The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) Review

The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts)

The California Institute of the Arts, or CalArts, is an accredited art school in Valencia, California.  CalArts was founded by Walt Disney in the 1960s.  It was the first higher education institution that grants degrees in both visual and performing arts.  It is accredited to offer Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts in visual, performing and literary arts.  CalArts also offers a Doctor of Music Arts degree.

Programs at Cal Arts

Cal Arts, or the California Institute of the Arts, offers many different art programs.  Some of those programs include:

  • Writing
  • Dance
  • Aesthetics and Politics
  • Graphic Design
  • Photography and Media
  • Art and Technology
  • Film and Video
  • Experimental Animation
  • Character Animation
  • Film Directing Program
  • African Music and Dance
  • Guitar
  • Percussion
  • Strings
  • Composition
  • Music Arts
  • Acting
  • Directing
  • Puppetry
  • Costume Design
  • Lighting Design

….And many other disciplines

CalArts Cost

The application fee varies from $50 to $85, depending on whether you are a domestic or international applicant.  It also varies depending on the deadline in which you apply.  Tuition is approximately $38,000/year for full time enrollment.  Tuition usually increases each year, but for the 2011-2012 school year, $37,684 is the current price of tuition as advertised on calarts.edu.  Other fees include student activity fee of $76, Health Insurance fee (which is waived if you already have insurance), energy fee of $100 and technology fee of $400.  Additional lab fees vary depending on major and class schedule.  As most schools do, Cal Arts offers financial aid as well as a payment plan.

The California Institute of the Arts

The California Institute of the Arts (or commonly called Cal Arts, Cal Art or CalArts) has a 28% acceptance rate.  The student to faculty ratio is 7:1.  There are 7 students to every 1 teacher at Cal Art Institute.  The average class size is 14 students and 12% of the students are international students.

Cal Art is a terrific art school with raving reviews from previous students.  While it is expensive, most art schools are expensive and many do not deliver on the high expectations that come with notable schools as CalArts delivers in education, faculty, curriculum and overall experience.