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The Truth About Attending an Arts College

Are you an artist with an interest in attending an arts college, but feel a bit nervous about the rumors you’ve heard about art schools?  Perhaps you’ve heard that arts colleges are full of students who would rather talk about art than create it. Or maybe you’ve read in the media about the stray arts college that encourages a disdain for popular culture and traditional values.  How about the stereotype of an arts college that is full of students protesting the status quo?  What’s a person with a legitimate desire to create art to believe?

The good news is that all these stereotypes about arts college are just that—stereotypes.  They are untrue and unfounded.  The typical art school today is full of a diverse student body bursting with artists interested in different disciplines.  At today’s arts colleges you’ll find people working in traditional artistic fields such as painting, drawing, or sculpture.  You’ll also find many students working in applied and technical arts, such as graphic design, fashion design, photography, or film.

So, now that we’ve dispelled that myth about arts college and you are breathing a sigh of relief, its time to get serious about looking at art school.  Here is a rundown of the different types of arts colleges you’ll want to look into.

Private art or design arts colleges.  These are among the most prestigious of art schools, and they may offer undergraduate or graduate degrees.  While this type of arts college will have rigorous artistic training, they will also emphasize a broad education in the liberal arts.  Among the best known of this kind of arts college are the Rhode Island School of Design, the Pratt Institute, and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Art department at a college or university.  These programs exist within private or public universities, and also offer excellent education.  You’ll get a broad education, just as you would at a private arts college, but with a bit less emphasis on studio work.  Well-known examples of this type of arts college include the Yale School of Art and the College of Design at Iowa State University.

Technical or applied art school.  This type of arts college would typically offer either an Associate’s degree or a certificate, and you would not study any subjects beyond art or design.   At these schools, various disciplines of art such as fashion design, web site design, or graphic design would be taught.  These colleges are excellent choices for the student who is eager to get going on a career.

The budding artist interested in a career in art is very lucky these days.  Not only are there a wide variety of fields that he or she can go into, there are also a huge selection of arts colleges.  No longer do students interested in art have to study only general art or art theory.  And no longer do they need to worry about the stereotypes of disaffected art students populating schools.  These days, attending an arts college can lead to many different sorts of thriving careers.