Digital Editions
Newsletters
Subscribe
Digital Editions
Newsletters
Art market
Museums & heritage
Exhibitions
Books
Podcasts
Columns
Technology
Adventures with Van Gogh
Art market
Museums & heritage
Exhibitions
Books
Podcasts
Columns
Technology
Adventures with Van Gogh
News

Art schools offer online tuition for all

Rachel Corbett
1 December 2015
Share

A number of art schools, including the Pratt Institute in New York and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, are putting their courses online in a joint effort to make art education more affordable for students. 

This type of initiative, known as a massive open online course (MOOC), has become common in some fields, but not—until now—in the arts. “We have to address the issue of how expensive tuition is,” says Ajay Kapur, an associate dean for research and development at the California Institute of the Arts and the founder of Kadenze, a MOOC provider devoted to art education. 

Kadenze charges $300 a credit, or $7 a month for non-credit-seeking 

students who want evaluations. Anyone can access the curricula for free without receiving grades.

“We can save you one year of tuition, or at least greatly reduce it,” Kapur says. He does not claim that Kadenze can be a substitute for an art school. However, he does believe that foundation and theory-based courses can be taught “even better online than in person”. 

But not everyone agrees that introductory courses can be successfully provided online. “Those courses you take in the foundation year aren’t just about information,” says Carol Becker, the dean of Columbia University’s School of the Arts. “People often come to art school because they feel isolated and misunderstood. When you have master teachers and artists talking to young people about their own process, that’s extraordinary.” 

NewsArt schools
Share
Subscribe to The Art Newspaper’s digital newsletter for your daily digest of essential news, views and analysis from the international art world delivered directly to your inbox.
Newsletter sign-up
Information
About
Contact
Cookie policy
Data protection
Privacy policy
Frequently Asked Questions
Subscription T&Cs
Terms and conditions
Advertise
Sister Papers
Sponsorship policy
Follow us
Instagram
Bluesky
LinkedIn
Facebook
TikTok
YouTube
© The Art Newspaper

Related content

Arts fundingnews
22 July 2021

UK government approves 50% funding cut for arts and design courses

Education secretary Gavin Williamson says money will be directed towards Stem subjects

Gareth Harris
Art schoolsnews
12 July 2023

New school reimagines art education

Founded by art historian Romi Crawford, the New Art School Modality aims to both make art school more accessible and open up alternative forms of study and exchange

Claire Voon