Pratt Institute

Leading Design School in World's Art Capital

The Pratt Institute, founded in 1887 and located in New York City, is one of the country's leading art and design schools. Students at the Pratt Institute are immersed in a highly creative environment, both inside the classroom and off campus.

Pratt encourages its students to follow their own artistic visions, providing a wide variety of disciplines, the ability to take electives in different disciplines, and a large number of minors so that students can explore all of their interests. By pursuing an education in the world's art capital, students have the opportunity to live in a city saturated with museums, galleries, and resident artists.

The Pratt faculty is composed of working artists and designers who guide students in becoming creative professionals. The school's undergraduate programs include architecture, fashion design, and fine arts, industrial and interior design, writing and others. "DesignIntelligence" magazine has ranked Pratt's architecture school as one of the country's best architecture programs along with interior design and industrial design. Almost all of Pratt's programs are ranked among the top five in the country. 

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An Urban Mix of Historic Buildings and Eco-Friendly Design

The Pratt Institute's main campus is located in a residential Brooklyn neighborhood of post-Civil War townhouses. It is less than 30 minutes from Manhattan. An urban mix of leafy green space, brick streets, and historic buildings, the Brooklyn campus spreads across 25 acres.

The school takes pride in its new administrative and academic center, Myrtle Hall. Myrtle Hall is the first eco-friendly green building in the area that surrounds the Pratt campus. Being environmentally responsible is an important goal for Pratt, which created the Center for Sustainable Design Studies to integrate green design principles into its curriculum.

Degrees in Art and Design, Writing, and Architecture

Over 3,400 undergraduates attend the Pratt Institute, where they can choose from 27 majors. Pratt offers undergraduate study at four colleges: its School of Art, School of Design, School of Architecture, and School of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

The largest college at Pratt is its School of Design, where students earn Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in fields such as fashion design, communications design, and interior design. B.I.D. degrees are offered in industrial design.

At Pratt's School of Architecture, undergraduates enter a 5-year bachelor's degree program in architecture, or a B.S. program in construction management. The School of Liberal Arts and Sciences has three bachelor's degree programs: a B.A. in Critical and Visual Studies and a B.F.A. in Writing or History of Art and Design.

Core Foundation Year, Liberal Arts Requirements

Freshmen complete a core foundation year before choosing specialized study in their sophomore or junior year. In the foundation year, students are trained to increase visual thinking skills and to explore new ideas and techniques.

Pratt's School of Liberal Arts and Sciences plays an important role in undergraduate programs. Students seeking BFA degrees must complete one-third of their coursework from a wide spectrum of liberal arts and science classes. The school's courses range from astronomy to foreign languages.

Real-World Link Through the Faculty

Pratt's faculty of working professionals links students to the "real world" and rich artistic resources of New York.

For instance, professors in Pratt's fashion design program have owned couture design studios and been costume designers for television and film productions. Fashion design students at Pratt take field trips to New York City's fashion studios for a first-hand look at new trends and practices in clothing design. They also consult with New York City designers who critique their work. The faculty’s connections with the professions are instrumental in Pratt’s internship program. Juniors earn credit for their internship as well as gaining valuable experience and often a job offer before graduation. Ninety-five percent of graduates are working within six months of graduation.

Digital Art to Traditional Media

The latest techniques in new media are incorporated into arts programs at Pratt. For example, in Pratt's digital arts program, students use the computer as a medium to create animations, interactive, and web-based art.

They study under distinguished professionals in the digital arts field, who have exhibited nationally and internationally.

Traditional media also is represented at Pratt. Fine arts students specialize in ceramics, printmaking, painting, sculpture, drawing, and jewelry making.

Study Abroad Program

Students gain an expansive view of world art cultures through Pratt's study abroad program. Architecture students go to Italy to study the architecture and culture of Rome. Architecture Summer Design workshops are also offered in Beijing, China and Berlin, Germany. Architecture and Design students study Scandinavian design in Copenhagen, Sweden, Finland, Norway and western Denmark. Fashion design students travel to the 3 major fashion capitals of Europe: London, Paris, and Milan. Fine Art and Art History study in Venice, Italy in collaboration with the Universita Internazionale dell'Arte. The Pratt Summer in Paris program gives students the opportunity to study literature and writing in France.

Top Designers and Artists Among Notable Alumni

Pratt graduates have reached the top of their fields. Notable alumni include renowned architects, painters, photographers, and designers. Fashion designer Betsey Johnson is a graduate of Pratt. Actor-director Robert Redford also attended Pratt, along with cartoonist Edward Koren and photographer Robert Mapplethorpe.

A Rich Creative Culture in New York City

By living in New York City, Pratt students have abundant access to a rich creative culture of art, music, and literature. The Pratt Sculpture Park occupies the entire Brooklyn campus and is the largest sculpture park in New York City. "Public Art Review" listed the park as one of the 10 best college campus art collections.

Nearby art havens include the Brooklyn Museum, Museum of Modern Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and the American Folk Art Museum. Music and performance art enthusiasts enjoy the Brooklyn Academy of Music, a performance arts center since 1861. Known as BAM, the center is a venue for artist talks and productions such as 21st century opera.