Scholarships to Study at the Top Art & Design Schools in 2020

In seventh place is Finland’s Aalto University, located in capital city Helsinki. It was founded in 2010 from the merger of three institutions, including the University of Art and Design Helsinki.

While students from the EU/EEA study for free, if you’re not from the EU or EEA and want to study in English you’ll need to pay tuition fees. At Aalto University these are €12,000 (~US$13,110) per year for bachelor’s degrees and €15,000 (~US$18,500) per year for master’s programs. International double degree programs have their own tuition fees and scholarship schemes, which you can find out more about here. 

Merit-based scholarships are available for non-EU/EEA students, which award 50 or 100 percent of the cost of tuition. If you want to study a bachelor’s in art and design, this is only available in English.

Politecnico di Milano is the largest technical university in Italy. Tuition fees for laurea magistrale programs  in the school of design range from €895-3898 (~US$980-4,265) per year for EU students, with non-EU students paying €3,898 (~US$4250) per year.

The university offers merit-based scholarships for talented international students admitted to its laurea magistrale programs. Students who obtain a scholarship will have their fees waived and will receive a set amount of money (depending on the type of scholarship received). Students need to pay an administrative fee of €200 (~US$219) to apply for these scholarships.

The university also offers need-based DSU scholarships  which are available for all students, including international students. 

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) considers the arts a fundamental aspect of the core curriculum and research community.

Tuition fees currently stand at US$55,450 per year for all undergraduate and graduate programs - which includes basic health insurance - plus a mandatory Student Life fee of US$368. Financial aid is available in the form of federal grants and state grants, as well as private scholarships and grants. Means-based MIT scholarships are also on offer, which averaged US$47,593 in 2018-2019.

MIT is need-blind to all students, both domestic and international, meaning students are considered entirely on their own merits and not by their ability to pay, and MIT meets the full demonstrated need of undergraduate students for all four years of their degree.  

Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) is a private university, located in the state capital, Providence. Ranking fourth for art and design this year, RISD offers a wide range of art and design programs in fields of study such as architecture, ceramics, film/animation/video, graphic design, illustration, photography, painting, printmaking and more.

RISD charges tuition fees of US$53,820 per year for both undergraduate and postgraduate courses. RISD scholarships are on offer, which are awarded based on financial need. Special scholarships of US$10,000 are awarded to outstanding first-year students who show outstanding academic and artistic achievement.

Image credit: Ted Simpson (Flickr)

Located in Greenwich Village in New York City is Parsons School of Design at The New School. The area is known for its thriving arts scene and bohemian atmosphere. One of the five colleges of The New School, Parsons is known for its distinguished alumni, having educated numerous prominent fashion designers, photographers, designers, illustrators and artists.

Undergraduate degrees at Parsons cost US$48,760 per year plus fees. Scholarships available include the John L. Tishman Scholarship, awarded to students who show an interest and commitment to sustainable development, design, and construction, and the William Randolph Hearst Scholarship, awarded to students engaged in socially responsible art or design projects.

The second-best art and design school in the world, according to the subject ranking this year, is the University of the Arts London (UAL). Famous alumni of UAL’s six renowned colleges include painter and printmaker Howard Hodgkin, illustrator Quentin Blake, fashion designer Stella McCartney, and painter Lucian Freud.

Fees total £9,250 (~US$11,600) per year for undergraduate home/EU students, while international non-EU students commencing their studies in 2020 paid £22,920 (~US$28,762).

International students can apply for UAL’s Study Abroad Awards of £1,500 each (~US$1870), which require students to submit a visual project encapsulating the spirit of your home institution. UK or EU students enrolled a postgraduate course can apply for a variety of scholarships at UAL, which you can find more information about here.

Image credit: Vicky Teinaki (Flickr)

The UK’s Royal College of Art (RCA) is the top ranked art and design school once again this year. The school is located in the South Kensington and Battersea areas of London.

Tuition fees at RCA vary depending on the level of study and your country of origin. Domestic/EU students pay £12,650 (US$15,850) per year for the college’s MRes programs, while non-EU students have to pay £33,500 (US$45,500).

Domestic and EU students can apply for postgraduate loans from the UK government, and RCA offers its own competitive pre-entry scholarships, awarded based on the strength of your application and portfolio, your financial need and your perceived academic potential.