Is Central Saint Martins art college overrated?

[The_Dance]

:confused: Mostly people in England and Europe will know what Central Saint Martins is. Stella McCartney went there and so did a few other famous designers and artists. Recently I've just gotten a place to study a foundation course there, I was just wondering which London art college is generally considered the creme de la creme so to speak?

[The_Dance]

Uh I guess that's a NO then?

[Trisha H]

I tend to think that all the 'top' art colleges carry a certain status in different ways, due to their particular methods and criteria.

Some consider themselves very modern & cutting edge, others build their reputations on tradition. Very often a prospective student will be able to assess the suitablility of an art college by attending the student art exhibitions, and also by seeing what type of work the tutors produce themselves.

I'm certain that they will all differ slightly, but names such as Central St Martins, The Slade, Byam Shaw, The Royal Academy etc, all carry excellent status based on their individual standards & past results.

As long as you feel that a foundation course there will suit your aspirations & field, rather than expectation based on the colleges past students, then yes, it's a college whose name carries plenty of kudos.

Well done in getting a place & I hope you do well!

Trisha.

[The_Dance]

Cheers for the feedback Trisha. What you said is true and common sense I suppose. The different art colleges cater for different students.

[artdevil]

I recently had an offer of a place on the foundation course at central saint martins, and I have also been curious about whether the college is infact over-rated. It certainly has its clear ups and downs. Saint Martins is a place for people who are prepared to work very individually with minimal help, firstly because of the appauling student:staff ratios, and because thats been the ethos of the college for decades. It is difficult to gain places onto courses at Saint Martins, and they are very selective, therefore it is expected that the lucky candidates will automatically be capable of self directed study. One cannot forget the famous fashion alumni from Saint Martins, however, I cannot understand why people fail to understand that such alumni are the lucky few plucked from graduation shows, compared to the hundreds of people who have also graduated from the same program, and are less lucky. Bottom line, where you study wouldn't interest people later on as much as your personal qualities and expertise. Any college will be there to guide you, and some guides work for people better than others. If you don't work hard, don't expect the college to work hard for you. Its all down to YOU.