<p>My son and I are just starting to look at colleges that might fit him. He is a sophomore right now. (It's hard to believe we're just starting this process, as my older son is a senior and he's in the midst of receiving decisions right now from the schools he applied to.)</p>
<p>My younger son is a strong student, particularly in math and english. He has gotten incredibly interested in photography as a result of a great photography program in his high school, in which he has participated last year and this year. The type of school that would be the best fit for him is a LAC or small university that has a nurturing atmosphere.</p>
<p>Because he is not naturally talented in drawing and painting, and because most photography programs are part of a Studio Art major that requires a lot of foundation classes, we're looking for programs that either require less foundation classes or he might major in something else and take a lot of photography classes as electives. Right now he's thinking that he'd like to major in Photography, but we want the flexibility of other non-art majors in case he changes his mind. That's why art schools are not for him.</p>
<p>Parsons requires no foundation year and immediate entry into photography.</p>
<p>But it sounds like NYU is the school for your son. Their photography program is not as good as RIT or some other photography schools but you get the benefit of being in a good liberal arts university also and he can pursue a double major if he wants to explore something non-arts also. The photography program also doesn't require a typical foundation year although he shouldn't expect to go right into 24/7 darkroom and computer technology activities. When i say it's not typical i mean as far as i know there are not many drawing and painting classes involved although there are many different classes like culture, history, and visual thinking all to do with photography.</p>
<p>If you haven't been able to tell yet...I'll be attending NYU in the fall for photography. :-)</p>
<p>Here are the art schools I applied to:
School of Visual Arts (not sure about foundation year, it wasn't one of my key concerns)
Parsons
Pratt
Maryland Institute College of Art
Rochester Institute of Technology (by far one of the best for photography and also has liberal arts programs also)
NYU Tisch</p>
<p>there are many other great schools for photography.</p>
<p>Maybe you should talk to your son about rethinking the foundation year if he eventually decides he definitely wants to pursue a certain mode of art. A foundation year can be very good for a student that hasn't been exposed to EVERYTHING. Yes, he doesn't like drawing and painting but he may find out he has talent in something like Graphic Design and such. I look at the foundation year as a very safe way of approaching art. You don't want to take any chances on not being happy in your future.</p>
<p>susan, If your son chooses a small LAC or medium university he should have no problem majoring in a academic discipline -- English, math or whatever he gravitates toward in a few years -- and at the same time picking and choosing among the courses offered in the art department. </p>
<p>I think it's quite normal, however, for art departments to require a basic drawing course as a prerequisite to most other courses as it is the basis for learning to look and compose. A lot of the kids who take basic drawing are not art majors so I wouldn't be overly worried about his skill level in comparison to the more accomplished artists in the class.</p>
<p>I would suggest that he look at schools that have strong studio art departments and a good selection of course offerings. Among LACs I would recommend Williams, Wesleyan, Skidmore, Hamilton, Conn College, Vassar, Kenyon. Brown, a medium sized university, has a reciprical relationship with RISD which opens even more studio doors.</p>
<p>bard might be good too, it is well respected in terms of art, particularly photography (stephen shore is the head of the dept.. and all factulty are INCREDIBLE apparently) but you also get the well roundedness of a liberal arts college, and you'd graduate with a BA, even if you did major in photo. its also small, personal, and even as a major, you can only take one photo class a semester and take liberal arts for the rest, making you an informed artist. i dunno, check it out. its in a small town and pretty rural (annandale-on-hudson), though you can go into nyc for a weekend trip or something..</p>
<p>I think RISD has a photography program, and you can take some liberal arts courses at Brown. I do like RIT, however. They have a terrific program and decent liberal arts.</p>
<p>Totally agree 100% with HousePetMarla, but I'll be attending MICA in the fall for photography :)</p>
<p>NYU was my first choice until I realized I needed a far more interdiscplinary approach. I do a lot of video work, and have an intense interest in Art History and Queer Culture. For me, MICA provided the opportunity to do ALL of that at a far less expensive cost than NYU.</p>
<p>I applied to NYU, Pratt, RISD, MICA, RIT. Decided against SVA because i didn't like the teaching style at the classes i'd taken there. But their eqt is top notch and i have many friends who go there, love it, and are VERY successful in what they do. (Graphic design, film, photography, etc)</p>