Is RISD the Harvard of art schools?

Rhode Island School of Design was one of the major schools in the US when I was studying Industrial Design in Europe. I can't tell you if this is still true. But I would think so. The ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, CA is another good one.

And please don't compare this kind of school with a winy tiny art program somewhere else.

If her sole purpose in life is to get in there, that's absolutely great. The world needs more designers and artists.

No expert am I, but certainly RISD is well reputed. I'm unsure how SCAD - the Savannah College of Art and Design - compares, but I had a co-worker who, after obtaining an engineering degree in India, came to the US and got a degree in User Experience Design from SCAD. She was a very good co-worker.

Somewhere floating around is a famous Top 10 list of art schools - RISD, Cooper Union, Pratt, Chicago Art Institute, New School, FIT, SCAD etc. While not considered as rigorous as a classic college/university education, they are a great pathway into careers if the student is 100% sure that is what they want to do. What makes RISD special, is about half of classes are specialized technical art/design work, and half is a solid liberal arts curriculum. There is cross taking of classes as well at Brown (and maybe Providence). Providence is an amazing college town, arguably the best, which adds a lot to campus life.

The alternative is to go to a liberal arts college and major in art (or something completely different), and then go to the same art school for a masters in art/design.

RISD is a joke. The top 1% of graduates are something really special. The rest end up basically unemployable. Providence is filled with coffee shop works with RISD degrees.

Lisa Simpson pretty much sums up my thoughts on the "Harvard of _____" designation

David Byrne of the Talking Heads dropped out of RISD and he turned out just fine. Maybe your daughter can drop out of art school and become a famous rock star. Now that's an accomplishment!

This is a hard question to answer but yes, RISD is widely regarded as the preeminent private art school in the states.

But with that being said, all things are not considered equal.

It totally depends on what your daughter wants to focus on.

For instance, if your daughter wants to focus on more conceptual fine arts, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (my alma mater) could be viewed as "better than" RISD.

If your daughter wants to focus on design and visual communication RISD is the top.

Animation/storytelling... CalArts.

The more commercial side of the industry... Ringling and SCAD.

You also have to consider what level of schooling it is, graduate or undergrad. Many schools are known for their grad programs more so than their undergrad. Undergrad is a lot of jumping through hoops and checking boxes. It's very common and often advised, that students go to a cheaper or more traditional school for undergrad and then go to a private art school for grad school when they know specifically what they want to focus on.

With that trajectory, RISD, SAIC, Cranbrook, Yale Design, and the Royal College of Art are the top of the top. (there are a lot of others)

Long story short, not all programs and schools are the same and you have to specifically know what you want to focus on and then choose the school accordingly.

Cranbrook? That's a private school

There's a Cranbrook that's a prep school, but the prof was referring to the very well-regarded arts college:

https://cranbrookart.edu/

Listen to what the arts professor said about all the schools. That was spot on.

I'd also add Columbia for the MFA. There are plenty of non-art schools where you can get a very good art b.a. and then go to the above mentioned schools for an MFA, which is the terminal degree in art.

It worked out well for Todd:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIBc01ddEXw

In all reality it is a respected school. I knew a guy who was a toy designer for Hasbro that went there.

The best thing to do when your kid gets the art bug is to find a local working artist who is willing to sit down with your kid and tell them about the art world. What your kid will quickly learn is that many artists pay their bills by teaching. The best teaching jobs are on the college level, which means that advanced degrees like an MFA are important. Your kid will also learn that a lot of artists work regular jobs. My kid has a friend at school whose Mom was a resident at the Chinati Institute and is a pretty well known fiber artist. She is also a CPA.

RISD is a big name, but there are lots of great art schools in the US. And you really have to have some sense of what you want to do in art school to be sure that you do not get swept away by the big faculty personalities that can dominate students and steer them away from the work they really want to do. A lot of homework needs to be done looking at the personalities at each school and how they work with young artists.

See my painting in the film I starred in, Wedding Crashers.

That should answer this question. Death, you are my b*tch lover!

It doesn't matter how good RISD is because it is an art school. The average Arizona State grad makes more than the average RISD grad. The art school grad who do well are usually creative geniuses that would have done just as well with no education. RISD will make your daughter feel important while she is there and then dump her out into the world with no employable skills.

If your daughter has half a brain, send her to Brown and have her take classes for fun at RISD. If she is dumb, send her to PC or one of the many other schools in the area.

Just remember this:

ART IS A HOBBY

What Art School Professor said. It really depends on what specific area of study your kid is into. A degree in fine art is... baffling to me. The only way you can really survive is to be independently wealthy (doesn't sound like you're willing to support them in perpetuity), or to become a professor, and from my understanding, you basically have to wait years in line for someone to die in order to get a decent tenured position.

However, there are plenty of design-oriented positions available across advertising, tech, and architecture – RISD's proximity and connections to NY agencies can definitely give one a networking advantage. If they're into animation and/or motion design, there are probably some better options on the west coast.

That said – I got my start as a self-taught designer 14 years ago, never went to college, and I make a comfortable living working for a boutique digital studio with top-tier clients... obviously, not going to school is a precarious road which isn't for everyone, but in the creative fields (especially tech), college degrees don't carry the same weight as other industries. It's not your degree, it's your portfolio that matters.

I know a few people who went to RISD and are rock stars at NYC design studios, and I know a few people who are playing in weird bands at dive bars, living with 5 roommates, and no real prospects. It all depends on the individual... the thing about art school is that if you're the type of person who's really motivated to get out and thrive, you'd probably be just as successful with a degree from anywhere else, or no degree at all.

Also, +1 for getting general ed requirements out of the way at a more affordable state school or even community college.

Sum Dum Guy wrote:

David Byrne of the Talking Heads dropped out of RISD and he turned out just fine.

Here's the first thing that comes to my mind when I hear "Rhode Island School of Design." Looks like quite a workout, finishing up with a few laps around the stage:

Yes it's the Harvard of art schools. She will also be able to take classes at Brown (Ivy League, right next door). Have her apply to Brown and she can take RISD classes as a Brownie.

I applied to RISD as a transfer student, and I even moved to Providence while I waited for the decision. I didn't get in, it was brutal.

Anyway, if you know some really powerful people you can have them write her a letter of recommendation, that's how most of the rich kids get in.

Just have her apply to backup schools like Mass Art in Boston.

She could even do a gap year after high school, move to Providence, and take continuing ed art classes in the summer and throughout the year, many of which will be taught by the same RISD professors.

It's cool she's learning Russian. I'd nurture that interest and hope it leads her to want to study it in college. Anything but art.

say no to art wrote:

If your daughter has half a brain, send her to Brown

But just a half . . .

From the same concert, they are really pumping those legs at the end of the song.

https://youtu.be/FBUe_v6Mi70