MiamiDAP, music is one of the most intense majors and also includes practice time. Music majors for BM’s in particular barely have time to breathe.
Schools like Brown or Amherst (and others, but research would be needed) have open curriculums and would offer the space in course choices for art and something else.
Another possibility is a place like Bennington that offers interdisciplinary and independent work. Sarah Lawrence, Hampshire, Marlobor would be in this mold. Vassar and Skidmore are possibles too.
I bought a great book online, but it was 8 years ago. “Creative Colleges.” It listed schools with good programs in visual arts as well as music, dance, theater, film and writing, as I remember. There is also a Peterson’s for art.
S #1 is also an artist and a math guy. Won awards for painting and also state-wide math competitions. He is not drawn to architecture, alas. Even less interested in physics. Since he was not 100% STEM we started with the assumption that he would not narrow in on STEM yet. On the other hand, we (parents) felt that a BFA would be too limiting so we (parents) encouraged either double degree programs or BA / BS (either).
We looked at liberal arts schools with strong art (Williams, Bard, etc) but he gravitated toward bigger schools with larger departments or actual art schools (e.g., WashU, Brown/RISD, Carnegie). WashU is flexible enough in requirements that a double degree is feasible, and Sam Fox is great. UVa has an art mentoring program which interested him. Tufts/art school has been mentioned, but the emphasis on abstract (I guess they call it conceptual?) was not what he was looking for. Carnegie was also not a “fit” for him but for many students it is. It definitely has that art school vibe, even with its strength in engineering, etc. Brown/RISD was my personal favorite but we did not get that far in the admissions process. It is a tough admit and a demanding program but for motivated kids it is the best of both worlds. If not admitted to the program Brown students can still take one class a semester at RISD.
BU has a double degree. I know there are other schools but we did not look at others.
oh – Temple! Double degree and less difficult admit. We did not look at it but heard good things about art there.
Please keep us posted, this is a great thread and I am interested to hear how your student’s search progresses.
My in-laws sent me this link in the hopes I’d send my science/math leaning arty girl to the west coast, heh. Dunno if she will nibble, but it looks like a cool program!
I did an interdisciplinary program at Carnegie Mellon and I have to say that it was one of the best choices of my life. I actually switched out of ECE (electrical and computer engineering) to the philosophy department to do it, which had my Dean looking at me like I’d lost my mind when we met to request the transfer. CMU does those interdisciplinary programs really well. Although the rep is in STEM, there is a very strong and distinct fine arts culture in the CFA (college of fine arts) crowd.
Anyway, in addition to all the other recommendations I would second the one for exploring graphic design. Particularly for computer gaming, which is a hot field and very fun for teenage boys. It should merge math, computers, and art.
Just for fun, take a look at Alfred University’s College of Ceramics, http://www.alfred.edu/college-of-ceramics/. Its programs have examples of applied and highly practical blends of art and science. I suggest this, not so much to suggest a specific school, but rather to present a sample of the wide possibilities that exist. I agree with others who suggest exploration.
I have a cousin who is a very successful cosmetic dentist. He was an art major in college, realized he wouldn’t make any money, and went to dental school. He says it has been a great way to combine his love of art with something scientific and practical!
Kudos to your DS for being practical in his search for a future career. In addition to the architecture route, another option to consider other than math or physics could be an engineering field. For example, mechanical and aerospace engineering often use 3D modeling applications/software to mock up designs & even do some simulated testing on a server before you actually build it. Somebody who has a knack for art but is also interested in science would be a good fit for something like that. It’s pretty much like making a 3D sculpture, but the sculpture is practical instead of just pure aesthetics.
I have heard MANY engineers in industry & universities state how important creativity & ingenuity are in engineering fields.
compmom,
“MiamiDAP, music is one of the most intense majors and also includes practice time. Music majors for BM’s in particular barely have time to breathe.” - you missed what I said. D. did not graduate with Music major. She was a pre-med who graduated with Music MINOR, which was one of her 2 minors.
Anyway, I was using D’s example to point out that combining artsy type of un-related MINOR with sciency major is possible, but requires great time management skills. However, art classes are much more time consuming than music classes. As I said, music minor was D’s R&R away from her very rigorous major. I was NOT suggesting to combine un-related majors although even that was done by one of D’s pre-med friends.
I still think that the ARCHITECTURE is best combining art, physics and math.
^^^ One of my 3 roommates was a math major, music minor. He was easily the busiest by a huge margin than my other roommates which were a computer engineer and honors math major. Honestly, I would not have wanted his life as he very rarely had time to socialize.
" One of my 3 roommates was a math major, music minor. He was easily the busiest by a huge margin than my other roommates which were a computer engineer and honors math major. Honestly, I would not have wanted his life as he very rarely had time to socialize. "
I feel sorry for the guy. My D. was in sorority and had many friends at college and she had 2 minors and worked and intern in medical research lab and all around her had about the same load. D. had to drop her sport though after being in the club for freshman year. Something had to give, I agree, but not the social life. It is important for the young person to grow personally and the only way to do it is to be with others for sufficient amount of time. Actually, if one is in science type of major, artsy minor will expand the social horizon. An it was a primary reason for D. to have a music minor along with participating in sorority. She simply did not want to be solely among intense pre-meds all the time. But again, time management is a must and the habit of NOT watching TV was very helpful. D. was astound with how much TV some of her roommates watched at college. She just never was interested.
I appreciate the feedback and thankful you all took the time to carefully consider my question–will have son continue the research–this is all great information.
I liked art, math and history and ended up in architecture. It’s been a good field for me. I think computer graphics might be another very reasonable direction.
Great thread and I agree with many of the posters here. I think the most creative people are the ones who are simultaneously scientific/analytic and artistic.
I too have a son who is quite gifted in both physics and art. He will major in physics, partly I think because he considers art as just a fun hobby. It is a pity that some universities require you to choose between the sciences school or the art/humanities school, though most say taking classes in the other is common. Hopefully your child can use freshman year to explore before having to declare a major.
My son will attend CMU this fall (we realized at the last minute that he could submit an art portfolio online, so he did…that might have been the element that pushed him into the accepted category). His essay spoke of his penchant for looking at things from unique, even absurd, perspectives and how this fuels his love for both physics and fantasy drawing…not bad.
Actually, architecture job prospects have picked up considerably in the past few years. Entry level salary levels are still low compared to other professional degrees.
I’d recommend that @Acuity’s son take a look at Williams. Excellent math and physics and very good studio art (plus excellent art history). Double – and even triple – majoring is common and not a problem. Excellent career and graduate school counselling. Several other small LACs have very good studio art programs, but Williams is especially distinguished for its strength in both art and STM (no engineering, though).
“CS…I wish so much he would do more with his art. It’s a gift. He says it is just a fun thing for him.” - Nothing wrong wrong with that.
DS, a gifted musician, was the same way with music. Formalizing it with music academics would have zapped away the joy. Instead he wove music into many of his engineering projects and participated in music EC on campus. Music provided a wonderful counterbalance to the intense academics.