<p>We could not believe this! Our daughter who is an incoming intended Studio Art major at AU was told today by her advisor" that she cannot ANY studio art classes her first year because there was a waiting list for upperclassman who are NOT even art majors to take the studio courses. During the Freshman open house, she met numerous faculty as well as the Fine Art registrar who praised this "“so-called art program” and said she could take whatever she wanted. My daughter turned down RISD, MICA etc. in order to attend AU in hopes of getting a well-rounded education along with studying studio art in what appears to be a facade, The Katzen Art Center. She cried this afternoon. After I talked with some deans who claimed they had no power over freshman taking any courses, they claimed that art students were not like econ or math where they can add any students. My daughter is an award winning artist and they are turning her away from taking art courses!!! One art professor told us that there were hardly any art majors at AU and that she would get personal attention? What attention, when they are just letting kids with little to no talent take it as an easy Gen Ed elective, but not the serious art students? We were never told this when we visited. We are frustrated and having to pay full ticket for AU. Is this what we are in for for 4 years??? Her advisor said just take all GEN ed courses not in her intended major, the first year. This is completely unacceptable. My daughter was completely and totally misled and the advisor wouldn’t even try to help with this. Any advice would be appreciated!</p>
<p>Wow…maybe we should cross American off the list for our D who is talented in art. Thought it might be a school to consider for her, since she is torn between art and music (voice) and Ithought American might be a place to study both in a liberal arts setting. Older D applied there for music, but we got the sense that the music program was undergoing change and was somewhat in flux. They gave her a very large merit scholarship but I was afraid that the program might not pan out.</p>
<p>If you are distraught and feel that your daughter has absolutely made a mistake, I would consider re-contacting schools that you turned down and explain the situation and why you had made the decision you did. Obviously tell them that it was a very close call. Especially since you are not asking for financial aid…who knows?</p>
<p>So mine, a concert pianist, when told that she couldn’t get into the piano studio because she wasn’t a major or minor, just walked over the art center, made an appointment, met with the piano professor (a very accomplished international piano artist), and was accepted on the spot. Then (testing her luck), she walked over the professor of jazz, with exactly the same result. </p>
<p>When you can’t deal with the bureaucrats (who are not particularly bad at AU - we have found the quality of advising to amazingly good), just go to the person who can fix it.</p>
<p>^ excellent advice from mini. I would do the same but I’d call Admissions and the Presidents office ASAP, too. I am so sorry that you are experiencing this. It should not happen. Actually, my D #1 left Carnegie Mellon for similar reasons - too many of the classes that she wanted were only for “XYZ” majors and she couldn’t take them! Or, like you, upperclass students claimed all the slots. She transferred to a small LAC and is very happy. Too bad, because CMU has a lot to offer in many ways, just too rigid.</p>
<p>Cadmiumred: You have every right to be indignant, especially if you are paying full freight!! At this juncture, I would not consider speaking to the professors as a “fix”, as your daughter hasn’t even matriculated. How could she be expected to know them well enough even to approach them! I would be parked at the doorstep of RISD, with my checkbook. What a disappointment for you both.</p>
<p>Thank you all for kind support; we are still struggling. I went in today, talked to the Fine Art registrar who confirmed that the studio art courses that my daughter should be allowed to take, supposedly for freshman intended studio art majors, were all CLOSED and FILLED by UPPERCLASSMEN!!! She told me to send a proposed schedule to her for my daughter, and she would put her high on the waiting list for these classes with absolutely no guarantees. I was then told that if she could not get in them(and we would not know til right before classes start), that she should go the the head of the art dept. and ask to take advanced courses, but that this procedure is very rare, and she would have to present a portfolio (again, with no guarantee of studio art classes?) Meanwhile, students NOT majoring in art were placed right in the 200 level courses she should be taking. The registrar told me that the rest of the university doesn’t understand the art department and is fearful of it? We also learned today that a lot of the art and art history courses are held at night. We definitely turned down the other schools this past month,
and are still afraid about doing something radical like switching schools. We were also told that my daughter’s advisor was new to working with freshman and did not seem to know all of the policies regarding freshman placement in classes? Oddly on the online freshman guide site, there is schedule of recommended classes that my daughter should take as a studio art major. All of the art classes recommended are the ones that are currently FULL with upperclassmen. We are still not sure about what to do.</p>
<p>I don’t see anything wrong with kids who aren’t art majors getting to take these art classes. Offering these kinds of things allows the college to have well-rounded individuals who can express their creativity while pursuing a different focus of study. Why don’t they have the right to take those classes?</p>
<p>The problem I see is with the incompetency of the registrar’s office not to allot sufficient space for art majors. Your daughter certainly ought have the priority, as this is her chosen focus of study.</p>
<p>Sometimes we feel the necessity to “fix” things , especially after the long process you went through applying and finally deciding on a school. And it is hard to say…“we made the wrong decision” especially before your D ahs even unpacked her bags.</p>
<p>HOWEVER, there are other times that you just need to cut and run. I really think that this is one of those times. I have a nephew who just completed his freshman year and loves AU as a poli sci/ business major. The school totally works for him.</p>
<p>I can’t see this as the case with your D. I think that AU claims they want to build up their arts departments, but in reality they do not get the funding/respect that they need to be viable for a talented student to excel there as a major. That is the impression I got about the music department, too. The bottom line is that there should be more sections and offerings of art clasees if they are so “popular.” But obviously these class are considered fluff classes by the administration or else this situation would not be occurring. How can the dept head not fight for his own majors? Especially since there do not seem to be many of them!</p>
<p>I would agree with JASmac…run!!! Park in front of RISD with the check!!!</p>
<pre><code> You are correct!! There should have been sufficient space for intended art majors. In fact, there are many freshman SIS and Communications Gen Eds on the online schedule of classes that are very specifically designated for Comm Dept. or SIS students only, making sure that the rest of the school is not filling them. The disgusting part is that they( Art professors, registrar, etc) heavily sold the program, to my daughter, to her face, on the art program including providing her own private space to work. (during accepted student’s day) They should have had the decency to tell her and us that there was no viable art program for the undergraduate level. I called the head of the Department, received no response, the dean of academic affairs who was supposed to look into this and did not call me back today with a response, her advisor who knew nothing, and an art professor who was selling us on the art program. She never returned my call. It is almost like a cheap scam! I wish I could call the Katzens who donated the money to build the art center, but they are not listed. Do you think contacting the Provost would be useless as well?
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<p>Before you cut and run, make sure the admissions office and the dean for AU’s College of Arts and Sciences are both aware of how AU is handling incoming Studio Arts majors</p>
<p>This thread will be on the internet forever, and seen by every high school student who googles “American University” and “studio art”</p>
<p>Can you imagine telling a math major that she can’t take any math freshman year? telling a history major she can’t take any history freshman year? telling a French major she can’t take any French freshman year? </p>
<p>Everything you’ve said makes me feel you should cut and run. Red flags everywhere on this one. This is not right and there’s no evidence it will get better. There is hope the other schools are still working on their wait lists and have room. I hope they do and I hope all works out - do please let us know.</p>
<p>I did call Kay Mussell yesterday, whose assistant switched me to the dean of academic affairs, who did not even call me back today with anything.</p>
<p>Wow, AU is not handling this well at all. For full price (or for any price, really), the school is not worth it if your D is not going to develop as an artist as much as she could. I’d keep the phone numbers of the other schools at hand.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>p.s. This has gotten me slightly worried. I’m an incoming Bio freshman to AU. The sciences are definitely not their strong point either. If the Art department treats talented Artists like this, who’s to say that the Science department won’t do the same?</p>
<p>I was just recommended to look at AU for my daughter who is going to be a senior next year, and so I come over to the AU board on C.C and the first thread I see is this. It is unbelievable. I will follow this thread and if I don’t see a satisfactory resolution to this issue, I am unlikely to suggest AU to my daughter. Before coming to this forum I had spent some time on the AU website and it did look like a good fit for my daughter.</p>