Pratt Institute Summer Program
The Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY offers a summer program in which students from across the country spend four weeks on campus studying studio and liberal arts and experiencing a taste of what life is like for a Pratt Institute student. This is an interesting opportunity for a budding artist to explore the experience of a studio arts major in college.
Each summer nearly 400 high school students from across the country and around the globe are invited to Pratt’s Brooklyn campus to participate in PreCollege. Over the course of four weeks, students are immersed in art studio practice and experience life as a college student taking two rigorous studio classes complemented by liberal arts courses Monday through Friday. Weekday evenings are spent working on projects in Pratt’s undergraduate studio spaces and participating in educational lectures and events.
During the weekend, students enjoy cultural and social events on campus and have guided and non-guided opportunities to explore New York City. PreCollege offers the chance to experience what it is like to study at Pratt while developing the skills and confidence to be the artists, designers, and creative thinkers of the future. The program culminates in a final exhibition of student work curated in gallery spaces across campus and attended by family, friends, and summer faculty. PreCollege students leave enriched, empowered, and ready to be our future artists, designers, and creative thinkers.
How do I get started? Check out Pratt’s website for more information about the program and admissions.
How do I expand this narrative arc? Explore your interest in art by
Learning about the business of art in the Sotheby’s Summer Program
Be part of the Anno-Tate project to transcribe the sketchbooks of famous artists.
Submit your artwork to online publications, like Hypernova Lit, Elan Literary Magazine, Hanging Loose Press,and more.
For even greater impact, explore the intersection between Community Engagement + Environment + Art:
Decorate a local basketball court with Project Backboard
Enhance your community’s beauty with Guerrilla Gardening
Launch a competition to create an artistic design on a local storm drain
HOT TIP: This is an interesting opportunity for a teen with art in his/her narrative arc, and could be a good jumping off point for an interesting essay or a thematic link between art interest and art study. See below for a general note of caution about summer programs:
IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT SUMMER PROGRAMS: College admissions officers are very adept at identifying “resume padders”: expensive, one-off programs paid for by your parents which do not mesh with your narrative arc. Therefore, make sure any summer program or course you consider falls into one (or more) of these four buckets:
Highly selective/competitive
Totally unique + linked to your narrative arc
Evidence of adulthood (long hours, multi-year commitment or simply hard work)
A jumping off point or expansion for an authentic narrative arc.
If none of the above apply, a program could still have value to you if it allows you to test a potential interest. However, if it does not end up being a jumping off point for further interests, then you may not want to mention it in your high school resume