Congratulations To Chris H! She was accepted to the very competitive Carnegie Mellon University Design Program! The School of Design at Carnegie Mellon is among the oldest and most respected programs in the US & only 20% of applicants who apply are accepted each year!
Here are some examples of her outstanding portfolio made here at Ashcan Studio 🖌️🎨
Applying to the CMU Design requires three things to submit: 1) Video, 2) Portfolio of Creative Work, and 3) Essay.
- The video
They want to learn more about you. So they ask that you create a video that shows and tells them something about who you are and what you care about. In addition to talking about what makes you “you” (i.e. your passions, your interests outside of school, an experience that changed you…) they ask that you include and talk about one project that exemplifies your creative process/thinking and how it relates to you as a person. This may be a work in progress, may not be a finished or polished project and does not have to be done as a class assignment.
Video Guidelines
- Keep the video authentic and real. You may use a handheld device—your phone for example—and there is no need for fancy editing.
- Video should be 90 seconds or less—we will NOT review any videos over 90 seconds.
- Video will be uploaded to SlideRoom as one of the slides.
2. Creative Work (Portfolio)
For this application they ask that you curate your work within no more than 12 works. You may submit work that is 2-D, 3-D, or 4-D.
In addition to your finished pieces, they are also interested in your creative process—whether it be in a sketchbook, journal, or notebook. They ask that you include at least one slide that shows them how you think and visualize ideas — be thoughtful to ensure that the image communicates key aspects of your process. You might need to compile sketches/ideas from multiple pages in your sketchbook to communicate this effectively.
Portfolio Guidelines
- You have 12 slides to submit samples of your work. Each can have an image or composite of images to that one slide.
- Digital files (videos, animations, Quicktime Movies, live digital sketches, etc.) should not exceed 2 minutes. If digital files exceed 2 minutes they will NOT be reviewed.
- You may submit a 2-minute clip of a longer piece and tell them that it is an edited sample.
- You are encouraged to include examples of drawings. Considering the limitations on the number of items you can upload to SlideRoom, when communicating drawings/sketches or a sketchbook, consider creative yet effective ways to meaningfully communicate content with a few images.
- Projects should be varied while emphasizing your strongest work.
- Acceptable works include, but are not limited to, 2-D and 3-D design, drawing, painting, mixed-media, sculpture, and still or animated digital representations.
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