not get it, but the net price calculator at Western WA U predicts a $4K merit award. We looked at WWU when Environmental Science was on the list, but don’t have any idea about their Fine Arts program.
“Why let her ‘eventually’ figure out that schools like RISD are out of reach? I think it’s probably kinder to let her know now, so she can build her college list accordingly.”
I agree with this and will find a time to talk to her next week. It’s not going to be easy, but this certainly isn’t going to be her last disappointment in life. I once thought setting aside 20K/year per kid was pretty good, but I’m quickly finding out it’s not nearly enough in todays college environment.
“Where to go from here is the question. She’ll eventually figure out that RISD and the like are sadly out of reach. Unfortunately, at this moment I don’t have the heart to squash her dreams. Any advise is appreciated.”
You need to start with the money issue. If you can afford your home-state public Us, then the message you need to give her is “You can go to State U1, State U2, or State U3, or any other place where you get a merit/talent scholarship that will make that place cost no more than U1, U2, or U3.” If you can’t afford your state Us, then the message is the same, except the reference for cost is the community college. Let her look for the merit/talent aid at the fantasy schools. Maybe she’ll find some. That is how we handled things with Happykid. She ended up at the local CC, and then transferred in-state. She’ graduated two years ago, and now is working in a field (Theater Tech/Design) that is nearly as challenging as Art for employment and income.
If she were serious about RISD, she would be spending this summer working on their application portfolio. Is she doing that? If she isn’t, then she’s probably going to need a gap year so she get her portfolio into shape. How does she feel about that?
You’re to be commended. Your family setting aside enough to provide $20K/year for your DD plus two others behind is simply amazing. I hope your kids realize the sacrifice this truly has been for you and your spouse.
“If she were serious about RISD, she would be spending this summer working on their application portfolio. Is she doing that? If she isn’t, then she’s probably going to need a gap year so she get her portfolio into shape. How does she feel about that?”
She is constantly working on her portfolio and has opened a Society 6 account to try to sell some of her work. I’m not sure if this is breaking any CC rules, but here is a look at some of her favorite work. She works in both traditional drawing and digital drawing using Photoshop. She’s no Picasso, but I think she has some talent that has devolved over the years. I would hope so considering the amount of time she spends at it.
I understand your concern. She may well get scholarship money at some art schools. As she is a strong student, I would really look for a university or even a LAC with an excellent art department, but where she could shift majors if she changed her mind. She has great stats and could get merit money from schools where her stats put her near the top of the applicant pool. Looking at the US News list for fine arts (which is for grad schools but should help) besides the “arts” schools and super elites, the top 25 include Temple, U. Wisc,Ariz state, and U Mich with SUNY Purchase, and even RIT just below. Those schools may also give her $$ and yet provide more of a broad base than a college of the arts. I know kids that started at an arts school and decided they did not want that major for whatever reason and had to transfer. If she isn’t 100% sure, a more diverse school could be the answer.
Can you assess her ability? Is she really that passionate and talented? Or is it a way to avoid thinking about the next step?
If she is really resistant, perhaps a gap year should be considered. If she does not become engaged in the application process, maybe she really is not ready. Good luck!
"Can you assess her ability? Is she really that passionate and talented? Or is it a way to avoid thinking about the next step?
If she is really resistant, perhaps a gap year should be considered. If she does not become engaged in the application process, maybe she really is not ready. Good luck!"
I can assess her ability, but art really isn’t my skill set. As for her passion, she definitely has it and we’re proud of the talent she has developed. Some of her work is amazing in my eyes, but what parent isn’t at least a little biased.
I have to admit she is not as engaged in the college process as I would like, but I think part of this is how she deals with stress. I can clearly see that the whole thing is weighing heavy on her. Haven’t seen tears yet, but can surely see it in her eyes. Maybe she isn’t ready emotionally and a gap year would be good. Honestly, gap years scare me as I’m sure many with plans to go back to school don’t.
She recently started seeing a councilor to find ways to manage her stress and that seems to be going well.