Does anyone know of any art schools that offer to meet full demonstrated need?
If not, are there any LACs that have strong programs in animation, illustration, or visual communication that do?
While my knowledge is limited to just East Coast art schools my D1 toured and/or applied to, the only one of the ‘top tier’ art colleges that I’m aware of which says that they’ll fully meet “demonstrated financial need” is Yale. Basically schools will put together aid packages based on merit (your portfolio and/or grades) and/or financial need (combo of scholarships, work study or institutional loans). Most schools awarded a combination of both. Also note many schools give additional aid if you apply Early Action.
For some LACs on the East Coast, my daughter was mostly interested in a stand-alone art school, but she did look at RIT (Rochester Institute of Technology), Boston University, SUNY New Paltz and Syracuse for illustration. Regarding other LACs if you can narrow down by region of country etc there’s many folks on this board who have knowledge about various art programs across the country.
If you’d like to know our impressions of the LACs listed above let me know.
They don’t exist. That’s the harsh reality. You’re much better off applying to upper-tier universities with good art/design programs. Like ArtAngst said, Yale is one of them. I don’t know much about LACs, at all.
Out of all the schools I applied to, the only one that gave me a truly comprehensive FA package was Carnegie Mellon.
Thanks. I would like to hear about your impressions of RIT. I took D to Nat’l Portfolio Day last year as a sophomore and they gave her a very encouraging written review (called her work"exceptional" and “disciplined”).
Many of the top tier LACs I’ve researched so far (hoping to stay on the East Coast) seem to offer studio art or art history, and not so much along the lines of animation. If anyone knows of any, I’m very interested.
We’re in the middle as far as financial aid goes, not Pell Grant eligible, and not able to make up the difference between EFC and what the remaining cost of college is. I have a junior in college now, and disappointingly found that out when she was applying.
As for the type of merit aid, not sure what to expect. D has a 4.5/3.8. GPA and is going to start IB Diploma this school year. She hasn’t taken PSAT, ACT or SAT yet.
D went to UNCSA animation this summer, and has eyes on it for the list, but they only take 11 animators a year.
Did you end up at Carnegie Melon? If so, what are you majoring in, and what are your impressions?
@ready2launch tour RIT if you can. Both of my kids (son rising sophomore) and daughter who’s headed to RISD had much different impressions of RIT. Daughter chose not to apply since the traditional illustration major seemed underfunded and possibly in danger of being phased out eventually. She also wasn’t terribly thrilled with the aesthetic and surrounding area of the campus. She had her portfolio accepted there as a junior, but since she never applied I have no idea what aid she might have gotten.
Son however really liked the campus and tour and the animation studios were amazing. Clearly that’s where their $ is going (and you can’t blame them since they’re a tech school). We’re also friends with a recent graduate in their game design program and he loved his four years there.
Our D also visited was accepted and received scholarship for RIT graphic design(among other schools). However, after visiting VCUARTS in
Richmond Va she decided to go with VCUARTS. Amazing programs and higher ranked art school . Only draw back is she has to do a foundation year (like all the freshman do) and then apply for her desired major. VCUARTS has an incredible reputation and the campus is unbelievable in terms of how well treated the art school is. Also the town of Richmond is very cool , and can’t argue with the better weather either. Check it out VCUARTS is a school within the larger VCU . It was just ranked by USNWR as the #2 fine arts program in the country just behind #1 Yale. Also there is merit aid available . Good luck
We toured RIT and my daughter even took a class there (they have a summer program which I would highly recommend if it’s a school you’re considering), however she didn’t like the feel of the campus and wanted a city school. We also discovered that most art schools will give you 20K (MICA and Pratt come to mind) but they are so expensive it’s not as great a deal as it seems. She liked University of the Arts in Philly (and they gave her good merit aid which made it affordable) but she decided she wanted a school with more than just art majors, so the LACs were the way to go for her. She was accepted to UHart (Hartford Art School), VCU, and Temple (Tyler School of Art) and after touring them all decided on Tyler. VCU gave her a practically no aid (ridiculous for OOS students) and Hartford was not in the city, so Temple was her decision. They gave her a great scholarship and we even got some grant money from them! However, they don’t have an illustration major so that was a big concern at first. After talking to several art students at the school, she felt she would hone and use her illustration skills in many of the majors they do offer. Plus, being in Philly will hopefully give her plenty of internships and job options (not to mention the great art scene!) I would suggest applying as early as possible and fill out the FAFSA in October this year!
@ready2launch Yup, Carnegie Mellon Design.
UPenn meets 100% of need, and offers a number of animation and illustration courses in their Fine Arts department. I count six animation/illustration courses this semester. I think I counted a total of 8-9 animation courses overall. They also have a couple of game design graduate courses that undergrads can take, I think.
My son will be attending, and it’s very inexpensive for us.
Dartmouth also has a digital arts minor.