What to include in portfolio for graphic design programs

College Majors Visual Arts and Film Majors
1

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>Throughout most of my high school career, I assumed that I would major in compsci and then possibly minor in graphic design, since I thought CS would make me more money and get me more jobs. However, I went away to Carnegie Mellon for the summer for their game design program (amazing, time of my life), and realized one tiny fact... that I abhor programming, and that my heart really lies in art. </p>

<p>So now here I am, about to enter the storm of application season, and I am totally unprepared. I have very little training, and my school makes it very difficult for anyone who excels in acedemics to take art classes (scheduling here is a MESS) so despite my interest, I have only taken two art classes. Thankfully, one of those was an "advanced portfolio class", though from my tiny small-town public school that isn't as serious as it sounds. ;)</p>

<p>One of the big problems I"m facing is that I find I dont know a lot of the unsaid little rules that my artier friends - the ones who have been taking classes at RISD since they were 13, etc, etc - are fluent in. I don't know what my portfolio "should" include or what's considered desirable versus what's considered kind of taboo. I'm not particularly interested in going to ART schools, like RISD or Pratt. I'm a lot more interested in getting into programs at universities, especially CMU's design program, as well as RIT, Syracuse, UMich and BU. </p>

<p>So what do I do? What do I include? I know that drawing from life is kind of a big deal, but for a graphic design portfolio, should it be entirely drawings? I absolutely adore web design and have done a lot of theatrical photography with a friend of mine (themes, costumes, stories, etc), should I include a bit of each of those or will that be seen as "lack of focus"? In my portfolio class we were told to choose a concentration - mine was horses. I went out and took lots of reference pictures because obviously a horse isn't going to sit still and pose for you, and my work was drawn mostly from the reference pictures. Is this unusable? I consider those horse drawings/paintings to be some of my best and I would hate to not be able to use them anywhere because they were technically not "drawn from life". I"m also considering, for more design stuff, thinking of a fake brand or restaurant and designing all of it's advertising (posters, a website, a menu) just as a design exercise to generate material.</p>

<p>Sorry if I seem a bit dazed and frazzled... I'm really worried and stressed about this. If anyone has any advice, I'd appreciate it so much. Thanks. =)</p>

2

<p>there is this mama bear named drae who can help you on CMU design.
are you up? drae? </p>

<p>I can almost see those horses you did so well. It is good for showing that you are hard working neat want to do it right kid, sometimes I think to be a designer, that’s more important than art-y creativity. you will be taking other people’s order who is paying you or above you against your gut instinct unless you become bigshot.
but yes, generally they want things done from real stuff. and they could tell if you cheat.</p>

<p>here is what my home country (Japan) nut case art uni visual design ask to draw at timed exam nowadays…
your own hands, and both hands that is, from observation. how do you do that while holding graphite escape me. I know a kid doing it, I can ask.
your hands don’t move unless you move them, you can pose however you want, and it is very hard thing to draw from looking at it.
If you can not make your dog, cat , bunny or family member stay still, it would be a good thing to practice.</p>

<p>OK, let’s wait for drae to wake up.</p>

3

<p>self edit
bigshot graphic designer says in his new book I just saw in the store
"I am a graphic designer, a commercial artist.
I work in a business, but the saddest three words in the English language are
“it’s just business”
Because of business and primary the fear of losing it, clients - and in turn designers cannot afford to have opinion "
no worry it all will be happy ending (by quick scan, will read in details) title of the book is
Victore
or,
who died and made you boss?</p>

<p>it is one of those smelly ink printed book but seems fun to read.
[Amazon.com:</a> Victore or, Who Died and Made You Boss? (9780810995918): James Victore, Michael Bierut: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Victore-Who-Died-Made-Boss/dp/0810995913/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1283727925&sr=1-1-fkmr1]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Victore-Who-Died-Made-Boss/dp/0810995913/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1283727925&sr=1-1-fkmr1)</p>

4

<p>I feel the same as you do. I have always been interested in graphic design but decided I wanted to major in it recently. Now I don’t have much time to prepare for applications. Reading from the art schools websites it seems they want more observational drawings than computer related work. But web design and advertising is great to include.</p>

5

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<p>This is just my opinion, as the parent of an art student…but think of it in terms of demonstrating one’s ability to do math.</p>

<p>Most folks, when taught how to use a calculator, can let the machine do their addition, subtraction, multiplication and division…but a math teacher still wants to KNOW that you can do it with pencil and paper the LONG way.</p>

<p>Such it is with art. Many folks can be creative with a computer and slick graphics programs, but art schools want to KNOW that you have an aptitude for art with a pencil and paper. The ability to recognize how light affects an object, depth and dimension and working with colors. These are all important fundamentals any artist should have.</p>

6

<p>Thanks for the responses!</p>

<p>I understand that the fundamentals are very important, and I 100% agree with that - you can’t use (or break) the rules until you know what they are, and I know that colleges need to know that I do. I do have observational drawings, but my entire portfolio can’t consist of them. It’s when I get into the other stuff that things get tricky. How much of my portfolio should be drawings? Should I give them a little of everything I do (design, web design, photography, etc etc)? It’s so overwhelming, I feel like there are so many expectations that I’m supposed to know but don’t.</p>

7

<p>Sometimes, it depends on the individual school. They could have very specific portfolio requirements. Other schools just want to see your best work, whatever that may be.</p>

<p>My suggestion is to start putting together what you’d like to have in your portfolio, and visit a National Portfolio Day in a city near your home. You’ll get valuable feedback from schools about what you can and should have in your portfolio, and good evaluation of the work you have already completed.</p>

8

<p>Dear Willa,</p>

<p>Carnegie has an alternative for people who have have not had a chance to build a portfolio:</p>

<p>“In lieu of a portfolio, you can complete a Design Project. If your work on the Design Project shows evidence of strong design skills and problem-solving ability, you will be a strong candidate for acceptance to the School of Design. In the past we have had many top-notch students come from fields or backgrounds where they did not get the chance to build a traditional design portfolio in the course of their high school studies. More information about this is available on our portfolio page.”</p>

<p>[Portfolio:</a> Overview > School of Design > Carnegie Mellon University](<a href=“http://www.design.cmu.edu/show_admissions.php?s=5&t=6]Portfolio:”>http://www.design.cmu.edu/show_admissions.php?s=5&t=6)</p>

<p>You will be asked to draw in these assignments though. Carnegie prefers that you show your work in person. That means you have until late January to work on this (when they have dates for portfolio visits). If you don’t have classes at your school, could you find a mentor? A drawing class at your community college or art league is another possibility, but if you could get one on one help you would be able to tailor the work for what you need. My son’s girlfriend was able to put a portfolio together in the fall of her senior year this way and was accepted to Parsons. You have to stick with it though. I don’t know how busy and stressed you are already but it is possible to come up with something to add to the work you already have. Carnegie counts the portfolio/project 50/50 with grades/stats. </p>

<p>I don’t know about BU, Mich or RIT but Syracuse puts a lot of emphasis on the portfolio and drawing. They are very helpful at NPD and if you visit with them in person, get an appointment with an admissions officer named Sean. He is very supportive and clear and will guide you towards building your portfolio. They too like to see the final portfolio in person and have days in January/February where you either visit them in Syracuse or go to meet them in NYC (and maybe some other places).</p>

<p>You might want to consider SUNY New Paltz in your list of schools. They have a strong graphic design program within a university setting.</p>

<p>Good Luck and keep us posted!</p>

9

<p>My son is a graphic design major at SUNY New Paltz. His portfolio included a little bit of everything…photography, web design and drawings. He loves New Paltz and there is a lot of leeway within the program to take classes in and outside of the art department. It’s an artsy school with a great location and very creative and interesting student body. Worth taking a look at.</p>