<p>My D has been really lucky with admissions. We were very nervous about her chances as she only decided junior year summer that she wanted to apply to art school, so it was a scramble putting the portfolio together. Fortunately, she took two art classes senior year which gave her more time to produce work. She applied to a good number of schools, partly due to insecurity about the strength of her portfolio, partly due to needing financial aid, and partly to keep her dad happy as he wanted to see certain schools included in the mix. Anyway, it all worked out, almost too well, because now she has to decide between a number of programs. </p>
<p>So far she's been accepted to Alfred (with $), Parsons, Tyler ~no merit $ unfortunately~, SUNY New Paltz (Art program), and MassArt. Still waiting on Pratt and MICA. We haven't heard back on aid yet but Alfred & New Paltz are very attractively priced. </p>
<p>My D likes photography (and had quite a few photographs in her portfolio). I suspect that she might like graphic design if she were exposed to it. She is not great with observational & representational drawing and painting from life so I think a painting or illustration major will not be her thing. </p>
<p>She took a summer class at SVA and did not like the way the buildings were spread out in NYC. She wants a school with a campus and a little bit of green. Parsons doesn't fit that mold- it's more like SVA. But my husband feels it may offer the best contacts and access to internships so it is hard to dismiss that acceptance. </p>
<p>My D loved Alfred but is worried about its isolation. I know that it has a great ceramics program but I don't know whether it is strong in photography and graphic design. Any thoughts on these programs? Do you think a brand name like Parsons confers much of an advantage over Alfred or New Paltz in the job market? Any thoughts on the photo or design departments at these schools?</p>
<p>I do not know much about Massart as a school but what I do know (because I live here) is that the Boston area is great. There is a ton of diversity, great architecture. Also, even though it is a big city, you will not get swept away (there are many secluded areas). I would highly recommend going to school in Boston.</p>
<p>If she likes photography, why didn’t she apply to RIT? It is considered to have one of the best, if not the best, phtography programs in the US></p>
<p>My son is a graphic design major at SUNY New Paltz and one of his roommates is a photography major. They are both transfer students, so just getting started at NP this past semester. So far they are both enjoying it very much. NP has a highly regarded art department.</p>
<p>My older D is in her second year at Alfred studying graphic design. She LOVES the program, as does another girl from our town in the art program there.
It is definitely an isolated spot, but she doesn’t mind at all. She’s very busy with classes, sports (she plays soccer), and the many friends she’s made there. Her experience with the foundation classes have been a bit mixed, but she was thrilled with the graphic design and photography studio courses she took last semester. She’s really looking forward to next year when she can focus more on her areas of interest.
Alfred is a great deal financially - one of the “best buy” colleges in the Northeast. She received some grants, and may get a graphic design scholarship next year.
BUT - if a student wants a city atmosphere, they will probably be unhappy at Alfred!!!</p>
<p>i do think there can be a problem with Alfred’s location. New Paltz offers a wonderful compromise. it is a beautiful area, but not so far removed from the culture and hustle/bustle of NYC. New Paltz has a very good GD program.</p>
<p>My daughter is a sophmore at MassArt and loves it. Freshman year is foundation so they don’t really get to explore their area of interest until Sophmore year. She started out thinking Graphic Design (more for practical reasons thinking more opportunities), but went with her heart and switched to Fashion Design.</p>
<p>She knew she wanted to be in a city, but chose not to be in NYC because that’s where we live and she grew up. I can’t speak for the photo program at MassArt but I can tell you that she’s visited friends at AIB and RISD, and always returns happy to be at MassArt.</p>
<p>Of those other schools you mentioned, we looked at Tyler and MICA. She felt Tyler was too isolated (before move to Temple campus), the neighboring area didn’t look so great, and many kids had cars and left on the weekend. That being said, she didn’t apply. She applied and was accepted to MICA but preferred MassArt over MICA. </p>
<p>If your daughter wants a campus atmosphere though I don’t think MassArt is for her. My daughter was just the opposite and happy with her choice.</p>