My rising HS senior is very interested in Temple and particularly interested in the Tyler School. The problem is while he has been active in arts and has shown some creative talent, he hasn’t put together a formal portfolio. He’ll likely make an effort to do so during the first part of his senior year,
My questions: It appears Architecture is only major not requiring a portfolio, but it has limited spots (70 I believe). Is Architecture particularly competitive (son has decent grades/scores, but is no shoe-in: 3.5/1150 SAT).
Second, is it possible to enter Temple as an undeclared/general studies, begin following an arts track and transfer into Tyler during his sophomore year when he’d have a more established portfolio (as well as an idea if that’s still his area of interest).
My daughter will be starting at Tyler this fall, so I am by no means an expert however I can tell you that the initial year is a foundation year so transferring into the program might not be easy or possible. They do have a “Visual Studies” major which is a B.A. (not a B.F.A.) and might be of interest to him. She didn’t officially have her portfolio reviewed until January, so he has time to get one together. I would suggest he take a portfolio prep class at a local art or college (many of them offer something for interested students) and assemble a portfolio. Maybe even attend a National Portfolio Day event in your area. He can get great feedback there. Good luck!
I’m no expert on Temple or Tyler, @brucemag, but I’m in the middle of looking for programs in horticulture/landscape design for my son, and Tyler offers both associate’s and bachelor’s degrees in Landscape Architecture & Horticulture, which do not require a portfolio review for admission.
Not sure what your student’s specific interests are, but these programs are supposed to be very good from what I understand.