Over the past 15 years we’ve helped thousands of students successfully apply to the top Illustration programs, most with scholarships.

“Illustrators create work that is consumed, enjoyed and valued by society and reflect current cultural events and more. “-MICA

As a BFA Illustration program graduate you can pursue careers in illustration, comics, graphic novels, publishing, toy and product design, pattern and surface design, advertising, motion graphics, fine art, animation, and installation design.

FUTURE JOBS INCLUDE :

Advertising illustrator
Animation character designer
Art director

Book illustrator
Editorial illustrator
Illustrator for entertainment design

Illustrator for game design
Storyboard artist
Surface design illustrator

These portfolio examples are from an Ashcan Portfolio Prep student who applied and was accepted into 4 NYC based Illustration programs and was accepted into all 4 with 3 scholarships.

Here’s a little about our favorite Illustration BFA programs:

PRATT Communications Design – Emphasis in Illustration

At Pratt the Communication Design major with an Emphasis in Illustration the upper-level studio courses explore topics such as advanced storytelling, socio-political commentary, and authorship. Courses throughout the major encourage experimentation with multiple technologies, platforms, and techniques. Electives provide opportunities to explore a wide spectrum of contemporary illustration practice, including graphic novels, animation and 3D modeling, independent publishing, editorial illustration, children’s books, concept art, and illustrated typography.

SVA ILLUSTRATION

At SVA, they believe that an illustrator’s career can be as limitless as his or her imagination. We always encourage ambitious thinking—the innovator, not the imitator.

Students are frequent winners of the highest awards at the Society of Illustrators, American Illustration and many other industry-based student competitions.

They not only inspire and encourage a student’s imagination, but also teach the art of interpretation: the ability to carefully read and cross-reference texts, research visual styles, and conceptualize and produce significant bodies of work.

FIT ILLUSTRATION

At FIT, you will master a wide range of media, from pencil-on-paper to state-of-the-art computer software. In hands-on classes taught by practicing illustrators, you will develop your artistic skills and gain the technical expertise to create illustrations that inform, inspire, and influence.

You will also learn the business of illustration, giving you as many options as possible in this challenging field. Unique to Illustration at FIT is a nine-course selection of computer classes, so you will be up-to-date in the skills many employers require. And you will have the option to specialize in either fashion or general illustration. This program, with its blend of tradition, technology, and entrepreneurship, is designed to help make you into an effective visual communicator, prepared for careers in a range of industries, from advertising and media to retailing and the corporate world.

PARSONS ILLUSTRATION

In the BFA Illustration program at Parsons, you learn to translate ideas into images in media including picture books, graphic novels, hand lettering, editorial and advertising illustrations, toy designs, animations, and surface and display design. You develop your visual storytelling skills through representational drawing and painting coupled with production of text, three-dimensional objects, and animation. Through your course of study, you cultivate your vision, authorial voice, creative problem-solving abilities, and curiosity.

RISD ILLUSTRATION

Through a broad and diverse range of course offerings, RISD Illustration majors engage in a largely self-directed exploration of media as they gain a solid understanding of contemporary themes and concepts. Faculty insist upon keen observation and strong conceptual thinking combined with the mastery of manual skills and techniques needed to convey ideas in a compelling manner.

From painting with pure egg-yolk tempera to creating 3D imagery for computer gaming, students in Illustration work across the full spectrum of media. They also hone conceptual and image-making skills through electives focused on virtually every professional application imaginable. Faculty with experience in specific fields offer courses on book and web design, editorial illustration, comics, caricature, picture books, graphic novels and much more.

RINGLING ILLUSTRATION

In the Ringling Illustration program you’ll perfect your drawing and painting skills, develop your artistic style, and unleash your visual creativity in our nationally-acclaimed Illustration major.

You’ll master the fundamentals of color, composition, and anatomy in both traditional and digital media, and learn to compose effective and compelling illustrations. Study character design, development, and storyboarding in our Visual Development program. Our students win awards, scholarships, and kick start their careers in illustration at industry giants.Choose

ART CENTER ILLUSTRATION

ArtCenter’s Illustration curriculum encompasses a wide range of core studies and collaborations with other disciplines that equips students with strong practical skills, as well as substantial business knowledge. After mastering foundations skills such as figure drawing, painting and perspective, students choose from five main areas of specialization: Illustration Design, Illustration/Fine Art, Entertainment Arts, Motion Design and Surface Design.

MICA ILLUSTRATION

MICA’s Illustration majors explore a variety of traditional and digital approaches to illustration fostering technical proficiency along with imaginative problem solving and entrepreneurial thinking.

Tracks in sequential art and preproduction offer focused study for students interested in the comics, graphic novel, video game, and film industries. Interdisciplinary options for specialized study include studio concentrations in book arts, animation, graphic design, and printmaking.

CCA ILLUSTRATION

In CCA’s Illustration program, you’ll create images and objects that engage, challenge, and delight. Illustrators enliven narratives, explore personal histories, and contribute to discussions about larger societal issues through traditional and digital works. Their program invites a robust cross-disciplinary study and provides you access to cutting-edge software and digital tools, print and painting studios, shops, labs, and a community of thinkers and makers eager to collaborate. By approaching illustration from many perspectives, you’ll learn to bring unique ideas to life with originality and versatility.

The Bay Area is home to independent animation and film studios, major technology companies, publishers, and groundbreaking art galleries. You’ll develop an in-demand skill set applicable for a range of illustration career paths, as well as a creative voice enhanced by our inspiring environment, faculty mentorship, and the tradition of non-conformity and innovative thinking unique to the Bay.

SCAD ILLUSTRATION

At SCAD, illustration students cultivate their own unique style and personal brand in a comprehensive program that explores both traditional and digital media. Students learn to create concepts and select materials while developing the portfolio and business acumen necessary to thrive in professional practice.

SCAD’s illustration program helps students realize their vision of becoming a successful illustrator, working with top companies, and building a client list that includes major newspapers and magazines.