ART PORTFOLIO GUIDE: Q & A
Preparing Portfolio for College Admissions/Art & Design Schools
Q: WHAT IS AN ART SCHOOL APPLICATION PORTFOLIO?
A: In addition to meeting academic requirements, Art, Design, and Architecture Schools,Universities and Colleges typically require a practical art portfolio as part of the application process. An acceptable portfolio generally contains 15to 20 collection of your work like drawings, paintings, collages, and small three dimensional works.
Q: WHAT SHOULD BE IN YOUR PORTFOLIO?
A: All Art, Design and Architecture schools want to see observational drawings from life; a free hand sketch, gesture drawing, contour drawings, landscape or still life-rather than from a photograph or someone else’s painted scene.These real life drawings show how your skills and ideas have developed over a period of time. It demonstrates your creativity, personality, abilities and commitment, and helps schools to evaluate your potential. Students whose portfolios reflect versatility, exhibiting interest in different realms of life drawing, are likely to have an advantage over those who display narrower concerns.
Q: HOW DOES SCHOOL EVALUATE YOUR PORTFOLIO?
A: For most fine art and design students, the first year consists of a foundation program that introduces a variety of mediums. The ideal portfolio demonstrate experimentation in at least some of them, like oil, water color, pastels, and charcoals. Mostly, schools prefer to see a free hand sketch work that is sketched daily and completed in a short amount of time. It requires a long practice of line drawings and schools love to see your ability. Also your portfolio should reflect history of the applicant drawings rather than the outcome of best works.
Q: TO BE ACCEPTED BY ART SCHOOLS, WHAT PERCENTAGE OF THE PORTFOLIO BEING EVALUATED?
A: According to each Art and Design university, they look at 70% of your Portfolio, 20% GPA, and 10% of your SAT score for your acceptance to art schools. Your portfolio assessment is most important element for schools to make decisions for your scholarship approval. Secondary, they look at your high school average grade of 9th,10th, and 11th GPA and your SAT score.For international students who enrolled US schools less than three years are required to submit TOEFL and portfolio assessment.