Do AP classes (not AP art) matter to art college admission?

College Majors Visual Arts and Film Majors
1

Hi,

My D (junior) wants to go to art colleges (such as MICA) and she seems to be the only one who wants to do so at her school, so we are clueless. All her close friends are preparing for Ivys or something similar and talk about grades, APs and SAT/ACT scores.

Let me ask you frankly - aside from developing a good portfolio, how important these academic scores for applying to art colleges?

More specifically - she needs to think about which classes to take for senior year now and she wonders if she needs to take APs (like her friends) in other disciplines (i.e. math, science, social studies) or save time for drawing. She is doing AP Studio Art now.

To those of you who go to art colleges or thinking of applying, how many APs have you taken?

Another question:

Did you (or do you) also take art lessons after school or during the weekend?

This is also a matter of priority - as someone who takes advanced level classes, her schoolwork (homework, project) is so demanding that she has little time left for serious extracurricular activities. I wonder if she should take easier classes next year and spend mote time on preparing her portfolio if she wants to go to art college.

Any thoughts/suggestions appreciated!

2

I’ll be attending either MICA or SAIC in the fall and just went through this process, so I may be able to give a little insight.

First and foremost I would say try to keep grades/academic rigor up as much as she can. It’s not because you necessarily need this to get into art school, but most people don’t and when you do, it seems impressive. MICA has high priority with academics and offers scholarships for it. I’m sorry to say but most of those who apply to art school do not take their academic word seriously, which in turn works out for those who do, because then they stand out. I’m no valedictorian and my GPA is only 3.7 (not ‘only’ but you know what I mean), and all the counselors I talked to said I was in very good standing for scholarships because of it. Combine this with a good SAT score–mine was 1770, which really isn’t much compared to kids going to ivies but for art school it was more than enough to impress the admissions staff.

As for courses, this year I kept up the rigor in what matters to me. This year I’m taking AP Environmental Science, AP English Literature, AP Psychology (which I thought were three solid courses) as well as a regular math, yearbook, and a student leadership class. The ladder are more slack off electives, while the math I have completely given up on. I still do my best and have kept my grades up, but only put the stress on what matters (to me). In addition to the three APs this year, I took APUSH and English Language and Composition last year, which I think was far more than enough for art school.

Now my advice may be a bit skewed because I attend a magnet arts school, where I have around 3 hours of art class everyday. This obviously pushed my portfolio past what I would’ve done on my own and I have never taken outside art classes, but I recommend it. An admissions counselor told me the more exposed you are (to the arts on your application i.e. classes and workshops) the better candidate you are for their program.

Bottom line I would say to focus on the classes that really matter, and weighted against how her schedule looks otherwise, there may be room for “easier classes.” This isn’t to say grades should drop but like with my easy math class, I was able to perform well without stressing. The portfolio is one of the most important parts and it should be well developed. It doesn’t have to be da Vinci advanced, but cohesive and well put together, as well as a platform for showing what you’re capable of advancing on.

Also side note–what is she interested in studying? Digital art, ceramics, illustration, etc?

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Thanks, fishermansrib, for such a detailed and informative response!

My D is interested in illustration/digital art.
She uses multiple software, SAI, Photoshop, etc, and has her own page on DiviantArt and other places since middle school. It is obvious that art is what she loves.

But her school is not like yours - her AP Art class meets only 4 times a week.

It is good to know that the effort my D has put in academics will not be wasted.
I spoke to a student working at the admission office for a top art college,
who cheerfully told me that “Oh, I did not take any APs!” and
thought about my D’s sleep-deprived nights preparing for exams…

4

It depends on where she is applying, but as fishermansrib explained, good academics and strong extracurriculars will make a candidate stand out and could at times earn them more merit money for academics.

For certain schools, academics can be an important part of one’s application. D is a studio art major at NYU, and at NYU academics are considered equally important to one’s portfolio. D had a 2000 SAT, 29 ACT and a 90.1 gpa (3.7). Her verbal scores were very high (720 V SAT and 35 ACT–her math scores lower 610 SAT and 25.) Senior year she took AP bio, AP gov, AP economics and AP English lit. She also took college Spanish and NYU accepted 6 credits from that class to meet her language requirement. In junior year D took AP English language and Anatomy and Physiology for college credit.

D was also very involved in choir, acappella music and musical theatre in her school. Her high school schedule was crazy busy, but it certainly helped prepare her for being an art major and taking 18 credits each semester freshman year.

Being an art major requires a lot of work and is not an easy major. There is a lot of juggling to meet deadlines. I think that colleges like to see that a student has challenged themselves and they are well-rounded to a certain extent.

D chose not to take AP art. She took an independent study in art instead and did not have the time consuming requirements and restrictions of AP art. Instead she was able to concentrate on her portfolio and was able to create more creative pieces and use different mediums. She produced 2D and 3D art and was able to experiment with several themes and ideas.

She was accepted ED to NYU, but also received an EA acceptance from Pratt with a large merit scholarship. Both schools did not particular encourage AP art when she sought their advice. To my knowledge, no art school will accept AP credits.

As for additional classes, D did a bunch of them. We live near NYC on Long Island , so there were a lot of options.

She took art classes at Hofstra University (cartooning and cartoon sculpture) when she was a freshman and sophomore. She then took fashion design and fashion illustartion at FIT and later portfolio prep at Pratt on Saturdays. The summer before junior year she did a NY State Summer Arts program at Fredonia College. The summer before senior year she did a Summer Art Intensive at NYU which gave her a taste of what NYU was about.

D loves NYU and the studio art program there. It really is the perfect fit for her. But keep in mind that some students do change their mind about their majors/ career path. With that in mind, I’d have her stick with the most rigorous level of classes that she can, so that she will have a good academic record in high school and she will have those AP credits if she ever needs to transfer. And if she choses an art program where academics do count, she will be prepared.

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Don’t forget that AP credit usually counts as college credit fulfilling some off the gen ed credits that even art colleges have. It can free up the college schedule and save a few bucks. Check with the schools your D is interested in to see if they accept them. AP Art however will not be accepted for credit–you can’t get out of art classes at an art school.
Does your HS have dual credit classes? Get college credit while in HS.
That said, the portfolio is king for art schools. Is it possible to take a pre-college program during the summer? My D attended pre-college at Ringling where she developed most of her portfolio.

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Thanks, gouf78! My D wants to go to MICA and when she asked the admission office, the girl (who says she is a student working there) was not sure about how the students can use AP credits.

I heard Ringling has a great program for illustrations, but could you tell me if they teach digital illustrations? That is what my D wants to do.

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Wish I could help more–all I know is that use of digital media is part of the Illustration curriculum.

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I see. Thanks, gouf78!

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My son is currently a freshman at MICA who plans to major in illustration. He went to a high-powered, academic high school, where the pressure to pile on the AP’s was enormous and where most kids were gunning for Ivies. Going to this kind of place was definitely a feather in his cap when applying to art schools, but I’m convinced that my son’s success in the admissions process had more to do with the strength of his portfolio. He deliberately took an easy schedule as a senior (he might have had the easiest schedule in the senior class!) in order to focus on his art and take figure drawing classes at Art Center during the weekends. He also took figure drawing at Otis during the summer between his junior and senior years. He recently told me that the figure drawing class he took at Otis was the single most valuable thing he ever did to prepare for art school, and I’m sure that the time he had to refine his work as a senior led to the merit scholarships that are paying for a major chunk of his education. While his SAT scores were great, his GPA was spotty, including a couple of low grades in Chemistry and Math that didn’t seem to pose any problem for the colleges he applied to. The bottom line: Academics help, but don’t overload on AP’s if it means your daughter won’t have time to take art classes outside of school or work on her portfolio. Academic success can prove drive, discipline, and intellectual curiosity, which definitely matter, but places like MICA and RISD are looking to reward artistic talent in the end.

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DS’s experience was that his portfolio counted far more than his academics. His grades were good but not great but his portfolio got him several good scholarship offers.

I think Drexel may teach digital illustration.

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@bisei03 is your daughter planning to attend an art school pre-college program over the summer? Those are serious portfolio builders because the students are immersed in college-level rigor studio classes. Plus, it really gives the student an opportunity to experience art college first-hand and understand whether it’s for them or not.

My D also took very rigorous courses her Jr. year (AP US History, Honors Chem, and Calculus) in addition to her Honors Art class. She also took 60 hours of studio classes at our local art college to help build up her skills. She took both a portfolio class (in the fall) and a Graphic Design class (in the spring) and was able to incorporate some work from those into her overall portfolio along with her work from Pre-College. So far she’s been accepted to Pratt, MICA and MCAD and has been awarded merit aid from all three. MICA also awards academic scholarships for high school research in the Liberal Arts. The impression that we have of MICA is that it takes the academic side of art college very seriously.

All of the art schools my D applied to takes AP credits in some capacity but you have to score either a 4 or a 5 and there will be limits to what they accept (AP Art, for instance may well NOT be accepted at all). You can look this up on the individual websites or call Admissions for more information. I think limitations really have more to do with the specific curriculum offered by the school than anything else. So if you took AP English, you can probably get LAC’s for that - but if you took AP Stats, you might be out of luck.

But should your student take AP in general if he/she is capable of handling the work? In a word: ABSOLUTELY!!! Every art college my D spoke to values the rigor and the work associated with college level courses. Make no mistake: Art College can be grueling, especially the foundation year. A load of honors and AP courses is a great signal that your student is well prepared for the work.

And some high school counsellors may disagree with me but I believe it’s ok to send along your scores as part of the application. Can’t hurt. And at least one of the art schools my D applied to actually required them if the applicant had already sat the test.

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@uskoolfish, sorry that I overlooked you response! Interesting to know that art colleges do not particularly encouraging taking AP Art. Our D has no other option since it is likely that the art teacher who teaches this course will write a reference letter.

@spoonyj, thank you for sharing your thoughts! Yes our D goes to academic HS, so it is very helpful to know what others have done.

@mom4cw, thanks! I let her look at Drexel.

@Mamelot, Thanks! Boy, both you and @uskoolfish mention the foundation year at art college is very tough… hope our D can handle it (well, she has to be accepted first!) BTW which scores do you mean when you say sending as a part of the application?

Yes, she plans to go to pre-college at MICA. But I wonder if she also has to take courses during weekend while the school in session.

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@‌bisei03 it’s very smart to send your daughter to Pre College. MICA’s program is wonderful from what I’ve heard and several weeks of an intense studio experience is probably the best preparation she could have before beginning art school. If she’s totally into it (as was my daughter when she did her pre college last year) she will NOT want to leave.

As to which AP scores to send as part of her application - I’d advise sending any that show at least a 4. AP tests are taken in May and scores are released in July - plenty of time before the application season begins. You can arrange for the College Board to release the scores to any institution you choose (there is a fee, of course). I think it adds a nice touch to an application because the student not only performed in a college level course but saw it through to the finish. And as I mentioned, at least one of my D’s art schools asked for all AP test scores as well as records of all college courses taken (even if not for credit). We sent pretty much everything - official HS transcripts, unofficial Pre-College transcripts, transcripts from the local art college showing courses taken for non-credit, and her AP scores - to each school as part of her application materials.

As to whether to take supplemental art courses - it really depends on whether your daughter thinks it will help. My D definitely did which is why we signed her up. Her high school is a great college prep experience but has limited art offerings and she felt that her skills could use the boost. It made for a crazy-busy Junior year given her other commitments and activities but that’s probably to be expected. Art students have to have a good GPA, good test scores, AND a good portfolio.

BTW, someone above mentioned that in the end RISD and MICA are going to reward artistic talent and that’s true . . . but they want strong academic talent as well. Google the RISD 2014 Fact Book and flip through the freshman class profile beginning on page 29. Both SAT scores and GPA are fairly high. RISD looks at your GPA beginning mid-way through Sophomore year and wants to see at least a 3.5 in the academic courses (English, History, Math, Science, Foreign Language). MICA recommends at least a 3.0 unweighted GPA (although not sure if that’s overall or just for the academic courses) as well as submission of BOTH ACT and SAT scores. Having said that, it’s also the case that when my D scored quite high on her ACT her MICA admissions counselor advised her not to worry about the SAT but to instead work on improving her portfolio. So there really is no one “right” path to an admission decision - it totally depends on the individual applicant.

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@Mamelot, did MICA ask both ACT and SAT scores? I thought you just need to submit ACT OR SAT?

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@bisei03, you are correct that you are required to submit the results of either ACT or SAT. Nonetheless, when we visited last spring, MICA did recommend that students take and submit scores from both tests. Now, a lot also depends on what those scores are! I think the perspective the admissions people are coming from is that of maximizing admission and scholarship potential, so if one set of scores doesn’t quite help there, perhaps another set will. However, if your daughter aces her upcoming ACT or SAT, then she probably doesn’t need to worry so much about the other test. Many applicants to the nation’s top schools, of course, take and submit the results of both tests and admissions committees will often admit that they enjoy receiving the extra info. However, one has to figure out whether the time needed for that 2nd test might be better spent on another aspect of the application. That’s why it’s good to check in with the admissions counsellor to see what he/she thinks once scores are received.

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It’s not that art schools don’t encourage taking AP art–they just don’t give credit for it.
Glad she’s signed up for pre-college. That immersion experience really will tell if art school is the way to go. If your kid decides they don’t want to come home after working so hard, you know you’ve got a winner!

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Sorry for late response as I was away…
@Mamelot, Thanks! What you say makes lots of sense.

@gouf78 I hope so!