<p>m&sdad, I know a bit about Pittsburgh. I was there last week, for example, for the opening of the exhibition of Luke Swank's photos at the Carnegie Museum of Art. A colleague/friend of mine, Howard Bossen, was the guest curator of that exhibit. I urge you and your daughter to see it. (Also, the book -- with pics and an extended biography of Swank -- is quite fine; published by UPitt Press.)</p>
<p>Pittsburgh would be a great place to be in college. Sons/daughters of some of my friends have attended (not in art but in engineering).</p>
<p>Liland wrote (missed this before):
[quote]
Mackinaw, when you said that most of the schools process the applications fairly quickly, do you mean that admissions are on a rolling basis, or do art colleges follow the April 1 notification date?
[/quote]
Of the 5 schools to which my daughter applied -- all RD -- she heard from three of them in February and March (KCAI, SCAD, MICA) and the remaining two (CMU, RISD) more or less around April 1. I think that rather than the early ones being rolling admissions, as you find at many state schools, they were more akin to what is referred to as "early write." "Early write" is when an adcom decides that certain applicants are very certain to be near the top of the admissions pool no matter what, and they try to get a jump on the competition by "writing early" (offering an early acceptance). This happened to my son also in a couple of cases (not art schools).</p>
<p>My husband just bought the book Drums for Dummies which prompted me to take a similar approach to summarizing all of the helpful information included in this thread.</p>
<p>Helping Your Child Prepare to Apply to Art Colleges -- for Dummies</p>
<p>High school students should</p>
<p> Follow a college preparatory program in secondary school.
Attend a pre-college program at an art college, work with a private tutor and/or take art classes at a local college to develop their portfolio.
Sketch, sketch, sketch.
Take advantage of National Portfolio Days.
Schedule a portfolio review and interview with the art college, when possible.
Any other suggestions?</p>
<p>And now I have a few more questions:</p>
<p>Do art colleges prefer the SAT or ACT?
Is it necessary to take SAT IIs? From looking at the various college sites, it doesnt look as if they require SAT IIs, but is it still a good idea to submit results from SAT IIs?
How many pieces are there in the average portfolio? (Refer to CCs making a portfolio thread and college websites.)<br>
Do most students submit work that was done during their junior and senior years? (Refer to making a portfolio thread and college websites.)</p>
<p>By the way, I thought of the for Dummies title because that is how I felt at the very beginning of this thread. Now Im starting to feel like an informed dummy! Thanks again for educating me!</p>
<p>Liland , I will attempt to answer your questions based on the schools that my daughter will be applying to:</p>
<p>art colleges prefer the SAT or ACT?</p>
<p>Response: They usually take either one.</p>
<p>Is it necessary to take SAT IIs? From looking at the various college sites, it doesnt look as if they require SAT IIs, but is it still a good idea to submit results from SAT IIs?</p>
<p>Response: SAT IIs are generally NOT required.</p>
<p>How many pieces are there in the average portfolio? (Refer to CCs making a portfolio thread and college websites.) </p>
<p>Response: it varies form school to school. Typical portfolio requirements are 12-15 pieces. However, some schools such as Carnegie Mellon require 15 pieces at a minimum. Some schools such as RISD, or Cooper Union, have a home assignment that requires three pieces. </p>
<p>Do most students submit work that was done during their junior and senior years? (Refer to making a portfolio thread and college websites.)</p>
<p>Response: The best time to start with a portfolio is in the freshmen or sophomore year. It can begin in the Junior year , but it will take a lot of intensive work.</p>
<p>I agree with Taxguy but will just embellish a couple of his points.</p>
<p>Do art colleges prefer the SAT or ACT?I think they generally accept either, but check each website.</p>
<p>Is it necessary to take SAT IIs? From looking at the various college sites, it doesnt look as if they require SAT IIs, but is it still a good idea to submit results from SAT IIs?Now that they incoporate writing into SAT I, my guess is that none of the stand-alones requires SAT II. When my daughter was applying 6 years ago, at least one school wanted the SAT II writing. I believe that was CMU. She took that as well as Math II just to show she could do it. But she's good in math.</p>
<p>How many pieces are there in the average portfolio? (Refer to CCs making a portfolio thread and college websites.)I've seen 9-20, 12-20, etc. My daughter submitted 17, because she thought there was a drop-off in quality after that (as she learned also from the portfolio day critiques that she received). One of the items in her standard portfolio came from her sketchbook, two from her summer precollege program (sculpture). The rest were things she did mainly in her junior and senior years. The drawing course she took in summer after sophomore year of h.s. was important to her improving her overall skills, and so it was work after that which stood out.</p>
<p>Do most students submit work that was done during their junior and senior years? (Refer to making a portfolio thread and college websites.)Basically I agree with Taxguy, but with caveat that you want to show your best work as well as work with a variety of media, and there can be some trade-offs involved in meeting these two goals; so you may need to reach back to earlier work to provide more diversity in your portfolio. This whole process is a lot easier for kids who attend an arts highschool; they often start thinking portfolio from day 1.</p>
<p>liland, It sounds as if you and I are in the same boat! I, too, have a sophomore s who feels as if he has found "the love of his life" in art! :) Seriously, I have not seen the side of him that has surfaced in the last year. His worry is that he has "started too late" into actual art classes. He is taking his first formal class this year.</p>
<p>He has always had a vivid imagination, but up until last year channeled it more into writing and even acting. We hope to take the advice offered here about the additional summer classes. Do any sophomores go to the National Portfolio Days? I saw on MICA's website that they have on set for Dec. 3. At the present, all he has are his sketchbooks, and a couple of watercolors he did in his first Art class (Art I). Would he be laughed out of the room for taking such a miniscule offering? Should he wait until he has more samples of work or would just going to see what a NPD is all about be a good experience in itself? </p>
<p>Lastly, I worry about the cost of the art schools available. While I think that schools like RSID, CMU and others offer incredible educations for an aspiring artist, I don't know how on earth families with average incomes like ours(not "upper" income by any means), afford to send kids to these institutions. It is a bit daunting to look at the tuitions, then room/board, then supply fees, etc. for any of the stand alone art schools. </p>
<p>Sorry for the rant, but as I continue to learn about possibilities to share with my s, I realize that many of these places will probably be "dream schools" for him in the truest sense of the word. Sigh.</p>
<p>Kandksmom, Yes, schools like CMU and RISD are very, very expensive. However, they are expensive, in part, because they provide decent need based aid. Thus, if you have a very talented child and have little savings and make under $80,000 a year or so, you will probably qualify for need based aid. </p>
<p>Other alternatives are to attend less expensive schools. Schools like Mass College of Art has must lower tuition. Pratt is both cheaper than CMU and RISD and is known to give out both merit and need based aid. You just need to look around.</p>
<p>KandKsmom, I don't see any value in going only with sketchbook and a couple of early drawings to an NPD. Too little to show at that stage. What your son might want to do, if he doesn't have a good source of expert advice at his school or in your community, is seek advice from someone who teaches art at the college level. If I'm reading your name right, you could go to an art teacher at KU, KState, or KC Art Institute for advice.</p>
<p>Mackinaw, Thanks for the reply and advice. I also emailed his hs art teacher to get her opinion about this and other questions about his art, but didn't hear back from her yet. It sure would be easier to know how best to guide him in this interest if his dad and I had any background knowledge about the art field -thank God for this forum! :) </p>
<p>We are planning on allowing him to take advantage of area art programs (community college courses, area studios' weekly classes, etc.) over the summer. Fortunately, we do have access to decent art schools/instructors in our area-though we are not in Kansas :) I am going to look into the prospect of a tutor for him, also. Where is the best place to do this? Through a college's art department? A studio? His major problem with taking additional classes locally during the school year is he swims competitively and practices each day, virtually year round with meets on most weekends. Maybe a tutor would offer some flexibility in scheduling? </p>
<p>I will share with him your thoughts on the attendance to the NPD at MICA. I had no idea what it involved, so your honesty is greatly appreciated. At this point I am thinking it would be best to let him develop more artistically and maybe go to some next year. Thanks!</p>
<p>Most of the freestanding art schools have summer residency programs that can be helpful in developing a portfolio. Mine attended Parson's the summer before her senior year. RISD has a six week program and I think MICA's is about four weeks. If you're in the Maryland area, I think the Corcoran has one as well. Some of these are quite expensive. Personally, I think the Parson's one is totally overrated and extremely expensive. Many art museums also have summer programs and often Saturday programs during the year for high school students. My D took art courses at the MFA after her freshman in HS to work on a portfolio for admission to the visual arts program at her HS. I think the other benefit in attending a summer program is to try-out the college/art school one is thinking of attending as following my daughter's participation in Parson's summer program it fell completely off her list of schools. She did, however, come away with a firmer conviction that art was what she wanted to do. I do think that it is better to wait til the summer before senior year for one of the more intense and expensive residency programs.</p>
<p>As I've mentioned before, one of the pluses of the summer program at the Art Institute of Chicago is that it can be short (2 or 3 weeks), and in addition to costing less than a 5-6 week program leaves time for students to do other organized activities in summer. My D did this program after both soph and junior years in h.s.</p>
<p>Mackinaw and taxguy, Thanks for answering all of my questions in post #43! I made notes to remind myself to Refer to portfolio thread so that I will remember to re-read that thread once my son starts to prepare his portfolio. I was a bit surprised (and thankful!) that you answered the portfolio questions... I just dont want you to think that I was asking/demanding you to do the work for me!</p>
<p>Hi KandKsmom, Its nice to meet someone else who is in the same boat! Im sure that we will see a lot of each other during the next few years. </p>
<p>Any thoughts from people with NPD experience if it would it be a good idea for Kand Ksmoms son to attend the NPD at MICA, without a portfolio, to talk with representatives who dont have a line of people waiting to show their portfolios. We went to several college fairs with our daughter and got some of the best advice from reps of lesser known colleges because they were happy to have someone in their line. I dont know if the same is true for National Portfolio Days. Are they exclusively for students to show their portfolios, or are they also an opportunity for students to learn about the various art colleges?</p>
<p>At the present, all he has are his sketchbooks, and a couple of watercolors he did in his first Art class (Art I). Would he be laughed out of the room for taking such a miniscule offering? </p>
<p>I would go to the NPD and focus on the schools with no lines. Sketch books are as valued as the portfolio pieces because they give some insight into how students approach and think about their art. Your S/D should come awaya with some valuable information on what to focus on next.</p>
<p>In addition to portfolios, the top tier art schools also will want to see sketchbooks, so the kids should get used to working in them too.</p>
<p>For soph parents, you may want to investigate if your state has a Governor's School program for art. These require a portfolio submission in the late fall early winter of junior year. My daughter attended the PA Painting program this summer at Mercyhust College. There was no cost, and progam was intense. The students lived on campus for six weeks, including weekends. In addition to the art training, it was also a great trial run for college: being away from home, coping with a roomate, eating dining hall food, etc.</p>
<p>Regarding the cost of dedicated art schools, most states have in state schools that offer BFAs. In PA, Tyler School of Art at Temple is a good value; NJ has the Mason Gross School of Arts at Rutgers University. Michigan and Wisconscin have good in state MFA programs at the big universities, as does the California state system.</p>
<p>I took my daughter to the NPDs in Chicago each year beginning in her
freshman year of high school. She did not have much of a portfolio to speak of but all the schools, including RISD, were more than willing to give her feedback on what they saw as her strengths and they made recommendations on the skills she needed to develop. She found this very helpful and encouraging. My daughter took summer classes at SAIC most summers and learned a great deal but I think she made the most progress when she attended Pratt's summer college program following her sophmore year of high school. Not only did her skills improve a great deal, but she found that she loved the environment. Other students realized they did not want to live in an art community 24 hours a day. My daughter is currently a freshman at RISD and she loves it all her classes. We did not have high expectations of the liberal arts classes since she had taken AP and honors classes in English Lit and Art History in high school, but she tells us the liberal arts classes, particularly the literature class is excellent. I worried a great deal about the overall quality of the education she would receive at a stand
alone art college but that is no longer a concern. She is getting an outstanding education. I think an important question to ask is whether your child loves art enough to do it 24/7.</p>
<p>Thanks for all of the interesting replies to the NPD question. (liland and thanks to you, too, for encouraging more responses on this, your thread!)
Now that my s and I have talked to his art teacher and have weighed the advice from you all, he has decided he wants to go. It certainly can't hurt and maybe he will be able to talk to some of the schools' reps, learn more about what he needs to do to develop and basically see what it is all about. The good news is there is an NPD at Corcoran College of Art and Design the day before. Not quite as far for us to drive as MICA. :) Again, thanks for all of your help everyone!</p>
<p>Hey, have fun! We'll look forward to your report on your experience at the NPD.</p>
<p>I also found inamini's comments to be interesting and instructive. And we agree that the non-studio courses at RISD are quite solid. The only one my daughter had a problem with was the art history lectures in her foundation year. This is a family issue: put us into a slightly darkened room (theater, planetarium, etc.) when we're tired and we're going to doze off. In her case, she was fighting through a case of mono. But she got a lot out of all of her courses at RISD as well as at Brown.</p>
<p>Don't know much about ID, but this is interesting:</p>
<p>"Industrial Design students design grand prix motorcycles for Red Bull</p>
<p>Industrial design students in a motorcycle design course have a 10-week quarter to design and produce two full-scale display models of grand prix motorcycles that will travel with Red Bull to different races around the world. The motorcycles will make their debut at the 2006 Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix, July 21-23, at the Mazda Laguna Seca raceway in Monterey, Calif."</p>