Tufts University Art ?

Mastadon
Wed, 14 Sep 2016 21:56:30 +0000

@bluepig97ie -
I called the Tufts admissions office to get the scoop.

From an admissions standpoint it is going to be similar to applying to a major in the School of Engineering.

You must fill out the Common App and the associated Tufts Supplement. You will specify the BFA Program and there will be a specific arts essay on the supplement that you will have to write.

You must also submit a portfolio.

This is an art school program, so the portfolio is the most important part of the application. The second most important part is the essay, because the feeling is that it is important for artists to be able to effectively communicate their work.

Applications will come into the admissions office and be evaluated by an SMFA admissions team as a separate pool (just like Engineering). The applications will be evaluated holistically in a manner appropriate for a studio art school
(not a liberal arts school or an engineering school). There is no way to know ahead of time how selective it will be because this is the first class. The program is being integrated into all the admissions literature and outreach programs and there appears to be a high degree of interest, but it is a new program, and it usually takes some time to get the word out.

From a financial aid standpoint, applicants are handled the same way as for applicants to the other two schools - i.e. Tufts will meet the full need of anyone accepted. (I think this is unusual for an art school, but I do not know this for a fact). Previously, the SMFA offered some merit scholarships, but these are being replaced by the standard Tufts need based aid program.

Admitted SMFA students are now Tufts students that just happen to be enrolled in a new major (BFA) in a new school (SMFA) at Tufts - they receive the same Tufts degree as everyone else and have all the privileges of a Tufts student, but there is the dual campus aspect that needs to be taken into consideration.

Admitted students will be housed at the Fenway Campus (downtown, next to the Museum) for the first two years. After that they are free to seek housing on either campus or anywhere off-campus, just like any other Tufts student. On-campus housing is not guaranteed after the sophomore year, just like for other students.

In terms of transportation, the shuttle will become a “continuous service” running about every hour. Efforts are being made to coordinate class schedules and shuttle schedules and to make it easier for SMFA students to take courses and fully participate in extra curricular activities on the Medford/Somerville campus. ThIs should also make it easier for Engineering and Liberal Arts students to participate in classes/events at the Fenway campus and the Museum of Fine Arts.

All studio art courses on the Medford/Somerville campus are taught by SMFA faculty (this has always been the case) so MFA majors can take some of their studio classes in Medford/Somerville as well as their non-studio classes. I believe that there are also non-studio classes taught at the Fenway campus. The studio facilities (as you might expect) are more extensive at the Fenway campus.

The SMFA curriculum (see link in previous post) is quite flexible, and I think historically students have tended to take more of their Fenway-based courses in their first two years on the Fenway campus - but you should check this with someone at the SMFA.

Anyone applying to the inaugural classes should recognize that they are going to be pioneering this new program and that it is going to be a work in progress for the first couple of years. It should start out better than it was previously for SMFA students and then get even better as the two campuses become more integrated and the cross-campus programs expand. Anyone applying now will be the second class, not the first.

If/when the Green Line extension is completed, that will enhance the transportation options, but that will not be in a time frame that the inaugural classes can take advantage of.

It is recommended that anyone applying to the program call the SMFA admissions office to get guidance on how to put together a competitive portfolio (which is really important).

Best of Luck, and don’t hesitate to call the admissions people, they are really friendly.