<p>I just read on a livejournal Oberlin community two comments that said the studio arts department is very poor. I think those posts were from a couple of years ago, but is this true? I've been seriously considering Oberlin and right now visual art and physics are what I want to study most. </p>
<p>And if it does suck, any suggestion of a similar school with a good program?</p>
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<p>I think you need to read the livejournal comments with a very critical eye. What were those students expecting when they applied? Are they comparing the department with an Arts Institute where only art is taught (but no academics), such as at RISD or MICA? Were they referring to studio space, professor's attention, opportunities to display work, or specifically what? Perhaps what troubles those students wouldn't trouble you. I certainly wouldn't be undone by two comments unless I knew the artistic perspective and personality of the person commenting.</p>
<p>My D co-majored in Art and she described the department as "small but good."
For some people, small can never be good, so you have to think what are you all about. Do you need to have a choice among 25 teachers or are you kind who can get value from 5 teachers? Also, I think there are different ideas out there about what an art department should be today: oriented towards performance art, digital arts and media, or more traditional with painting, sculpture, photography. Each person has a different response and I'm not sure someone looking for the most edgey, progressive approaches would like the traditional studios, and vice-versa.</p>
<p>If you research and still feel unsatisfied, you might compare with Williams College which is the most like Oberlin in academic quality, and shares the reputation for a good art offering and museum. But then...you have to compare the Physics departments, too. My impression is that Oberlin's sciences are astonishing and amazing. </p>
<p>Are you brave enough to call the Art Department and say you've read these things and ask for a professor to tell you, from his perspective, whether there's any merit to these criticisms? Perhaps there's another side of the story to hear. You don't have to argue or debate with the professor, but just say you were ready to apply but then these comments bothered you; could he shed some light so you can understand the critiques and if they are even fair? And sometimes, what is complained about a few years ago has been improved since then.</p>
<p>"Similar" schools w/good art? Faced this question when our 2 D's were college hunting. We felt that among top LACs, only Williams has a top notch visual art program. Kenyon is ok. If medium-sized universities are an option, the art programs at Carnegie-Mellon and WashU are very strong. FWIW, both D's are studying art at WashU and loving it.</p>
<p>brandeis university could be worth investigating for art and physics</p>