Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design
Encyclopedia
The Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design (AICAD) is a non-profit consortium of 41 leading art and design colleges in the United States and Canada. All AICAD member institutions have a curriculum with full liberal arts and sciences requirements complementing studio work, and all are accredited to grant the BFA and/or MFA degrees. To qualify for AICAD membership, an art school must satisfy four criteria: be a free-standing college (not a division of a larger college or university) specializing in art or design; be a private, non-profit institution (except for Canadian members); grant the BFA and/or MFA degree; and have accreditation from both the National Association of Schools of Art and Design
(NASAD) and the relevant academic accrediting organization in their region.
AICAD was founded in 1991 by a group of art college presidents for the purpose of sharing information among similar institutions and acting collectively. Its mission is to strengthen and connect the member colleges, and to inform the public about these colleges and the value of studying art and design. More information about AICAD and its member colleges is available on the organization's website .
AICAD distributes information about the organization and its members, and about art and design education and careers, to potential students, parents, teachers, and others. It conducts regular conferences and symposia on contemporary academic and administrative subjects, operates an independent studio and internship program in New York City (The New York Studio Residency Program), oversees student exchanges and mobility among the member schools, gathers and analyzes institutional data to assist in future planning efforts. It also provides members with information about current art and design education issues as well as information on relevant legislation and government policies.
National Association of Schools of Art and Design
The National Association of Schools of Art and Design , founded in 1944, is an accrediting organization of colleges, schools and universities in the United States. The organization establishes standards for graduate and undergraduate degrees. Member institutions complete periodic peer review...
(NASAD) and the relevant academic accrediting organization in their region.
AICAD was founded in 1991 by a group of art college presidents for the purpose of sharing information among similar institutions and acting collectively. Its mission is to strengthen and connect the member colleges, and to inform the public about these colleges and the value of studying art and design. More information about AICAD and its member colleges is available on the organization's website .
AICAD distributes information about the organization and its members, and about art and design education and careers, to potential students, parents, teachers, and others. It conducts regular conferences and symposia on contemporary academic and administrative subjects, operates an independent studio and internship program in New York City (The New York Studio Residency Program), oversees student exchanges and mobility among the member schools, gathers and analyzes institutional data to assist in future planning efforts. It also provides members with information about current art and design education issues as well as information on relevant legislation and government policies.
Members
- Alberta College of Art and DesignAlberta College of Art and Design-History:The Alberta College of Art & Design is a Canadian degree-granting, publicly-funded art and design college located in Calgary . It was known as the Provincial Institute of Technology and Arts, which was part of SAIT until 1985...
- Art Academy of CincinnatiArt Academy of CincinnatiThe Art Academy of Cincinnati is a private college of art and design, accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, in Cincinnati, Ohio...
- Art Center College of DesignArt Center College of DesignArt Center College of Design is a private college located in Pasadena, California, and was cited by BusinessWeek as one of the 60 best design schools in the world. The college’s industrial design program is consistently ranked number one by both DesignIntelligence and U.S...
- The Art Institute of BostonThe Art Institute of BostonThe Art Institute of Boston is a private, not-for-profit art school in Boston, Massachusetts, and a part of Lesley University. Undergraduate degree programs include animation, design, fine arts, illustration, and photography. Graduate degree programs focus on fine arts and photography, with an art...
- California College of the ArtsCalifornia College of the ArtsCalifornia College of the Arts , founded in 1907, is known for its broad, interdisciplinary programs in art, design, architecture, and writing. It has two campuses, one in Oakland and one in San Francisco, California, USA...
- California Institute of the ArtsCalifornia Institute of the ArtsThe California Institute of the Arts, commonly referred to as CalArts, is located in Valencia, in Los Angeles County, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the United States created specifically for students of both the visual and the...
- Cleveland Institute of ArtCleveland Institute of ArtThe Cleveland Institute of Art is a private college of art and design located in University Circle, Cleveland, Ohio. It was founded in 1882 as the Western Reserve School of Design for Women. From 1891 until 1948 it was named Cleveland School of Art. During the Great Depression the school...
- College for Creative StudiesCollege for Creative StudiesCollege for Creative Studies is an art education institution in the United States and was cited by BusinessWeek as one of the 60 best design schools in the world. It is a private, fully accredited, four-year college located in Detroit, Michigan...
- Columbus College of Art and DesignColumbus College of Art and DesignColumbus College of Art & Design is a private college of art and design located in downtown Columbus, Ohio. Originally founded in 1879 as The Columbus Art School, CCAD is one of the oldest operating art schools in the United States...
- Cooper UnionCooper UnionThe Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, commonly referred to simply as Cooper Union, is a privately funded college in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States, located at Cooper Square and Astor Place...
- Corcoran College of Art and DesignCorcoran College of Art and DesignThe Corcoran College of Art and Design, , founded in 1890, is the only professional college of art and design in Washington, DC, located in the Downtown area. The school is a private institution in association with the Corcoran Gallery of Art.The Corcoran Gallery of Art is Washington's first and...
- Cornish College of the ArtsCornish College of the Arts-Library:The library at Cornish College specializes in art, dance, design, music, performance production, and theatre. As of 2011 it holds 4700 CDs, 40,000 books, has 2,200 videos, and subscribes to 154 periodicals...
- Emily Carr University of Art and Design
- Kansas City Art InstituteKansas City Art InstituteThe Kansas City Art Institute is a private, independent, four-year college of fine arts and design founded in 1885 in Kansas City, Missouri....
- Laguna College of Art and DesignLaguna College of Art and DesignLaguna College of Art and Design, called LCAD, is a private college located in Laguna Beach, California. LCAD has a small student body with a current enrollment of 450 students. The college offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts with majors in Painting and Drawing, Illustration, Animation, Graphic Design,...
- Lyme Academy College of Fine ArtsLyme Academy College of Fine ArtsThe Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts is an art college in Old Lyme, Connecticut-History:The Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts was founded in 1976 by Elisabeth Gordon Chandler as a figurative academy for the teaching of sculpture, figure drawing, Illustration and painting dedicated to the fine arts...
- Maine College of ArtMaine College of ArtThe Maine College of Art is a fully accredited, degree-granting art college in the city of Portland, Maine. It should not be confused with the Art Institute of Portland which is located in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1882, the Maine College of Art is the oldest arts educational institution in Maine...
- Maryland Institute College of ArtMaryland Institute College of ArtMaryland Institute College of Art is an art and design college in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. It was founded in 1826 as the Maryland Institute for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts, making it one of the first and oldest art colleges in the United States. In 2008, MICA was ranked #2 in the nation...
- Massachusetts College of Art and Design
- Memphis College of ArtMemphis College of ArtMemphis College of Art, known before 1985 as the Memphis Academy of Arts, is a small, private college of art and design located in Memphis, Tennessee's Overton Park adjacent to the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art. It offers Bachelor of Fine Arts, Master of Fine Arts, Master of Arts in Art Education...
- Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design
- Minneapolis College of Art and DesignMinneapolis College of Art and DesignMinneapolis College of Art and Design is a private, nonprofit four-year and postgraduate college specializing in the visual arts. Located in the Whittier neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, MCAD currently enrolls approximately 1,000 students offering curriculum that includes...
- Montserrat College of ArtMontserrat College of ArtMontserrat College of Art is a four-year residential college specializing in the visual arts, located in Beverly, Massachusetts, 23 miles north of Boston. It is named indirectly after the Slave Ship Montserrat.-Description:...
- Moore College of Art and DesignMoore College of Art and DesignMoore College of Art & Design educates students for careers in the visual arts. Moore is an independent college of art and design. Located in the heart of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Moore is the first and only women's visual arts college in the nation, and one of only two in the world...
- Nova Scotia College of Art and Design UniversityNova Scotia College of Art and Design UniversityNSCAD University also known as the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, is a post-secondary art school located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada....
- OCAD University
- Oregon College of Art and Craft
- Otis College of Art and DesignOtis College of Art and DesignOtis College of Art and Design is an art and design college in Los Angeles, California.The school's programs, accredited by WASC and National Association of Schools of Art and Design, include four-year BFA degrees in illustration, fine arts, graphic design, architecture, landscape design, interior...
- Pacific Northwest College of ArtPacific Northwest College of ArtThe Pacific Northwest College of Art is a private fine art and design college in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. Established in 1910, the art school grants bachelor of fine arts degrees and master of fine arts degrees and has an enrollment of about 550 students...
- Parsons The New School for DesignParsons The New School for DesignParsons The New School For Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is the art and design college of The New School university. It is located in New York City's Greenwich Village, and has produced artists and designers such as Marc Jacobs, Dean and Dan Caten, Norman Rockwell, Donna Karan, Jane...
- Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine ArtsPennsylvania Academy of the Fine ArtsThe Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is a museum and art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1805 and is the oldest art museum and school in the United States. The academy's museum is internationally known for its collections of 19th and 20th century American paintings,...
- Pennsylvania College of Art and DesignPennsylvania College of Art and DesignThe Pennsylvania College of Art & Design is a professional art college located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania USA.The college offers Bachelor of Fine Arts programs in fine arts, graphic design, illustration, and photography...
- Pratt InstitutePratt InstitutePratt Institute is a private art college in New York City located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt is one of the leading undergraduate art schools in the United States and offers programs in Architecture, Graphic Design, History of Art and Design,...
- Rhode Island School of DesignRhode Island School of DesignRhode Island School of Design is a fine arts and design college located in Providence, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1877. Located at the base of College Hill, the RISD campus is contiguous with the Brown University campus. The two institutions share social, academic, and community resources and...
- Ringling College of Art and Design
- San Francisco Art InstituteSan Francisco Art InstituteSan Francisco Art Institute is a school of higher education in contemporary art with the main campus in the Russian Hill district of San Francisco, California. Its graduate center is in the Dogpatch neighborhood. The private, non-profit institution is accredited by WASC and is a member of the...
- School of the Art Institute of Chicago
- School of the Museum of Fine Arts, BostonSchool of the Museum of Fine Arts, BostonThe School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston is an undergraduate and graduate college located in Boston, Massachusetts, dedicated to the visual arts. It is affiliated with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs in partnership with Tufts University...
- School of Visual ArtsSchool of Visual ArtsThe School of Visual Arts , is a proprietary art school located in Manhattan, New York City, and is widely considered to be one of the leading art schools in the United States. It was established in 1947 by co-founders Silas H. Rhodes and Burne Hogarth as the Cartoonists and Illustrators School and...
- University of the ArtsUniversity of the Arts (Philadelphia)The University of the Arts is one of the United States' oldest universities dedicated to the arts. Its campus makes up part of the Avenue of the Arts in Center City, Philadelphia...
- Watkins College of Art, Design & Film
International Affiliates
- Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design
- Burren College of ArtBurren College of ArtBurren College of Art is an internationally recognized Irish non-profit independent art college specialising in undergraduate and graduate Fine Art education, located in Ballyvaughan, County Clare, Ireland. The Master of Fine Art programme is accredited by the National University of Ireland, Galway...
- Osaka University of ArtsOsaka University of Artsis a private arts university located in Kanan, Minamikawachi District, Osaka Prefecture, Japan. The university was founded in 1945 as , changing its name to in 1957, and then to in 1964...
Regional accrediting agencies
- Middle States Association of Colleges and SchoolsMiddle States Association of Colleges and SchoolsThe Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association dedicated to educational excellence and improvement through peer evaluation and accreditation...
- New England Association of Schools and CollegesNew England Association of Schools and CollegesThe New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc. is the U.S. regional accreditation association providing educational accreditation for all levels of education, from pre-kindergarten to the doctoral level, in the six-state New England region. It also provides accreditation for some...
(NEASC) - North Central Association of Colleges and SchoolsNorth Central Association of Colleges and SchoolsThe North Central Association of Colleges and Schools , also known as the North Central Association, is a membership organization, consisting of colleges, universities, and schools in 19 U.S. states, that is engaged in educational accreditation...
- Northwest Commission on Colleges and UniversitiesNorthwest Commission on Colleges and UniversitiesThe Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities is an independent, non-profit membership organization recognized by the United States Department of Education since 1952 and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation as the regional authority on educational quality and institutional...
- Southern Association of Colleges and SchoolsSouthern Association of Colleges and SchoolsThe Southern Association of Colleges and Schools is one of the six regional accreditation organizations recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation...
(SACS) - Western Association of Schools and CollegesWestern Association of Schools and CollegesThe Western Association of Schools and Colleges is one of six official academic bodies responsible for the accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary and elementary schools in the United States and foreign institutions of American origin. The Western Association of...
(WASC)