Pratt Institute

Pratt made their campus smoke free (good) and now all their students smoke weed at the local playgrounds while kids are there (bad). They do nothing about it and allow the neighborhood to feel the impact of their decisions without any recourse for the offenders.

Got my b.arch here. Not really worth the amount of money spent. If you're financing, know that you can get the same accredited education for less in another school in the city.

I know several people who went to Pratt including an architect that I worked with in the 1980’s and my daughter and her classmates. Let me just say that both my professional associate and my daughter are extremely successful in their fields of endeavor and are generally happy, well adjusted human beings. I loved the campus because it reminded me of Harvard Yard where I attended school back in the dark ages. I did hear that the Pratt Cats were relocated during the pandemic and have not returned to the campus, which is a great loss. Here’s to reinstating the Pratt Cat tradition as soon as possible!

Classes quality of SATURDAY ART SCHOOL is extremely low. Uninspiring teachers and lazy curriculum. I would not recommend to spend your time and money here. Both of my 8 yo and 12 yo were bored to death. When I expressed my concerns the principal, teachers and curators refused to address them : “if you don’t like something, it’s your problem”. When I asked for a refund it was denied as well. Please contact me if you are a concerned parent thinking to enroll your child. I’ll share the details.

My daughter goes to Pratt right now- she finished the two year AA and was automatically accepted into the four year BFA program. She had a hard time attending the Manhattan campus however she is loving her classes in Brooklynn now. There seems to be friendly people everywhere in NYC so I give it a 4 star status so far!

Nice campus. Lots of art work to admire

Great art and design school! Highly recommend it. Beautiful campus in heart of Brooklyn!

The architecture program is one of the best in the country and definitely the best undergrad in the city. The campus is gorgeous and dorms are alright

Beautiful campus! I got to come here to give a workshop on queer bodies and love. It was a great experience. The students are all lively and full of life. The campus is huge, clean and modern. Definitely a nice school!

OK! More photos more memories! My first visit to the Brooklyn campus, of: Pratt Institute, with my dad. 1971. He was my biggest fan, & I think of him daily!. Papi: I love you & I think of you every single day! I miss you!

I transferred here, they put me in a dorm made of cardboard, where the alarms went off constantly. Drawing professor Bill Sayler made condescending, denigrating comments to us. He only made sexual comments about my work. He groped me openly in class one day. I was too shocked, frozen to move. Here started my life long PTSD. Later in my dorm, heard from some other women about how Sayler did the same to them. I paid an exorbitant amount of tuition for one semester only to be abused by some idiot pretentious professor whose only talent was bragging about how he knew Andy Warhol. Mybe some sort of justice that he had a heart attack & dropped out that semester!

For students from all stages, I've felt that the phrase "they always install the new update when we leave" applies to all of us. I think I'm focusing on this school's cafeteria, where you will expect a higher-cuisine option since you are paying high tuition for this private institution. During my stay for my BFA at this institution, I spent most of my meal time in the cafeteria, I've to say it's to be expected most school cafeterias wouldn't spend too much time and effort on this part, but I do have to gave it to them about the efforts they tries to put in to have this diversity in the cafeteria as well as the campus itself. Though I still have to say, the foods are still quite bland despite how much effort you put into the diversity part of things. As for the Asian cuisine choices, you can only have so few options despite the kitchen stove having one of those jet engine wok stations they still only make a large batch of very Americanized version of Chinese take-out food; and frozen sushi is a big minus. Starting this year they have had a slight improvement on the flavoring since they hired someone specifically for one of the main stations in the cafeteria, with a more professional chef attire on so I would assume this person would bring a continuous improvement for the cafeteria.

I went here for two years, the way they handled covid really shows how inept most people who run that school are at their jobs, I understand covid happened from nowhere and its impossible to control everything, but they took advantage of the students and refused to be flexible in a world wide pandemic, costing (already struggling) students thousands of dollars they will never get back, they don't care about you, they only want to empty your wallet and dump you on the street for the rats. It doesn't matter how good of a student you are they will pass you up for the next who can afford to pay the outrageous tuition. The professors at this school can be found anywhere else, not worth the money in my opinion, you would be better off watching youtube videos and going to your local community college for way cheaper. Trying to communicate with the staff over very important topics is near impossible, they will keep cycling you over to the next imbecile and most of the time not even respond back to emails, they will feign sympathy yet give no support or resolve anything. The utica campus is just as much a shit show, in my time there I've been harassed on campus and multiple students assaulted, with one of them loosing their front teeth. The only good I found from this school is the people I have met and the experiences we shared on and off campus, I will forever be grateful for that.

I attended the intro PS. It was taught in a computer lab with hands on instruction. The Advanced class is all virtual(Zoom sessions). Which are for some a total disaster. Student can learn Advanced PF faster with more understanding with hands on instruction.

You would think that for $11,000 a year for room and board that the students in ELJ could maybe get some heat. Bad enough they don't get AC. Do better!

The reason why I first got to know Pratt is because my brother graduated here. When my brother was a junior or senior, I was a middle school student, and I came to the Newyork to see his college and neighborhood for the summer vacation. Since I was young, I saw him doing art, and I dreamed of becoming an artist because I thought he was so cool. lol And after I saw Pratt school, I decided to become an artist from pratt. And at the time of writing this review, I'm a junior at this university. I studied at the Utica campus for two years first, which is different from my brother, and this semester, I came to the Brooklyn campus, and I feel proud of myself as I look at the beautiful campus and remember my old memories. The Utica campus was also a great place. The number of students is much smaller than the Brooklyn campus, and the campus is small, so I could concentrate on art and make many good friends. But as I went to Brooklyn, I had no choice but to like this school more. First of all, it was great to have such a beautiful campus in New York City, and of course, the campus is much smaller than other universities, but I live in a dormitory and am often late in class, so I feel this campus is big enough. There are a lot of trees and grass yards, so I often see people in the neighborhood coming for picnics on my way to class. Of course, it depends on each professor, but the curriculum is so free that I can feel that the school is trying to support the students' ideas as much as possible. I am proud to be a student at this college!

Nice school, well organized and clean. Names of the building are a little odd since they don't exactly fit but nice campus. Pretty big campus, dormitories are on the other side of the street. Walking distance to bus stops and subway station. Securities are pretty good, safe and nice buildings. Convenience store in the dorm building, they offer a few single rooms and mostly two people sharing a room, etc. Not the safest area at night but still a pretty nice neighbourhood. Quite a few nice restaurants and pizzerias all at walking distance. Atm in the campus, but a TD Bank at walking distance too. So if the grocery store.

Due to COVID-19 I thought it's a good idea to take a continuing education class in exhibition design. It turned out to be different as the class description. It's basically listening to others and their ideas/ questions and their presentations and presenting to them than learning from the instructor. To get the certificate you will be needing the exhibition design class course and the rhino course. If you are not familiar with modeling in 3D you will learn that in rhino but keep in mind that this class takes place AFTER you finished the exhibition design courses since the schedules of the two overlap. Trash. To get your certificate will cost you not only money but also some time and energy. The process is not well communicated. Be ready to make your way through it by the end of the course. You will be writing Pratt. They will send you a link after a while what you can use after you wrote an mail to your instructor to get your grade. After that you will be following the link to order the certificate...I did and I paid. It's more than a month ago now and I haven't seen any certificate yet. Pratt does not get back to me by mail nor phone. I should have read the reviews before wasting my time by taking the class. All the negative reviews I read were unfortunately true and the exact same as I experienced the circumstances. All in one a very very disappointing experience. If you are willing to blow out about 3300 bucks on a certificate you can add on to your resume and learn absolutely nothing. Go for it.

What a beautiful campus! I never realized that you could attend a university that allows you to stay so close to the city while feeling you're in Pennsylvania with all the...well, happy birds and perfect landscaping. It is a reality, and it's all at Pratt. For those Fine Arts buffs, this place really embraced me; maybe that's because I'm an engineer and I "get it", or maybe it was because I felt a sense of comfort, intellect, and prosperity as I walked around the library. I'm really glad that my company decided to complete an off-site meeting here and change the atmosphere a bit. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but if you want to be the reason and purpose for that beauty, I think you must have graduated from Pratt.

One of the institutions I applied to for my MFA. Pratt was a good consideration for grad school, they have EXCELLENT grad school housing nearby the campus in the Clinton Hill neighborhood and they also have a range of good grad programs in the arts. I applied to the MFA program in Performance Studies, and got in, but didn't ultimately attend grad school there. Pratt's campus is also gorgeous and is kind of a bucolic oasis of calm in the urban jungle. I grew up in Brooklyn, so I knew Pratt's reputation well.

This is terrible school. It's overpriced. They system is racist. They don't accept the Hoep scholarship because they don't want locals attending the school. Pratt has a high drop out rate because most of the students wind up not being able to afford it. All the advice I got really screwed me over toward just giving them money and not stepping towards my degree. Safety-wise. I've had stuff stolen from me, my friends being robbed and the security just wasn't helpful. I couldn't graduate from Pratt because of their system and the advice I've gotten from staff members I trusted. There wasn't even one professor I could point to to say this person was influential. I got a job in the creative field working for Brand names like Vera Wang, Knoll and the list could go on while a big chunk of my Pratt colleague who did graduate didn't end up in the creative field and they don't know as much as I do. I learned from experience. Pratt graduates will walk away with a degree understanding concepts but not knowing industry standards or the business side of the the creative world. Most of my friends were pissed off at the end of their course. Building their portfolio at Pratt didn't help them secure that job they were suppose to get.

My daughter has been attending for 2 years. It is quite an expensive school however is more of a trade school than traditional college. The dorms are horrible and filthy and they don't seem to care. You spend 12000 dollars a year for some of the most substandard living I have ever seen. They don't seem to care and nothing is ever fixed. My other daughter attends SCAD and their facilities are gorgeous. I guess this is typical NY, expensive and really not that special. This is an update to my prior review. My daughter was a sophomore when I posted that review and she has now graduated. What I've learned from my experience with the school is that they are absolutely not interested in your child from the standpoint of obtaining an education that will ultimately lead to a job. Not once during my daughters four year tenure there did they ever sit down with her to assist her with Trying to obtain an internship that might ultimately lead to a good job. They simply took our check every year and did not assist her at all. The graduation ceremony was horrific. We got to listen to a political hack talk about her political views. If I had it to do over again I would pocket the more than $200,000 in fees that I paid the school and simply place it into an investment plan for my daughter for her future. This Turned out to be a very poor financial decision on our part. If we had it to do over again we would simply send our child to a state school to get the identical education. Pratt epitomizes what is wrong with the college system currently. It is an extreme example of greed. I hope someone reads this review and my recommendation.

I was raped in my dorm room on a November morning by a man Pratt security allowed in the building. Afterwards, when I went to security to report it and embark on accessing services for myself I was nearly condescended right out of their office. They played the security footage of the man non consensually kissing me in the elevator ON LOOP while they told me to "go back to my studies." They sat passively as a Brooklyn police officer told me nothing could be done and that this "wasn't where i came from and a little girl like me should be careful in such a big city." (And to note: I'm from a working class background from a smaller city BUT EVEN if I was the richest, most spoiled, sheltered student on campus that's just not a trauma informed way of speaking to someone who is trying to get support after an instance of sexual violence.) After being effectively re-traumatized by security and the BPD I went to Pratt's wellness facilities to see about counseling and they made a fuss about it, in fact the therapist I saw told me I needn't bother to get tested and no one seemed to even give a fuck that I was sexually violated until I broke down crying from exasperation. I had to DEMAND the services i needed. It is amazing i didn't drop out entirely throughout this whole process. So yeah in a nutshell: terribly embarrassing mental health services for an institution as expensive as it is. I learned a lot about art but that's all the school is good for really.

OH MY GODS. ARE YOU SERIOUS?! I CAN REVIEW MY OWN SCHOOL?!!!! Coming from a community college, I realize the incredible difference in quality. You really learn so much in places like these. But most of pratt's teachings are more "fine arts" than "commercial," just keep that in mind when you choose schools. It would be more about concept and ideas than technique. Just to let you know, the area is expensive. the people who work here have their share of bitchy(bursars, registrars). As for student population: 65% are hipsters, 30% are koreans and 5% is everyone else. This school is best to go to for: industrial design, interior design, and architecture. It's decent in: graphic design, and illustration. and those departments are our biggest department. (though I would recommend sva for illustration) It could do better in: fashion (just go to FIT, its cheaper too), film, 3d animation and interactive media. (though I do think that maybe, our interactive department has more potential than sva. but I think sva is better for 3d animation).

DO NOT ATTEND SCHOOL AT THIS INSTITUTION! If you are looking for a true education and good experience, I strongly encourage you to explore other options. The institution is overpriced, disorganized, and just awful. For such a small school you would think they would focus highly on students and their individual needs. Not one department seems to know what is going on, it is very hard to come into contact with anyone. As an artist this is not a healthy place to further your skills! I speak from my own experience! I only was only in attendance for two days before I decided that the entire place was a sham! And after that I was charged a fee of $1200 for a "room cancelation" even after I filed the appropriate paper work. There is hardly anything good to be said about the institution. Please save yourself now and never attend school at Pratt Institute! I cannot stress this enough!

Very disappointed with my Pratt experience. I signed up for a continuing education course at the Manhattan campus, which has ended up being very different from the course description. Due to this, I have tried to drop the course by emailing the department their website advises to, but I have received no response. I paid $975 and can't even get a response to an email. This school seems very disorganized.

some very dedicated teachers. But you have to hunt to find them. some decent facilities. But you have to fight for access to them. some good students and artists. But also a lot of talentless hacks in 'art summer camp.' some nice aspects to the campus - trees, sculpture garden, etc. But also anything that's not nailed down will get stolen, and anything that is nailed down may well end up defaced. you will not get any career placement help. They literally gave my graduating class packs of tic-tacs with a sticker on them that read "good luck on your job interviews". That was the most help I got from Career Services. (Ha ha!) you will not get any advice about how to find collectors or get into galleries. you will likely leave with tens of thousands of dollars in debt, whether you graduate or not. many offices (the bursar and the registrar in particular) are the opposite of helpful. Still, if you are persistent and use your time well there, you could maybe do some really good stuff, make some contacts, maybe even have a hope of paying off your student loans one day. But don't count on it. BTW, the person who claimed the library is the size of an apartment is on crack. The Brooklyn library is two stories plus a basement, with mezzanine stacks crammed in between the floors. Those used to libraries from major universities may be disappointed, but the collection of art, architecture, and design materials is one of the best I've ever encountered, and that's what you're here for, so that alone gives this institution another half star.

I sent an email asking a question. never got a reply. this show how professional these people are. not sending my daughter to this uptight so called private university. Plus all i read is bad reviews about this institute anyways.

Pratt offers you a chance to go to a reputable art school in a city like no other and there are a share of good teachers and students to make the educational experience a good one. Much of this is up to the individual though and there are many there who aren't very serious about the huge amount of debt they are undertaking to go to a boutique art school. The campus is an oasis in an ugly part of town and there are some great buildings, but others that should be condemned. The administration has in impressive bureaucratic inefficiency that rivals schools that are much larger with a lot more money to waste. There is a lot of administrative ineptitude and hoops to jump through to get the simplest problems taken care of. It's a neat place though and you can get a lot out of it if you give a crap. Probably not the best place for a starry eyed 18 year old who's not sure what they want to do with their life. It's just too expensive.

Yeah, a five would be a bit of a stretch for Pratt as it definitely has its issues in administration, neighborhood and organization but the current average of Pratt is a bit low considering how much I love it here. Yes, I have had my share of professors I can't stand and its true that there are a lot of students there that take themselves WAY too seriously but if you can get over that connotation and meet people, you won't be disappointed. I've already had some professors that have had a profound impact on my approach towards animation and working as an artist in a very specialized field. Sure there are times I've received a harsh critique but the reality is life would be the exact same way. You have to learn to isolate your emotions away from a piece if you want to keep your sanity in tact. Pratt is what you make it. If you're unsure what you want to do in life, this place probably isn't good. Why not go to a halfway decent college and knock-off some of those pesky liberal arts credits first before going over to Pratt. As for 3D animation, Pratt is doing very well in the Siggraph and MetroCAF festivals especially considering the miniscule size of the department. I don't think you can compare it directly to a place like SVA or CalArts. Also they have a very nice campus for an urban college. Its a great place if you don't like the entire lack of an enclosure of a place like SVA or NYU but still want to be relatively close to the hubbub of the city. its true the school has its issues, but I can't imagine myself at any other place.

Okay I'll just put this simply. this school SUCKS. They will try to milk money out of you in as many ways as possible, the students there can really start big drama with you, and the workload is a phenomenally large amount, which is okay but when working in a dingy studio...it kinda sucks. I remember when my classmates came to the point where they saw rats under their desks, and instead of being grossed out by the rats, they would feed them. FEED THEM!! That's just sick. Plus the freshman dorm, Pantas..it was disgusting. I developed a serious tonsil infection there, where I received strep throat 4 times consecutively. It's a very unsanitary area. They also have cats walking around, which is fine by me since I love cats, but when they sneak into your dorm room and piss all over your belongings, they don't seem so cute afterwards. And yes..a cat soiled my sheets by sneaking into my room. Sucks, don't it? They were also very rude to my parents, especially the Bursar's office. They charged me with "hidden fees" which I have inquired about before, saying that I would not have a penalty but in the end I received one. When my dad came to the Bursar's to talk about it, the man in the office straight up yelled in my dad's face, and I couldn't even do anything or go against this psycho or else both my dad and I would get into whole other issue. This school is not worth the money. PLEASE..students who are planning to go here..don't come here. I promise you it will be the best decision you'll ever make. And students who currently go there, I suggest you switch out of this god forsaken school as soon as you can.

I will be starting a graduate program at the Pratt in the Fall. In fairness, the academic advisor for my course has been top notch but, the person who is meant to be helping me in the Financial Aid office is so RUDE. She doesn't respond to e-mails and information isn't forthcoming. I phoned to ask a simple question about my award package - and completely unprovoked she just started yelling the answer at me. Maybe she wasn't having a good day but, it was bizarre and unnecessary. I was really looking forward to starting in the Fall but, I'm feeling a little disappointed now. I'm currently work in the Academic sector and I deal with students everyday so, I know it can be stressful. But, this behaviour is pretty unacceptable. The lady in the financial aid office in clearly unhappy in her jobs and she doesn't even try to hide it. I'm actually afraid to ask anymore questions. If I hadn't had a good experience with my advisor and my program didn't look so amazing - I would be seriously reconsidering whether I wanted to study here. Reading the other reviews, it sounds like this isn't an isolate incident and needs addressing.

An education can be what you make it really. I'd done my research, and was aware that Pratt is one of the top design and architecture schools in the country. I can say I've walked away from here w/a worthwhile education and unforgettable learning experiences that took me to New Orleans, Panama, and Peru.

It has been a dream since high school to attend Pratt. Now I'm working on my MS in Art and Design education. I love the program, and find that the faculty exceed any expectations I previously had. All of my classes are small, and the teachers work with every student on an individual basis to help you develop you own unique teaching philosophy. side note about brooklyn: the neighborhood surrounding Pratt used to be affordable (5 years ago) but gentrification has hit in a big way. It's hard to find anything affordable around the campus- but you can. The most affordable way to live is to get a group of people together and rent out a 4 bedroom place. With that said, if you can afford the area, Clinton Hill and Fort Greene are really lovely communities.

This rating I gave is for the OIA. I have been trying to contact them both on phone and email just ask for a link since last week and did not get help at all, the staff on phone was terrible, I only called three times in two weeks while she said you don't need to call 100 times, well i guess if you are still not helping i would have to do that, even i do not want to talk to you too. seriously!

Go here if you want to torture yourself and then have nothing to show after you graduate. Professors are unprofessional and will play favorites. They will treat certain students better. If you have rich parents then no need to worry. You'll most likely receive better treatment. The good ones are the ones that are indifferent towards everyone. The upsides are most of the students are down to earth and friendly and there's a campus. But what's the point of a campus if you're going to school in NYC? The design professors will give you so much work that you can't leave campus. The city is suppose to be part of the education. You can pay for a better education elsewhere for a lot less.

Be true to your work and your work will be true to you. This is Pratt institutes' iconic mission statement and if you dig deeper into its meaning will find it rings true for the education offered, and the work you will pursue in life. I've now read many of the reviews of Pratt institute and shook my head at the love/hate relationship the school creates. I will not argue that Residential Life/Administration/ Security/ or Culinart(the food service company) are perfect, because they are not. In my four years of attendance I have had my qualms with each of those major departments, and have love/hate stories about all. In the end, I did not come to this school for anything other than the education, and for that I will always defend Pratt Institute. In my years here I have grown as a person and found meaning and happiness through my design work. I did not come here to make missives of friends, live an unbelievably stylish Brooklyn life, or be coddled in the face of challenging situations. So as in life, as in design; be true to your work and your work will be true to you!

Yeah, you're not in the greatest neighborhood. Yeah, the buildings are old and the facilities could be refurbished. Yeah, the administration were a pain to deal with every year. And yes, it's a very expensive school. That said, I'm giving Pratt five stars because I loved going to school there. I graduated from the Fashion design program with honors in 2010, and I had a job lined up for me right after I graduated because I took advantage of the career fairs the Fashion department organized for its students. (For some reason a lot of students in my class didn't go to them because they thought that working for corporate was below them, but I just wanted a job!) Pratt is very demanding school with very rigorous academics. The acceptance rate for my year (2005) was around 30% and the drop-out rate was super high in my program--I think that 1/3-1/2 the kids in my class dropped out before graduation. My art classes and my major classes kept me busy. The students who actually cared about doing well at school were incredibly talented and innovative, which is one of the best parts of going to Pratt. Being able to study alongside people who are going to be future rockstars in your field is one of the best gifts that you can get from going to a good art school. You learn A LOT from your classmates, and you have to push yourself to be better and more original every single week, just so you can keep up with everyone else. I think that I averaged 3-4 hours of sleep every single night just to make sure my work was ready for critiques. The liberal arts courses at Pratt are a cakewalk--my AP classes in high school were much harder than Pratt's liberal arts classes. But they were easy A's if you did the work and studied. I am very confused over the reviews that nitpick the administration, the food, or weird things like cats peeing on their stuff. (Dorms are a teeny tiny space! And the cats have to go through three different doors before they can gain access to your dorm! There's no way a cat can "sneak in" and pee on your stuff unless you are blind or have bad communication with your roommates.") Those things are such a drop in the bucket compared to the overall big picture. Those things are just completely irrelevant. I went to Pratt understanding that it would be expensive and that it would be an uphill battle once I got my degree. However, I loved all my art classes, I felt extremely challenged the whole time, my personal work improved by leaps and bounds, I made some great friends, I worked my ass off, and I had a job in my field in the middle of an economic recession. School is what you put into it. Understand the risks before you enroll, don't just do it because of a flight of fancy, otherwise you are making a very expensive mistake. There were a lot of students at Pratt who just showed up to class, never did the work, and then dropped out--don't let that be you. You have to be scrappy and work hard to make it at this school, because that is the only way you'll make it in the real world. The real world was a breeze after Pratt! On another note, most of my friends are working in the fields they studied for. And at my last company, almost every designer on my team had graduated from Pratt, and they were all extremely talented, wonderful women.

I am probably in the worst possible mood to write a review, but I don't care. I am a last year Interior Design graduate student, and I am currently on the second day of class of this academic year and Pratt already managed to piss me off. I am writing this HOPING Pratt will actually answer and hopefully make some changes. Firstly, how on earth is it possible that the Interior Design department out of all, has the most awful building hosting it, with cables LITERALLY hanging from the ceiling, mismatched half broken furniture, overheated studio classrooms that are not rooms at all, with over 60 students in one room sweating away cause there is NO AIR-CONDITIONING, while in a nook with plastered walls someone is teaching a class while in the same room someone is hammering away making it IMPOSSIBLE to focus on what your professor is saying? Or what about thesis students presenting their final THESIS in the HALLWAY with everyone passing by? All of this when the fashion design students in the same exact building have the best facilities and structure ever (swanky studios, state of the art classrooms etc)? We are the interior design department for Christ's sake, and the irony of it all is just killing me! What about the brilliant idea of closing the laser cutter lab the WEEK OF OUR FINALS??? Or the fact we have to pay for our plots and they're so damn expensive? especially since they close the labs at night and we've had so many computer melt-downs last year it made my head spin. This brings me to another point. Being that we pay more than 50,000$ a year for tuition, I am having a VERY hard time understanding where all the money is going. Though there are some exceptions, our professors are far from being leading professionals or the best of the sector. The facilities are lacking (though the campus itself is kinda beautiful), the advisors, though very kind and friendly, are not reliable and give you wrong information, they make you pay for anything extra (for some reason nothing is ever included in the enormous amount of money we pay to Pratt), and some professors think it's ok to be absent 50% of classes and grade you depending on the few times they decided to actually come to class. As if all of this wasn't enough, Professors think it's ok to send last minute emails to thesis students about the requirements for tomorrow's class the day before actual class when they could have done so 3 MONTHS AGO, just assuming things about your schedule (meeting at 8 am instead of the normal class hours) and about your thesis subject (say I changed my theme since last term... do I still need to present last year's work?) The level of disorganization of the school reaches new lows every day to a point where I can't even be surprised any more. I know there's a lot of other things bugging me but my complaint is informed by comparison to other less expensive Interior Design and architecture programs around the world that offer Famous professors that invested 100%, amazing structure and facilities, financial aid (both when it come to scholarships and everyday expenses), stellar organization and so on. It is a real pity, especially considering its amazing reputation for interior design, the beautiful campus, the overall kindness of the staff and some professors (Hazel Siegel and Benjamin Rosenblum to name a few) that truly inspirational and make me stand all the deficiencies of the program. Pratt, please raise the standards, and do it fast 'cause I'd like to avoid hating this last year of mine here!

It seems as if every college will have its share of poor administration, lines at the Bursar, and some terrible professors, but Pratt Institute is riddled with every bit of it. While on the exterior, there is a quiet, good-looking campus, once you are an actual part of this campus, the pretty flowers fade away very quickly. CAUTION - IF YOU ARE CONSIDERING ATTENDING THIS SCHOOL, PLEASE READ WITH CARE. Pratt Institute receives its first star because of their ability to mask almost every bad thing about it. Warm smiles, friendly handshakes, and the happy-go-lucky atmosphere is more than enough to have any incoming freshmen feel at home. However, once you are a part of the school, you are treated like scum of the earth. Almost all of the administration will give you the runaround when you have any issue whatsoever. And believe me, you will have issues. Firstly, their online academic system is defunct because of multiple reasons. They do not have a competent enough staff to embrace technology, therefore rendering any understanding on their part to fall short; in turn, "teaching" the students how to use this system falls short as well. The actual hardware for these technological systems also fall short, almost on a daily basis. For example, the wireless internet that they boast about, how it covers the entire campus, etc. turns off at 2pm every day, when design classes start and most students need the internet to access their work. As for the printing system, while their prices are competitive, the entire process and issues involved with getting something printed will leave you wanting to hand-draw everything. Pratt Professors - With the wireless and printing covered, let's move on to professors. While there are a handful of professors who truly care and will end up teaching you valuable lessons, most of them are pretentious visiting professors who believe that because they teach at Columbia or Parsons or Cooper Union, they have the right to look down upon Pratt students simply because of rank. I am not shunning the actual education that they will give you, but in terms of the attitude and professionalism (or lack thereof) presented, the ends do not justify the means. The professors pick favorites, it takes a lot of sacrificing what you want to do and following exactly what the professor wants ... for that week at least. The word schizophrenic comes to mind the following week because then they'll have changed their minds and will crucify you for not staying true to your own style. A lot of people say that your education is what you make of it, but when you can't make anything of it because you are trying to catch up with your professor's schizophrenic tendencies, there is nothing that you can take from it. Pratt Facilities Never will I understand how Pratt can have a large facilities staff and yet the buildings are almost never clean. For example, the pest infestation in the studios can be blamed on careless students who throw their garbage everywhere, but it is largely in part because facilities is not being responsible for their jobs. Comprised of mostly people who don't speak English, you will often find facilities either on their cell phone, or playing with equipment (ie. bulldozers, garbage cans, lawn mowers, etc.) The bathrooms are always a mess, the studios nearly impossible to work in, and the common sense of the janitors summons up bad memories of destroyed models and stolen materials. Need a lightbulb changed? Better get a ladder and do it yourself. Need the air-conditioning turned off in the winter? Bring more clothes and a blanket instead. The inability for this school to have a functioning facilities staff will make you wish you had a different college experience. Pratt Admin There will never be a moment in your Pratt experience where you won't need to speak to the administration. Starting from the bottom up, the financial aid office consists of poorly educated individuals who really don't know what they are doing. At times, it is better off asking them to access your file and then inputting the information yourself. In addition to being oblivious to the workings of a financial system, most of them are not looking to make it easier for you. They will give you the runaround, stating that they need information when they ideally have all of your information. All of this is blanketed by whether or not they are even at their desks. Walk into the financial aid office and often what you will find are empty desks, or chairs full of students because the advisors are backed up either because of their own misunderstanding, or because the system is slow. While there are problems with Pratt administration, there are a few good advisors. Some advisors will work with you and try to find out what your best option is, without requiring you to go to summer school or tack on an extra semester to make up credits. I have no more room for the rest of Pratt, but I urge you to reconsider going to this school.

I have mixed feelings about this school. I am a freshman in the photo program and I would NOT recommend this school to anyone outside of the ComD, interior design, fashion, industrial design, and maybe architecture majors. When the money isn't going to campus beautification or recruitment those are the majors that seem to get the best out of this school. I give Pratt a few stars because the education you get here is great. The professors are all super talented and working in the field. You WILL get pretentious, snobby professors and you WILL get crazy professors that openly admit to all the drugs they did in college but for the most part they're great. However, grade inflation is a huge issue. You can try you're hardest and do every assignment to the T and the asshole that's missed 5 classes, shows up late with a coffee in hand, and bullshitted the homework the night before will get the same grade. Also, the work load is tremendous. If you think you're going to be able to explore the city and rendezvous in Manhattan every weekend you're sorely mistaken. The things that I take stars off for is everything else. There is literally NO community or pride here. In fact I'm pretty sure people would laugh at you if you wore a Pratt sweatshirt. We have clubs but so few people even go to them. Clubs can barely host anything on campus because of Pratt's bureaucratic rules and run-around bullshit. The few events that Pratt does host are lame and no one (and I mean no one) even goes to them. The student union is a complete joke. It's just a place for the commuters to take naps. Also, Pratt is definitely NOT a party school. There aren't parties, mainly because there is pretty much no place to have a party in Brooklyn. Some kids just get drunk or high in their dorms or go to bars in Manhattan. Also, the dorms SUCK. I stayed in Stabile which is the newest dorm on campus and it looks nice from the outside but it actually resembles a jail so much. I had mice in my room for an ENTIRE semester that facilities couldn't even fix. I also had ants the next semester. The kitchen on my floor (which is a stove top and a sink) had only one small burner working and when I brought it up in hall council they said its been like that for years and they haven't been able get it fixed, also the lounges are cold, hard and straight up uninviting. No one is ever in them. The dryers in the laundry room many times will not dry your clothes leaving you wanting to put a clothes line in your room. The workrooms are filled with shitty broken furniture left over from the studios and the lighting is AWFUL. Getting any work done in there is miserable. Don't even get me started on the student body. Pratt likes to boast how 46% of students are international meanwhile the VAST majority of the internationals are Korean and all of them stick to themselves and speak their own languages and are straight up RUDE. They won't ever hold a door for you and I've seen them spit on the floors in the dorm hallways. The other 54% of the students are all mostly rich white bitches. AND the student body as a whole is completely apathetic. Also all of the student workers on campus are assholes- especially in the photo department. You might think art school would have chill and laid-back kids but it's a whole lot of hipster assholes. And if you're a photo major (especially a freshman)- expect all of the equipment to be broken all the time and expect the darkroom workers to treat you like imbeciles. They actually have hairdryers in the labs for when the dryers break... I had to dry my prints with a hairdryer during finals week last semester. Think twice about Pratt- do not let the beautiful lawn or the cats sway you. The winters are hellla long and miserable. Pratt milks the money out of you like no other. Also, whatever you estimate you'll be spending on art supplies- double it. And yeah the food reeeealllly sucks. And expect the bursars/ registrar/ financial aid people to treat you like their little bitches. They suck too.

Called for guest housing, no one responded so gave my contact info, and yet no one reached back for a week. Called later and an extremely disrespectful and rude staff responded. Told me he promised some other family about guest housing (even though they haven't paid) and just hung up before I could say anything else. I understand if they might not have any rooms left, even without the paying, but his attitude and behavior was completely unprofessional, and leaves a bad rep for Pratt management.

I wish I could give this school zero stars. It's a degree factory that will rob you of your high interest loans and time and give you nothing in return. Most of the teachers are self important degenerates (who knew this was even possible?) and ramble on about whatever stimulates their own interest for the day. I have learned nothing while here and it seems that no one cares, even when you go as high as the dean with complaints. They know you will bite the bullet and get your degree because after you wasting even just one semester you feel hostage to their programs. Please, if you are considering it save yourself the anxiety and sadness that will surely follow! Run far away from this atrocious excuse for an education!

So, now that I've finished my MFA in Photo/Advanced Certificate in Art Education at Pratt (and no one can rescind my diploma), here are my thoughts. The graduate photo program was, as of when I finished printing my thesis show in December 2011, not adequately set up to be a graduate photo program. I am not sure how I didn't have an aneurysm during all the technical snafus, denied access, weird red tape, and general frustration just on the "PLEASE JUST LET ME PRINT MY PHOTOGRAPHS" end. I had some really good, thoughtful, caring, involved, intelligent professors whose classes/help were worth every penny of tuition. Some of those people actually helped me, like, in real life - either to make art, solve a problem, find professional opportunities, or get a job, or something else useful I wouldn't have been able to do without serious mentoring from smart people. SOME OF THOSE PEOPLE EVEN CAME TO MY THESIS EXHIBITION. I also had some really, REALLY bad professors who completely phoned it in, repeatedly missed classes, obviously didn't even read student work, and seemed to grade entirely without the hassle of objectively considering elements like actual work. The point of getting a piece of expensive paper like an MFA, for me, was to challenge myself to make better work, learn new techniques, gain access to MFA-grade photo facilities, and surround myself with an intelligent community of critical people. That's some lofty shit, and I'd say I got a lot more out of the Art Ed department than the Fine Arts department, both in terms of a community, professor engagement, and the whole "challenging myself" part - because I felt that only a handful of my Fine Arts professors actually seemed interested in student work or nurturing the development of an individual style. Like one of my photo professors, who seemed hell bent on turning every photo grad into a clone of her, and making all the work in that class completely the same. I was discouraged by the fact that I found critiques here to be less useful (in terms of actual informed criticism) than critiques I experienced as an undergrad. While I assumed that there would be different methods of critique in graduate school, I'd hoped they would be harder, and more centered around historical, technical, and critical knowledge than based on feelings - this is definitely just my opinion, I know there isn't a "wrong" way to discuss art, but it's frustrating to feel like you're having sunshine or storm clouds blown up your ass when you're looking for informed analysis. I think it's probably worth naming names here, so I want to mention that Pradeep Dalal, Robert Morgan, Michael Brennan, and Allen Frame are totally what I was hoping for in Fine Arts professors. It was so helpful to take their classes because these instructors have a deep knowledge of current and past artists and movements - I discovered some of my new favorite artists through these guys and they helped me refine my own work. I wouldn't have finished my thesis without Donna Moran advocating for the photo grads and actually trying to improve our experience, in spite of her being in a basically impossible situation. I absolutely appreciated the Art Ed professors and I found them all to be helpful, well informed, and engaged. It's pretty great that Pratt allows grad students to study Art Education while in the MFA program, I don't know if I could've gotten an MFA and an advanced certificate in art ed at the same time anywhere else. I am really, truly grateful for the friends I made at Pratt, and it was awesome to have access to current photo equipment until they kicked all the graduate students out of that facility (while some of us were in the middle of our thesis projects, thanks). I really enjoyed the camaraderie I developed in the studio spaces, until I was forced to move my studio 3 times into increasingly weird spots - it was definitely fascinating to discover that the boiling water pipe in the middle of my studio space actually releases hot, steamy mist in the middle of July, which made for a really interesting working environment. It's nice to learn from adversity... I say that now that I'm not in the middle of that disaster. Every institution has some bureaucratic issues, to be sure, but Pratt was beyond daunting in this respect during my time as a student. I am ultimately glad I went, but would have likely had a much more positive experience as a photography student somewhere else, where my major wasn't an awkward afterthought that bore the brunt of interdepartmental fighting and funding issues. I hear the undergrads have a pretty good time. Maybe this is a spot for undergrads and not angry old people like me who walk around grumbling about "in my day," and "back at SAIC..." Most importantly, there are cats everywhere on the BK campus, and that is really fantastic. The end.

I met the most talented people ever in my life at Pratt. I am so glad that I didn't choose NYU for my master instead. Pratt is someplace that you can always be inspired.

Best school experience of my life! I was lucky to have the best professors, especially when l had a class or 2 in the Graduate building! Graduate professors giving great advice that still stays with me today & works! It's always been a prestigious school for a reason.

For me, Pratt was the only choice. It was a mix of everything I was looking for: NYC school with a real campus, fashion design program amidst a plethora of artistic majors and a focus on both conceptual and technical. I'm very happy I went here but understand it's not for everyone. I'd say half of my teachers I totally loved and the others were meh. I really enjoyed the liberal arts classes offered and appreciate that Pratt requires a proportionate mix of them in your schedule. Career services was a joke however. Before I graduated I went there multiple times for help to find a job and they basically just sent me to the job-posting website. I have a creative job now that I love which was recommended to me by someone I had interned with. I originally interned for my current employer before getting hired. I think Pratt should continue to stress the importance of internships and require them as early as freshman year. I aso think the fashion program should incorporate photoshop and illustrator earlier than they did for my class. Pratt is what you make of it. It can be very collegey and campusy if you'd like. Or you can be more independent and immersed in NYC life. Or a mix of both as in my case. I look back at my time there and think fondly of my education and experience gained and wish I ate less at the cafeteria.

Too many bad stories to share about friends who attended Pratt for grad school. Shame on Pratt Security personnel for not doing their jobs and for driving WAY TOO FAST on Myrtle Ave in the PRATT SECURITY vehicles. Duuuuuuh, you give yourself away with PRATT's LOGO all over your car dummies! Anyway, this school needs to care more about their student's work and safety.

Do NOT go here for Sculpture. They have a couple of unethical Professors in the Department. They will grade you unfairly and they will not grade you based on the caliber of your work. I complained about two Professors and they retaliated against me by giving me a bad grade. That is Unethical. Your senior year will be a complete waste of time and MONEY. The Professors do not care about the students. There are other Professors in other departments like Painting, who are great, However, the Sculpture Department is awful.

As a recent graduate from Pratt's Interior Design department, I couldn't imagine a better experience receiving my education. Yes, maybe I didn't sleep more than I did, but it was totally worth it. Pratt's faculty is amazing. Some of my professors have inspired me and formed me as the designer I am today. The classes are very small and student/professor relationships are very tight, which is helpful because time and energy is spent on each student and their project/ideas. One "negative" I could say about the (Interior) program is that it is very conceptual and architectural. I put "negative" in quotes because I am very architectural and I liked the conceptual process of the projects, however, many students were expecting more colors, materials, finishes, etc than we dealt with. Additionally, I have been rejected from Interior Design jobs because I was "too architectural"... The degree should really be labeled Interior Architecture. Pratt's campus is great. It's a nice, open, green area that you don't find much of in city schools - awesome for eating lunch outside with friends and getting away from your work for a while. The neighborhood is awesome, with really great bars and resturants... the only thing that sucks is the G train - you could wait 15-20 minutes for the train sometimes.. If you aren't sure what you want your major to be, I would suggest another school at first, Pratt is a lot of money and effort to waste if it's not really what you want. If you aren't ready to work hard, you should probably consider another school, Pratt and its faculty is very determined and can offer a great experience if you are willing to accept it.

I am a student at Pratt and I often find myself frustrated by the complete lack of organization the school suffers from. It wouldn't even be so bad if the staff at Financial Aid were so rude. They seem to forget why they have a job in the first place. My aunt works at financial aid in another school so I know to be prompt in filling out any paperwork, verifying aid status etc and yet I still find myself dealing with rude people. I LOVE the library collection but I stopped going in the evening because the Library Evening Manager (or something like that--so I was told by a student employee) and her students carry on like it's a bar, being loud, disruptive, and inappropriate. She also does not dress like someone who should be charge of people--she looks like a bum. That staff during the day is much more helpful and I have met with one of the librarians to get help with my research. We worked for an hour, one on one, and it helped me SO MUCH with my research project.

Beautiful campus and top notch education. Lots of history here- worth a visit to the library if you are in the area. Some great restaurants on Myrtle Street one block away. Students are mostly serious about their education and passionate about learning.

It's a great school, but beware of the financial aid department, which I'm pretty sure employees people who don't know how to read, write, solve simple math problems or use a fax machine. They're the worst.

I visited Pratt Institute on May 18. 2005. This is a summary of my visit. 1. Academics: Pratt is one of the oldest stand alone art schools in the US dating back to 1888. It is certainly the biggest art school with almost 4,000 students ( about half are undergraduate). It is widely considered to be one of the best art and design programs in the country. Many of their programs are ranked in the top 10 such as Interior Design, Architecture,Industrial Design and Communication Design to name just a few. Pratt has an amazing number of majors and offerings. For example, you can major in Communication Design that has three different concentrations ( writing, illustration, and graphic design). They are also one of the only Computer Graphic Programs around with 4 different emphasis such as 2D, 3D, Interactive Media and pure fine art with experimentation. If it is art or or design related, Pratt probably has a major in it. Moreover, unlike other stand alone art program, Pratt has some strong liberal arts because they have a creative writing major, which actually seems like a very strong, interesting major. Most of the professors at Pratt have their own businesses or had their own businesses and are considered top notch professionals in the field. Many, in fact, have written some of the major books on the subject. Pratt also gets many notable visiting lecturers in their specialties.I should note that all professors must have office hours and most are very accessible to students. Moreover, you have professors teaching students and not generally TAs despite having a big graduate school. Despite all this, It is slightly easier to get into Pratt than that of some other top notch art programs. Average SATs are about 1115 and average weighted GPA is 3.4. Pratt student teacher ratio, according to them is 11:1 with class sizes approximating 15-16 kids according to the tour guide. According to admission, Pratt admits 47% of applicants. I asked many kids about Pratt,and they all love the academics of the school. I should note that they did warn me that Pratt does try to weed out kids during foundation year. expect to be worked very very hard! Another great thing is that Pratt allows you to take courses from many different areas. You are not locked into a major or into set course offerings. This allows a great deal of flexibility for students to design their own education. Finally, I and my wife viewed some of their finished work. My wife is a commercial designer of some former fame. She thought that the work produced was very professional and creative. She did like much of the work product of the students. However, we don't know if this product is typical of most students or was a result of what is the best of the best that was posted on studio walls and hallways. I should finally note that according to Pratt, 87% of the student body returns for their sophomore year. This is almost has high as some ivy schools and just a bit less than that of RISD. Certainly, it indicates that many students like their programs enough to come back. As you can see, I have spent a lot of time on the academics, the reason is that this is the stand out feature of the school. As a stand alone art school, I would rate Pratt's academics (based solely on art and design offerings and reputation) as an A or A+. 2.Parking: We were able to find parking both on the street and in parking lots ( for a small fee). I wouldn't say parking was easy,but, hey, you are in Brooklyn. Overall, we were able to get parking without paying for it. I would, however, NOT suggest that you take a car to school. There is some vandalism, and you can get around taking the train. Overall, I would give the parking situation a C+ with a recommendation not to take a care to school unless you are a commuter. 3. Food: I actually liked the cafeteria or should I say two cafeterias. One has some hot entrees such as turkey cutlets, port loin, roast beef etc and a salad bar and sandwich bar etc. The other cafeteria has pizza, desserts, Starbucks coffee etc. You pay for what you eat. This is not an "eat all you want for one price deal," which can be pricey. My wife had a nice salad with some good grilled chicken and grilled salmon. Bordering the campus, students tell me there are lots of quality restaurants to go to that have tasty food and is reasonably priced. Overall, I would give the school food a B or B+. 4.Dorms: Frankly, dorms are dorms. These weren't a standout. However, they do have several different types of dorms. You can get one type that has a bathroom for 4 students. However, the students must clean the bathroom. You can also get dorms with communal bathrooms with custodians cleaning them. All dorms have refrigerator and microwave and wireless is in most dorms. Starting fall, wireless will be omnipresent especially in all the dorms. Each dorm has a drafting board for each student, and housing is guaranteed for all years at Pratt.

This is one of the coolest campus grounds I have ever been on. The place reeks with talent. From the students who are trying to find theirs. To the artists sculptures that are placed around the campus. School was built around 1896 and was a very strict educational institution. As being formerly employed here I have seen it all. The only thing gross about this place is the students rooms. I could tell you frigging stories man. I have seen socks stand up and run in some dorms. The Engine Room is the place to visit. The Chief Engineer is Conrad. It is free and a Historical Landmark. The steam engines are from the 1890's and are kept in top condition. I had the pleasure of operating these relics while I worked there. And on New Years Eve they have the blowing of many train and boat steam whistles. So If you are ever in Clinton Hill this is a beautiful place to have a picnic, nap or leisurely walk. Have fun, because it is all free.

I just want someone from the school to call me and spend time on the phone to fix my problem. It's been a year or so.

Prices and some Koreans aren't good but the education is goof