Cranbrook Academy of Art

• Year of foundation: 1932
• Location: Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, USA
• Age of students: from 18 years.
• Number of students:
• Language of instruction: English
• Type of education: private academy of arts.

Known for decades as the "incubator" of modernism, the Cranbrook Academy of Art continues to produce outstanding graduates, the number of which far exceeds the size of the academy.

Founded as an experimental colony of artists, this model has remained so successful for many years that it has retained its unique approach to learning.  Cranbrook allows motivated students to tailor their course of study to meet the needs for spaces conducive to personal growth.

Cranbrook Academy of Art is part of Cranbrook's larger educational community, a 319-acre campus that also includes a museum of modern art, a science museum, and a PreK-12 school to prepare for college. Founded by George Gough Booth and his wife Ellen Scripps Booth, Booths sought to model the Academy on the model of the "American Academy of Arts" in Rome.

The Academy is a permanent working community, many students choose the convenience of living in dormitories. This makes it easy to move from the studio to the place of residence at any time of the day or night, to share living and social spaces with students of all faculties. All rooms are furnished with two single beds of size XL, chests of drawers, desks; Shared bathrooms are located on each floor. All dormitory rooms have a lounge, and the central laundry room is in one dormitory room. Wireless internet is available throughout the dormitories and studios.

Sharing meals in Cranbrook are a long tradition, from a general academic welcome dinner by Triton's pools to regular lunches at the studio's kitchen table. Each department has a kitchen, which is the epicenter of the studio, widely used by those who live on campus. Cranbrook also has two dining rooms serving three meals a day with a wide selection of dishes for many dietary preferences. Both dining rooms are located nearby, just a short walk or bike ride from the studio. The Cranbrook Institute of Science has a small café where you can order coffee, snacks, a light breakfast or lunch. Within a short drive from the center there are many restaurants, bars, cafes, grocery stores. Lunches in Cranbrook are a time to relax, discuss tasks, and then get back to work. Students and staff of the Academy can dine for $ 5 + tax, a card for 5 meals can be purchased for $ 20 at the CAA office.

Room type:

• Double occupancy – 3 617$/year.
• Single room – 6 438$/year.
• One-time deposit – $200.

The student support staff at Cranbrook Academy of Art is committed to providing personalized service to applicants, students, and graduates.

The academy is located in the Cranbrook Educational Community, which includes a school up to grade 12, has access to facilities for exercise, including the use of an ice rink and swimming pool. The campus provides unlimited opportunities for walking, running, cycling, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing.

• Currently, the school awards two degrees: Master of Fine Arts and Master of Architecture. The Master of Architecture degree is a post-professional degree and is not accredited by the National Architectural Council for Accreditation.
• The school is known for its apprenticeship method, in which a small group of students – usually 10 to 16 per class or just 150 students per ten faculties – learn from a single artist. The program is unconventional, there is no usual division into courses: young artists study independently under the guidance and supervision of a mentor.
• Departments of the Academy are headed by practicing artists, designers and architects, each of whom conducts an active studio practice. Cranbrook is a true community of resident artists who live and work alongside students.
• The Academy's professional internship program is open to all students, giving shapes the skills and knowledge to work in Cranbrook in the years after graduation. The program offers a number of seminars and discussions, including familiarity with equipment and technology, seminars related to job search, applying for grants, accommodation, local tours, guides to available resources. Programs are developed and implemented by the Staff of the Academy, graduates, visitors.
• The Critical Studies program is a central part of the academic course. Each semester, the visiting research fellow for critical studies will live at the Academy, conduct public lectures and lead student discussion groups, actively participate in studio criticism, reviews.

The legacy of Cranbrook Academy of Art is evident in the buildings that make up its remarkable campus. Graduates talk about life at the academy as a time spent "in a collection of stories about design." The community is a 319-acre campus near Detroit, Michigan, filled with forests, lakes, streams, landscaped courtyards, and carefully designed buildings.

While designing the campus, Saarinen became friends with Carl Milles, who lived here from 1931 to 1951 and was the first head of the sculpture department. Milles filled Cranbrook's campus with unique sculptures and fountains during his stay here: Cranbrook prides itself on having the largest collection of Milles sculptures outside of Millesgordan in Sweden.

Recent additions to the campus meet the international quality standards set by Bout and Saarinen. Spanish architect Rafael Moneo designed the "New Studio Building" in 2002, Stephen Hall designed the annex to the Cranbrook Institute of Science in 1998, Tod Williams and Billy Tsien designed the award-winning building in 1998-99 – and the list continues to grow.

At the center of the Academy of Arts is the Cranbrook Art Museum, which offers an ever-changing list of exhibitions by contemporary artists and designers.

Academy Studios are quiet places for reflection, active spaces for students to communicate with their peers to consider the next steps or show their work. The studio space, to which students have access 24/7, is balanced with the common spaces of the faculty: production rooms, criticism rooms, social zones, kitchens.

• Fee for student activity – 100$
• Laboratory fee – 1335$
• Registration fee (1st year only) – 250$
• Medical insurance – 1500$.

• Applicants require excellent command of the English language. Test in English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) – from 90 points.
• Candidates must have the equivalent of a bachelor's degree in the U.S. (equivalent).
• All transcripts must be translated into English and include proof of degree.

The Academy offers financial assistance to the best students based on the information contained in their application for admission or obtained as a result of an interview by phone, Skype or in person.

Non-financially based assistance includes scholarships and grants.

• Guardianship services during the studies
• Student supervision