Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Graphic Designers
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at New Mexico State Dona Ana.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider The Art Center Design College-Albuquerque and New Mexico State.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Northern New Mexico College, New Mexico State Dona Ana, New Mexico State Grants, and New Mexico Highlands University.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider Santa Fe Community College, Eastern New Mexico University - Roswell, New Mexico Highlands University, and Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of The Art Center Design College-Albuquerque, Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture, New Mexico Junior College, and New Mexico Highlands University.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture, New Mexico Highlands University, New Mexico State, and New Mexico Junior College.
Excellence
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture, New Mexico State, New Mexico Highlands University, and Northern New Mexico College.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
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Eastern New Mexico University • Portales, NM
Studying Graphic Design (BFA) (completion in 2014)
• 10/31/2011
"I feel that perhaps I could have picked a better school for my chosen field, but there were many advantages to picking ENMU. Because I had gone through the Upward Bound program during high school, I was already familiar and comfortable with the programs ENMU had to offer. It was convenient and cost-effective to choose some place so close to home as well. My career has not gone where I had hoped it would since, but I still have plenty of time to get on the path I desire."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | I would first suggest an Art College for students looking to get into Graphic Design. The problem with ENMU is that you are required to take a full rounded course load with traditional classes, something I feel you should have done in high school. College is about focusing on what you want to do in life. If you want to focus only on art, go to art school. If you seek something more "rounded," then consider a real college. ENMU would be a good choice for someone seeking an affordable education. |
| Program Reputation | 4 | New Mexico has a good reputation for labor programs, and to a lesser degree, their computer programs. Their art program, however, does not have much of a reputation outside of traditional southwestern art. |
| Program Quality | 5 | ENMU was well equipped with modern computers and facilities when I was enrolled. They offered a comprehensive and varied course that providing a well rounded education that prepared me adequately for my career. |
| Instruction | 6 | I feel my instructors were a cut above the average. They provided a lot of hands-on direction and provided interesting course objectives to challenge my capabilities. I only wish more courses were focused on computer-aided design, and a little less focus was on traditional mediums, as that is what the current industry demands. |
| How Difficult | 6 | I had little difficulty keeping up with the demands of my program, but I do feel I was well challenged. Many of our projects took me out of my "comfort-zone," forcing me to expand and discover new skill sets. The art program was maybe a little too wide-scope, including 'sculpturing' in its "graphic design" curriculum at the time. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Art design is almost all hands-on. The only book learning directly related to the course was Art History. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 6 | Our school provided standard morning and evening classes for almost every course on alternating even and odd days, allowing you to create a very flexible schedule. Only a small handful of courses had set date and times, often occurring once a week. There were also a few online courses, allowing you full freedom. |
| Academic Facilities | 6 | Our school was well equipped with a large library and multiple computer labs. A design lab was set up specifically for art design with adequate computer stations and required programs. This lab was also equipped with a 3D scanner, a valuable and somewhat new tool at the time. Professors had open office hours and were all too happy to assist students. |
| Social Life | 3 | The school has a few frat houses and co-ed dorms, neither of which I lived in. I lived in local housing, which kept me from getting too much social interaction. The college had a coffee shop, cafe, and gym, but offered little more in the way of recreation. Basketball and volleyball games seemed to be the only social events the school rallied around. |
| Placement Services | 3 | The school provides standard placement services, services I did not make proper use of. We were offered counseling by our instructors on realistic career expectations and advisement. I followed this advice and looked into careers focused on more concrete design elements. |
| Alumni Network | 2 | I have failed to stay in touch with any fellow classmates since graduation, even though many of us often worked closely together. As far as I know, there is no real alumni support network set up by the school. |
Santa Fe University Of Art And Design • Santa Fe, NM
Studying Moving Image Arts (completion in 2012)
• 12/28/2011
"I love SFUAD and think it will undoubtedly grow to be one of the better arts schools in the country. It's still developing and growing, since it became a dedicated arts school not too long ago. It just needs more time to become better known. But for those who know it, like me, it's already got a fantastic reputation."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | It's a great school. It's helped me get plenty of film jobs, jobs doing logos, and my marketing job in Arlington. All around, it's been great, and I'd recommend going there to anyone interested in any of the arts the school offers programs in. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | The school still has its good reputation from the College of Santa Fe as being a top film and design program in the United States. However, due to the name change, many who were familiar with it previously have likely become unfamiliar with it now. |
| Program Quality | 9 | Santa Fe University of Art and Design is great for Moving Image Arts—it's a very hands-on school, which allows for much better learning than some other arts programs. I also studied at the UNC School of the Arts, which has a very comparable program, but due to budget cuts at UNC, I'd say Santa Fe has the better program now. |
| Instruction | 8 | The instruction is very helpful and most professors are industry professionals, which is great. That being said, some courses feel more self-guided where a teacher is present but is serving more of a supporting role. They're still helpful in those cases, just not always present when you'd like them to be. |
| How Difficult | 6 | The Moving Image Arts program isn't really difficult, as long as one is familiar with the subject matters of film and design. I suppose someone who's never really studied film or arts before would have difficulty at first, but I'm really not sure why someone unfamiliar would apply to such a dedicated program in the first place. For me, I'd say it's been challenging, but easy enough. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The school is very hands on, which I think is great. They provide topnotch equipment and they give great instruction, but all the while, they let students actively work with the equipment. They're very open to learning through doing. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | Being an arts school, teachers understand that students are actively working on their art. Being a university, attendance only plays a small factor into grading. As a result, I could miss classes without any real issue, especially when I was working on something at the time. |
| Academic Facilities | 9 | The school has great design spaces and Wacom Intuos4 tablets for graphic design, with the latest Adobe Photoshop and Corel Painter. They also have 3 sound stages, plenty of cameras, including a Panavision Gold II, and loads of lights. For equipment alone, it was spectacular. |
| Social Life | 9 | It's good to be in a community with other artists, and Santa Fe provides that. This type of environment allows for interdisciplinary collaboration and means you're always running into people interested in working on something new. It's the ideal environment for an artist to be in. |
| Placement Services | 8 | The school actively places students on professional shoots in the Santa Fe area. Some of my friends will be working on a Warner Brothers-produced TV show called "Longmire" this spring. I know people who worked on "No Country for Old Men," "Cowboys and Aliens," and others as well. |
| Alumni Network | 4 | The school only relaunched as the Santa Fe University of Art and Design a few years ago, so as a result, there are hardly any alumni yet (at least from the school with that name; before, it was the College of Santa Fe.) Still, we've had some talented students graduate and go on to make award-winning short films or work for production companies. So it's definitely developing. |
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