| Ranking | School | City |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minneapolis College of Art & Design | Minneapolis |
| 2 | Minnesota State University | Moorhead |
Our 2019 rankings of the top illustration school programs in Minnesota. For an explanation of the ranking criteria, click here.
1. Minneapolis College of Art & Design, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis College of Art and Design was founded in 1886. The school, which serves around 800 students from 45 states and 15 countries, offers more than a dozen undergraduate majors and minors, and three graduate programs. Program options for aspiring illustrators include a BFA in Illustration. A BFA in Comic Art and an MFA program are also available.
The BFA program begins with foundation classes to help develop technical skills and work ethic and progresses to courses that build both conceptual and technical illustration skills. Sample courses for the program include Children’s Book, Digital Illustration, Editorial Illustration, Foundation 2D and 3D, and Illustration and Products.
In years three and four of the program, students will gain real-world experience through a required internship and they will have the opportunity to study abroad or elsewhere in the U.S., and participate in the Emerging Talent Showcase and share their work with potential employers. Per the school, students will also “develop and complete a semester-long project to culminate in the Commencement Exhibition.” The exhibition showcases the work of MCAD graduates.
2. Minnesota State University, Moorhead, Moorhead, Minnesota
Minnesota State University, Moorhead (MSU Moorhead) opened in the Fall of 1888 as The Moorhead Normal School. At the time, the school had just 29 students. Today, MSU Moorhead serves more than 5,800 students from across the U.S. and 58 countries. The school offers 146 majors, minors, and emphases, 15 graduate degrees, 69 certificates and licensures, 12 online programs, and 100+ online courses per semester.
The School of Art offers 13 emphases, minors and certificates. Among them are a BFA in Studio Art with an Emphasis in Drawing & Illustration and Certificates in Book Illustration, Scientific Illustration, and Sequential Art. Sequential Art prepares students for careers in comic illustration, printmaking, animation, and other sequential art forms.
Per the school, students in the BFA in Studio: Drawing & Illustration will “develop specific skills in traditional and digital illustration, and have the opportunity to apply these skills in sequential, book and scientific illustration.” Drawing is emphasizes as well. Sample courses for the program include Advanced Studies and Drawing and Illustration, Contemporary Drawing Concepts and Methodologies, Digital Illustration, Figure Drawing and Painting, Introduction to Drawing Concepts and Methodologies, Perceptual Drawing, and Sequential Art.
The program prepares students for graduate study or for entry into the workforce immediately after graduating. Studio alumni have established careers as animators, cartoonists, freelance artists, gallery directors, illustrators, technical illustrators, tattoo artists, and more. Employers of Studio alumni include ArtWorks Cincinnati, Catie Miller Ceramics, CH Trade, Plains Art Museum, Plexus Medical Art, Redwater Productions, Shale Plays Media, The Neon Museum of Las Vegas, The Tattooed Lady, and many others.