Which graphic design programs should I apply/prepare for as an international student?

College Majors Visual Arts and Film Majors
1

Hi, I’m a high school graduate from South Korea interested in pursuing graphic design in the states, currently finishing up a gap year.
I’ve been looking at quite a few schools and in the early stage of narrowing down my options; any thoughts on my list? If you have any opinions on how(focus on this or that) and at which school I would have the best chances, that would be great.

To begin with, my most important criteria is:
Tuition+Are there financial aid opportunities for intl. students? - if you guys have any knowledge on this part it would be great since I’m having trouble looking for much quality information online.
Is the school either located in a metropolitan area or is it a big university? Don’t prefer secluded small art schools where there isn’t a lot of student activity.
Does the school have diverse art and design majors so that there are plenty of courses to choose from and so students can collaborate across majors?

SCAD is very appealing at the moment; interesting up-to-date majors, relatively affordable tuition and an exchange year in hong kong would be nice given the proximity to home.
Pratt, Parsons, SVA - new york is the biggest perk
ArtCenter College of Design, CalArts and College for Creative Studies seem like decent art schools with creativity oriented programs
VCU and MICA as well but would like to avoid unsafe areas(then I should probably cross off new york first but you know why?)
Suggestions welcome!

I have to start working on my portfolio so I still don’t know how it’s gonna be, but my high school GPA isn’t that good ;( it’s a B=3.0 according to WES, a credential evaluation service (I’ve applied to SUNY before). If taking the SAT, despite being an intl. applicant, would help cover my GPA, I’m open to start preparing. Also I have a 114 on the TOEFL but most schools just require an 85+ and getting a higher score won’t help too much as far as I know :confused:

Any general experience attending/applying to the schools above would be much appreciated!

Thanks for reading.
Michelle

2

It’s funny you would suggest NY as the unsafe option but consider Savannah safe? I don’t know why US schools are appealing to you if you just plan to study art. I would suggest Canada. I think the finances and quality of schools is a better matchup.

3

Really? didn’t know savannah had a bad rep. I am considering canada–ocad, emily carr, york u, sheridan, and george brown but still haven’t looked over the programs in detail. Thanks for the idea

4

why not RISD? one of the best, if not the best in graphic design.

5

our D attends VCUARTS as a graphic design major , it is one of the most well regarded programs in the country. I would however ask why not attend one of the fine schools in Korea. Korea , especially Seoul is a hotbed of graphic design community. In fact while attending VCUarts D was a awarded a grant to attend a gd event in Seoul.

I strongly suggest you consider VCUART . D has had a great experience to date. It is a well known program , evidenced by the fact that our D was easily able to get a terrific internship opportunity her sophomore summer with a known rising nyc artists. This also lead to participating at the international ny art book fair. amongst other fine opportunities. Good luck.