<p>I'm very interested in getting into a graduate school with a top-ranked Fine Arts department (UCLA, RISD, Yale, etc.).</p>
<p>At the start of next fall, I will be attending UCSD as a Visual Art major, and I've been hearing that UCSD's Art program leaves a lot to be desired. First of all, is this true? And second of all, can I still be accepted to an excellent Fine Arts department for graduate school despite coming from a school better known for its sciences?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Undergrad will have no or little bearing on graduate admission. A LOT will depend on the portfolio that you will have upon graduation and your grades.</p>
<p>VisArtStudent,</p>
<p>UC San Diego has a very good art program and it has all the resources and professors to help you take your art to the next level. If anything an art degree from UCSD will help your grad school chances. Certainly won’t hurt.</p>
<p>Taxguy is right (big surprise :)), the most important factor will be your portfolio, followed by grades, followed by essays, followed by undergrad college. Portfolio plus grades is probably 85% of it.</p>
<p>Enjoy your time at UCSD. Really good art program, great school, and perfect location.</p>
<p>Last thought: UCSD has a LOT of very creative cross-major classes involving art and art history. Investigate those because they could take you very far.</p>
<p>Best of luck,
Wheaty</p>
<p>Sorry to bump this thread, but I wanted to thank you two for your answers! I feel a bit more encouraged.</p>
<p>Another question: What GPA range is generally considered competitive for top art programs?</p>
<p>Visartstudent asks,“Another question: What GPA range is generally considered competitive for top art programs”</p>
<p>Answer: No one can give you this answer. Alot will depend on the weight of the portfolio that a school places in admission. Some schools weigh the GPA on the transcript heavily while others do not. Some schools required a thesis proposal,which is heavily considered in the admission process, and some don’t.The portfolio for grad school, however, is almost always given a lot of weight, perhaps even more than for undergraduate admission in many cases.</p>
<p>My daughter is a good example. She had a very strong GPA from a top notch design program. She got rejected from USC for animation but got into every other school that she applied to with some scholarship offers including UCLA, which is as hard if not harder to get admitted to than USC. Go figure.</p>