Search Our Website

Evening edition info will go here.

Let's keep our students safe.

Cornish College of the Arts

Skip to Content

A Quick Note for Internet Explorer Users

Our websites are not supported for Internet Explorer 6.0, and Internet Explorer 7 support is currently limited. A simplified version of this website appears below. To view our sites in the best possible manner, please upgrade to the latest version of Firefox, Chrome, Internet Explorer, or Safari.

Quick Links/Site Navigation

National Portfolio Day in Seattle 2012

Presented by National Portfolio Day Association and Cornish College of the Arts.

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Cornish College of the Arts
Main Campus Center
1000 Lenora Street
Seattle, WA 98121
Maps and Directions »

Schedule

Check-in - 10:00am
Portfolio reviews - 11:00am-3:00pm
No RSVP necessary

Information

For more information, call Cornish College of the Arts at 1.800.726.ARTS

Save time at the Seattle National Portfolio Day! Bring the completed registration form with you!

Colleges participating in the 2012 Portfolio Day

Alberta College of Art + Design, Calgary, Alberta
Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, CA
CalArts (California Institute of the Arts), Valencia, CA
California College of the Arts, San Francisco, CA
Columbus College of Art & Design, Columbus, OH
Emily Carr University of Art + Design, Vancouver, BC
FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, Los Angeles, CA
Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, MO
Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Richmond, BC
Laguna College of Art + Design, Laguna Beach, CA
Long Island University, Brooklyn Campus, Brooklyn, NY
Maine College of Art, Portland, ME
Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD
Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Boston, MA
Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Minneapolis, MN
Moore College of Art & Design, Philadelphia, PA
New York School of Interior Design, New York, NY
Oregon College of Art & Craft, Portland , OR
Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, CA
Pacific Northwest College of Art, Portland, OR
Parsons The New School for Design, New York, NY
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Ringling College of Art and Design, Sarasota, FL
Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design, Denver, CO
San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, CA
School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL
School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Boston, MA
School of Visual Arts, New York, NY
The Cooper Union School of Art, New York, NY
The University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Washington University in Saint Louis, St Louis, MO
Watkins College of Art, Design & Film, Nashville, TN
Woodbury University, School of Media, Culture & Design, Burbank, CA

Reviewing for Cornish College:

  • If you are planning to review for Cornish at Seattle National Portfolio Day we recommend you follow as closely as possible the Portfolio guidelines published by each department, Art or Design.
  • We also strongly recommend you submit Part-One of the Cornish Application for Admission prior to Seattle National Portfolio Day. If we have a complete Part-One (Application, essays and transcripts) by January 2nd and you review during Portfolio Day we will mail an admission decision to you by January 12.

Parking

  • Free parking will be available in the Cornish lots until they are full. Recommended additional paid parking is in the large outdoor lot at the corner of Virginia and Boren, one block South of Main Campus Center.
  • Parking and barrier-free access for the mobility impaired is available. We recommend you call the Office of Admission at 206.726.5016 or Campus Security at 206.726.5083 for directions to these spaces.

Other information:

  • The doors will not open for check-in before 10:00am.
  • Check-in will be held in the Cornish Cafe, please enter through the doors at the corner of Lenora and Terry Streets, 1/2 block downhill from our main entrance at 1000 Lenora Street.
  • Reviews will begin at 11am and will end promptly at 3:00. Students should check-in early and be ready to review at 11:00. Historically 400 students attend the Seattle Portfolio Day.
  • Food and beverages will be available for purchase throughout the event in the Cornish Cafe.
  • If you are plan to bring a laptop to show digital work - neither electrical plug-in’s nor internet connections will be available. Be sure to store the work on your laptop and fully charge the battery before you leave home.
  • Hotels are available near Cornish. Visit Cornish College of the Arts: Planning Your Visit for information.

The National Portfolio Day Association

The National Portfolio Day Association (NPDA) was created in 1978 solely for the organization and planning of National Portfolio Days. The Association consists of representatives from colleges and universities which are accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design and which meet the membership requirements of the NPDA. The NPDA is the only organization of its kind, and its membership represents the highest standard of visual arts education available in the United States and Canada. For further information about events and member schools, please visit our website at www.npda.org

National Portfolio Days

National Portfolio Days are educational events for young artists, held at host colleges throughout the U.S. and Canada. No pre-registration is necessary, and there is no cost to attend. National Portfolio Days bring students together with experienced college representatives who review artwork, offer critique, discuss college plans, and share information about their programs. These events are not an examination or a competition. The college representatives are interested in your development, look forward to reviewing your work, and will provide you with helpful information for the next step in your education. We recommend that you use your time at a National Portfolio Day to discuss your work with as many representatives as possible.

At a National Portfolio Day, you’ll get a small taste of what it could be like to attend a professional art program. You’ll see a variety of artwork created by young artists with varying skills and experiences. You may hear many different opinions about your work. Be prepared to discuss the way you develop your ideas, your background in art, and your thoughts about your future direction.

No admissions decisions or scholarship awards will be offered to you at a National Portfolio Day. Some of the colleges represented may accept the portfolio you present as the visual portion of your application, and others have policies which prohibit making a definitive admission decision at the time of your review. All will expect that your artwork will progress in the coming months.

If you are interested in graduate programs, we encourage you to contact individual institutions, as all colleges will not be prepared to review graduate portfolios at National Portfolio Days.

Choosing an Art Program

Art making is a special kind of learning experience. As a potential art student, you’ll especially want to look at each college’s faculty, facilities, and equipment. You should also consider the college’s proximity to museums, galleries, and other cultural resources, in addition to its academic standards, extracurricular activities, location, housing, costs, scholarships, and financial aid opportunities.

We urge you to gather enough information so that you may choose a supportive and stimulating art college environment that meets your individual needs. Try your best to visit the colleges that interest you to get a feel for each school before you make your final decision. Investigate the college’s accreditations and the transferability of their credits, and be sure you understand each school’s degree offerings and majors.

What To Bring To a National Portfolio Day

We recommend that you bring up to twenty pieces of your best, most recent work. Your portfolio can include finished pieces, work in progress, and sketchbooks. Bring your original artwork whenever possible, and please do not spend time and money matting or framing your work. Keep your presentation simple; the work itself is what is of interest to us.

If you bring slides of work that is too large or fragile to carry, or digital representations of work that is time-based such as video, animation, or performance, it is your responsibility to ensure that the work may be viewed. You may choose to bring your own slide viewer, video camera, and/or laptop to show your work. Be advised, however, that you will not have access to an electric outlet.

Save time at the Seattle National Portfolio Day!  Bring the completed registration form with you!