Undergraduate Admissions
Admission to the Department of Media Study B.A. in Media Study and B.A. in Film Studies
Students may apply to Media Study once they have completed 50 hours at the University and 3 courses in Media Study. Once requirements have been met and, if applicable, a portfolio submitted and accepted, students can bring an updated DARS report and fill out an application with the department advisor in 231 CFA. Admission to the department of Media Study for the B.A. in Media Study and for the B.A. in Film Studies is based on the following criteria:
We suggest the following as appropriate Media Study courses for pre-majors. Students should be aware that acceptance into the Production concentration of the Media Study Major requires that they submit a portfolio of their media work. If you are interested in this concentration, you should choose at least one appropriate production course that will enable you to develop your portfolio. Students can only submit to portfolio review twice.
Production
- DMS 101 Basic Filmmaking
- DMS 103 Basic Video
- DMS 105 Basic Documentary
- DMS 121 Basic Digital Arts
- DMS 155 New Media
Critical Studies
DMS 107/108 History of Film I & II DMS 109 Intro to Film Interpretation DMS 259 Media Analysis DMS 303 Video Analysis
Undergraduate Portfolio Requirements
A portfolio is required for the Production concentration. Each year, portfolios are due around October 1 (for spring registration) and around March 1 (for fall registration). Specific dates will be posted to the listserv, on the DMS website, and in the department. THE NEXT SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS October 1, 2009. Students can only submit to portfolio review twice.
Undergraduate Portfolio Requirements PDF
Requirements:
-
1. Submit the following in a 10x13 envelope to CFA 231:
- Innovation, imagination, and critical thinking
- Use of media arts technical mastery
- Originality
- Social awareness or diversity
- Visual and/or literary strength
- Breadth and depth of concept and experience
- Ethics and authenticity
Work should be strong in at least three of these categories. Note that professional quality of production will count less than the concept of the work and the originality and care that you show in execution.
Recommendations:
Please show your portfolio to one or two instructors before submitting, and give yourself enough time to incorporate their suggestions.
Submit more than one work sample. If you hand in a group project, make sure your second piece of work is an individual project. Two to three works usually suffice, but you will be contacted by the committee if they need more in order to make a decision.
Do not submit your only copy of a work.
a) 1 to 3 Work Samples,
b) typed Description Sheet,
c) Personal Statement, and
d) copy of your DARS Report.
Write your name on the envelope and attach a completed "DMS Portfolio Submission" form to the front of the envelope. Submission forms will be handed out at the Portfolio Statement Workshop. Include your name on every item submitted in this envelope.
2. A personal statement is not a biography or resume. ATTENDANCE AT THE PORTFOLIO STATEMENT WORKSHOP IS MANDATORY. If you do not attend a workshop, your work will not be reviewed. Announcements with the workshop date(s) will be posted to the listserv, on the DMS website, and in the department.
MANDATORY Undergraduate Portfolio Statement Workshop.
The dates for this year's workshop are as follows. You must attend both Session I and Session II for your portfolio to be reviewed.
Session I: Monday, September 14th - 3-5 pm in 112 CFA or Monday, September 21st -3-5 pm in TBA
and
Session II: Thursday, September 17th - 3-5 pm in 232 CFA or Thursday, September 17th - 3-5 pm in 232 CFA
3. The Description Sheet: Specify the materials submitted -- title, original medium, length, date of creation, credits (see #4 below), and what class it was made for (if from a class).
4. Work samples must include complete credits, either on the work itself or on the Description Sheet. If it is a group project, identify everyone involved and their exact role in the production. If we do not know what you did on a particular project, we cannot evaluate it.
5. Work submitted may be of any length, but it is better to select the highlights of projects that are longer than 10 minutes as the committee is unlikely to view more than 10 minutes of work. There is no minimum length requirement.
Please follow these technical requirements for all media:
Film, Video, and Documentary:
Work will be accepted on DV CAM / Mini DV (NTSC or PAL), DVD (region code 0 or 1, NTSC), VHS (SP speed, NTSC), or 16mm film. Do not submit videos as Quicktime or AVI files on DVD-ROM; submit on any of the accepted formats. If DVD, all works can be submitted on one disc; otherwise, submit each on a separate tape or film reel. Every tape, disc, film, and container must be labeled with your full name, and the title, length, and date of the work.
CUE tapes to the section which you wish the committee to see. Films may be cued by inserting a small slip of paper in the reel, with a note of instruction to pre-cue the film to that point. Any special instructions for projection, such as when or how to run a separate, cued audiocassette, must be included.
Digital:
Work will be accepted on CD-ROM or DVD, or as URLs. We normally use Macs (OSX) to review materials; Windows or Linux PCs are also available; if a work is platform-specific, specify which platform. When a work involves multiple files (e.g. a Flash animation), clearly specify which file is the starting point. Every disc must be labeled with your full name, and the title, length, and date of the work. Multiple works may be submitted on a single disc.
Other Media:
What are the criteria for portfolio review?