NSCAD – Self Directed Learning

A review of the Nova Scotia College of Art & Design (NSCAD) - Graphic Design program.
By Chris L. who graduated in 2009. 1,759 views.

I chose NSCAD for many reasons – though mostly for its reputation. It helped that I am from Nova Scotia, and had already lived in Halifax while attending Dalhousie University. I had spoken to a few graduates of NSCAD, though none from the design program. I was only considering BC or Nova Scotia and Emily Carr’s rejection quickly solidified my plans.

Prior to NSCAD I completed a Bachelor of Commerce at Dalhousie University and drawing and graphic design were merely hobbies. I explored art more while living and traveling in Asia the year after graduation from Dal which is what prompted me to apply when I returned to Canada.

Getting In

After completing a Business Degree, taking some time off for travel and returning from teaching English in Korea, I decided to apply to art school. I quickly sent a sub-par portfolio to Emily Carr due to a short deadline, was rejected and then spent a few weeks on building a portfolio for NSCAD.

I had few expectations of NSCAD upon entering, though it had a great reputation. I know it was strong for other programs than design, and I was very interested in building other skills such as drawing and painting. I knew my goal was to get through foundation and into the design program and try to get out into the workforce as quickly as possible, but I wanted to enjoy myself along the way.

…reality set in and I realized the design program was far from perfect and flawed.

Teach Yourself

As I got deeper into the program reality set in and I realized the design program was far from perfect and flawed. It wasn’t until I went on exchange to Corcoran College of Art and Design in Washington, DC that I realized it was more of my responsibility to get what I needed out of NSCAD.

Aside from the student community, the best part about the design program is the faculty. The instructors are incredibly nice, passionate and caring of the students. The worst part of the program is the structure. After some experience at another school I realized we were missing a few key concepts. For one, there is very little focus on typography at NSCAD. NSCAD is also dated in that there is little to no support for interactive/web design.

I realized fairly early on that I had to learn the things that interested me on my own, such as web design and typography. I asked for recommended readings and found my own.

NSCAD is focused on theory and design principals, which means they do not focus on technical skills.

After School

I was lucky enough to land a job immediately after school, as in two days after classes ended. NSCAD is focused on theory and design principals, which means they do not focus on technical skills. You need to be a self motivated student who is willing to learn the technical skills required on your own time. I have found most jobs require some web design experience, at the least HTML and CSS. This was barely touched upon at NSCAD. So again, this is up to you to fill the void.

I found a job easily; however, I credit that to focusing on building a strong portfolio whenever I could. Most of my portfolio work came from my exchange, and I realized early that you can’t rely entirely on course work to fill your portfolio.

Consider More Than Design

The one thing about NSCAD that I love is the interdisciplinary nature. You have a lot of freedom to explore other disciplines, such as photography, illustration, textiles, painting and so on. NSCAD has an incredible fine arts program, so if this interests you I would recommend looking into NSCAD further. For me, I was focused on getting my degree as fast as possible and getting into the work force since I already had a degree and had done the “university” thing long enough. That being said it was a blast to do it again and there is a lot to be said for a liberal, artistic school like NSCAD.

The most important lesson I learned was how to teach myself.

The Verdict

I often thought I would have been better off at a different school, maybe OCAD or if I had of stayed at Corcoran after my exchange. It is difficult to say what the result would have been, but I learned valuable stuff at NSCAD aside from great research skills, critical thinking and the ability to think about design outside of commercial business. The most important lesson I learned was how to teach myself. There was ample opportunity to bring your interests into the classroom and enough freedom to explore areas such as web design if it interested you. The difficulty was not having the faculty to support such specific interests.

I would recommend NSCAD for someone without a clear goal of Design, and interest in the other arts and who wants to live in one of the coolest big/small cities in Canada.

You can see some of my design work in my portfolio at alltimelowe.com.

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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4 Comments

Marc LaTulippe

12.27.09

Great review Chris.

I bet we probably learned more from working with each other at NSCAD then from some of the staff.

That being said, 1 or 2 instructors made all the difference in my experience there, for the best and the worst.

John

3.17.10

I go to NSCAD currently and have been attending since 2008.

Compared to my previous school this has so much to offer (ocad).

The professors are intelligent, thoughtful and very dedicated.

The administration, unfortunately is kind of just functioning. Nothing special there. No vision really.

The students are amazing, everyone is really hardworking and wants to be there.

I feel like there is a real community, gallery openings you seen others you know, in the painting studio everyone is pretty open and friendly. Its a place that will change your life for the good, as long as its soul is kept intact. I am afraid for the future of this lovely place. The port campus was a huge waste of money. If you are in fine art or craft, (which is what i know) GO TO THIS SCHOOL!

Chris

3.19.10

Those are great and true comments John. Overall the faculty is excellent, though there have been an instructor or 2 in my experience that have inhibited learning as opposed to supported it.

Janet

5.16.10

I graduated from the NSCAD design program in 2004, and I have to say that I agree with pretty much everything said in this review – specifically about the theory over technical skill comment. After several years in the industry, I will say that I understand why they did this. A strong theory base will always stay with you. The software and skill base required constantly changes as the industry evolves, so one does in real life have to take the continued initiative to keep on top of industry standards anyways.

The only thing I would add is that I found NSCAD rather idealistic – too much so almost – in terms of the real world application. Some of the theories I learned while at NSCAD are simply too theoretical or academically driven to work, especially in terms of commercial use. I currently work in packaging design (something the program seriously lacked in earnest and practical effort), and found that I had a serious shift to make in my thinking when working with real clients – which often has decision makers at the helm that do not understand the least little thing about design or pushing the envelope. They are involved with making sales – not pretty packaging most of the time. The same may be able to be said about print design (which is what the majority of the NSCAD program focuses on), but in my professional experience, the program lacked a certain functional quality.

That being said, the best thing I gained from the program was the mantra of one of the main design professors there, “It might be pretty, but does it work?”. This really is a genius attitude to enter the industry with. The heads of Pentagram and other major players all pretty much come from the same school of thought.

One last thing I will comment on is the web design, or lack thereof. When I applied to attend NSCAD in 1999, I actually applied to their major in interactive design. Little did I know, but after the dot.com bubble burst, there was a sharp downward trend in learning in that area, and NSCAD promptly cut the program just as I was entering my 3rd year of the program (1st year of 2 in their design major). Apparently it was only I, and two others who had applied for the web program. So I ended up having to settle for the general program, after which I discovered my love of packaging design, and not UI work.

NSCAD was mostly invaluable to me in allowing me a learning setting where everyone was very very serious about what they’re doing. Everyone there wants to be there. It takes a lot to be admitted, and even more back breaking work, time, and money, to get into the design program – but it is worth it.