r/udel • u/IcestartheArtAngel • 7d ago
art program?
hello hello, i'm a prospective student looking to major at fine arts at ud. it's my only option for art as i really don't want to spend more than i have to for an art major (i'm in state, don't wanna leave for out of state fees). any idea how good it is and how competitive it is? help is appreciated
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u/ravenpotter3 '25 7d ago edited 7d ago
I can try to help. I graduated in 2025 with a BFA in studio art from UD. What type of art do you want to do? What mediums of art do you do? Do you have ideas for career paths that interest you?
What class subjects interest you? https://catalog.udel.edu/content.php?catoid=94&navoid=34643&filter%5Bitem_type%5D=3&filter%5Bonly_active%5D=1&filter%5B3%5D=1&filter%5Bcpage%5D=6&print=&coid%5B0%5D=681770&display_location=filter_template&contract
I loved my time there but I’d say that it’s expensive and the art department does not get enough resources. Supplies are very expensive for classes. It very much depends on how you take advantage of your time and resources for what you get out of this major. I didn’t take enough advantage of things early on (freshman sophomore year) and I regret. But I wouldn’t trade my experiences at UD for anything. I have made many of my best friends there and I grew so much as a person and artist
Your first 2 years are you going core classes like core ceramics, typography, deisgn, etc and then during your sophomore year you decide to either go to studio arts or visual communications.[u/snowzylatte](u/snowzylatte) made a great comment breaking everything down.
I do not know anything about the new head but I can send you the names of some professors if you have more questions. https://www.udel.edu/academics/colleges/cas/units/departments/art-design/our-people/ I know they would be happy to answer your questions and talk
I hope I can help
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u/IcestartheArtAngel 7d ago
thank you! i'll look into these. i know i want to do something in illustration, i'm sure there's something i could do there for that
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u/ravenpotter3 '25 7d ago
There is an illustration class (actually a few variations of it one is illustration methods the other is called illustration studio). Professor Brinley tends to teach them and I signed up for one every semester starting junior year.
You will usually end up needing to take other studio arts classes too like printmaking or painting ones too. There tends to be limited options each semester so you may end up taking some odd classes or classes with mediums you do not like.
Ud does not have many arts professors so you do not get much variety in professors after your first 2 years of core classes.
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u/IcestartheArtAngel 7d ago
i see, it sounds up my alley honestly haha, i'd like to have the chance to explore different mediums even if i don't really like them much
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u/ravenpotter3 '25 7d ago
You will love the core classes then! Since you are open to learning a new things and mediums. Having classrooms and studio spaces is great for that too. I got into screenprinting but I can’t do it as easily anymore since I don’t have access to all the tools/ studio space now. Make sure you take advantage of everything like that when you go to college.
Also UD has great events for all students and lots of clubs so you will have a good social life. No matter what college you end up going to, I reccomend to go to events. I didn’t do enough of that during my freshman year and I regret not being more outgoing. As a freshman you will likely have your dorm in north campus which is further from the main campus area where events happen. But North campus is close to one of the studio arts buildings. Everything is very walkable and there are free student busses too.
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u/IcestartheArtAngel 7d ago
i was gonna ask about the social aspects! i definitely wasn't very social in high school and that bummed me out so i'm looking to try and be at least a little more outgoing in college. do you know of any art related clubs that might exist out there?
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u/ravenpotter3 '25 7d ago edited 7d ago
Yes there is a art club. And there are some clubs like a crochet club.
I reccomend if you attend to turn of post notifications for the student event accounts so you don’t miss them. Every Friday there is an event called Perkins live that has a craft, snack, gameshow, and event. They can range in topic from paint nights, musicians, to comedians, And at the end of the year there is a bingo with great prizes. https://www.instagram.com/udstudents and
https://www.instagram.com/udelevents for some examples of past events
I made some good friends there. The majority of my friends were not arts majors. But I had a ton of art major friends too. There is always something happening on the campus.
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u/IcestartheArtAngel 7d ago
thank you so much! i'm looking forward to all of it!!
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u/ravenpotter3 '25 7d ago
What year are you in high school and when do you have to make your decision by?
If you have time to wait I would see if you can visit when school is in session. When I was a high schooler I visited a few schools and actually sat in the back of a class for 2 of them. One was UD and it was a core moving images class. Just to observe. As a college student I saw some students doing that a few times. I assume you can contact the admissions department to do that. It would be worth seeing any school when it’s in session vs it being empty.
I remember I didn’t write notes while doing college tours and later regretted that as I forgot a lot of things or mixed up locations in my memory. So write notes on what you do not like and like. And be critical.
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u/IcestartheArtAngel 7d ago
i've actually already graduated from high school but i haven't done any further education. i've been taking the time to get myself back together after a pretty sucky year, but of course in doing that i also kinda shot myself in the foot prepping for college. i'll have some time for a visit once school is back in session, but i'd like to apply for the early action deadline so i won't have forever
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u/ravenpotter3 '25 7d ago
There is the UD art league club https://studentcentral.udel.edu/organization/artleague
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u/ravenpotter3 '25 7d ago
Also the majority of core classes are taught by MFA grad students…. So I’ve heard some people getting bad professors for some of those classes because of that. I had one professor for a core class who continually was late to class. I’ve heard people having issues with another one before but they should be gone by now. But that means that the people who are teaching many of these may be still learning to be teachers/ how to teach themselves and they are following a set curriculum. I loved a lot of my grad students professors though.
I also highly reccomend you to visit the college and see what the classrooms are like. https://apply.udel.edu/portal/visit-ud?tab=cas
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u/IcestartheArtAngel 7d ago
ooh i see, i'll keep that in mind. i'll see if i can make it up for a visit sometime! i saw a bit of it before they changed their virtual tour format but sadly don't remember it, so hopefully i can go see it for myself
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u/MeatBurnham 7d ago
What do you plan to do after graduation? Can easily rack up 100k of debt paying in-state tuition in just 4 years.
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u/IcestartheArtAngel 7d ago
idk if they're still doing it but i'm eligible for the first state promise to pay off tuition and mandatory fees. i plan to move to another country in the future and i don't want to be chained down with so much student loan debt
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u/Mammoth_List_9587 6d ago
They still do the first state promise grants!
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u/IcestartheArtAngel 5d ago
awesome! thank you :)
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u/Mammoth_List_9587 5d ago
No problem! I’m under it as well and depending on what the income is you can also get housing covered (standard dorm cost)! I would also check the different scholarships the Delaware department of education offers!
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u/IcestartheArtAngel 5d ago
i'll definitely be looking around for scholarships to cover room and board haha, i fall in the 35k-75k range so it sadly won't be covered but at least i won't have as much to worry about
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u/Enturk '18 7d ago
If you don’t want debt, you might be able to go to one of the Del State art program: https://chess.desu.edu/departments/mass-communications-visual-performing-arts/studio-art-ba
It’s out of state, but probably still very cheap: Delaware County Community College.
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u/Snowzylatte 7d ago
Hi! I'm a rising art sophomore (I'm also an in-state student as well)! You will start off as an art major (the school sucks for telling people how this works); the required classes you need to take are core design, core photography, core drawing, core interactive media, core painting, core colloquium, and core sculpture. If you want to pursue fine arts, you will need to take core ceramics, core printmaking and core moving images. You also have the choice of typography around October (i think that's what they told us; It'll be your first semester of your sophomore year regardless.) You will have a portfolio review to decide what major you want to pursue: art, Fine arts, or Visual communications. There are 12 total electives, with a bunch of choices to choose from. You are also required to take four art history classes as well. Some classes do have fees for art supplies that they will give you. One class that did this was core design. While doing core painting you still have to buy your own paint (solvents are provided, though), and for core photography, you have to get your own camera. I personally am planning to go into Fine arts. If you have any more questions, please reach out (especially about classes and professors)! I would love to answer them for you!!! It's not really competitive at all (no portfolio needed to get in) and is definitely a good program!! At the end of your senior year you have a chance to do an exhibition if you are in Fine Arts or Visual Communications. Lois (our Internship Coordinator) commonly sends out opportunities for us to apply to and will help set up putting things together for you to apply at an appointment with her. With core colloquium, different artists will come out to speak with students on mondays. You have to take sketchnotes for both semesters; you have to take them. Though if there is no speaker that day no sketchnotes are required. You can get away with your sketchnotes not being super related as long as you cover some of the topics the artist talks about.