Alberta University of the Arts
Alberta University of the Arts is well-known for its complement of art, design and craft programs, with a focus on in-studio experience. Bachelor of fine arts students specialize in studio art and focus on one or two program areas including ceramics, drawing, fibre, glass, painting, media arts, print media, sculpture, jewellery and metals, and object design and fabrication. Bachelor of design students choose a specialization in advertising and graphic design, character design and illustration, or photography. AUArts also offers an M.F.A. in craft media with four areas of focus; glass, ceramics, fibre, and jewellery and metals; or students can build an interdisciplinary program of study. “Creative people—designers, artists and craftspersons—are the ones who imagine, question, innovate, inspire and make the world we want to live in,” says president Janis Goldie. “For 100 years, students have come to AUArts to expand their knowledge, learn new ways of thinking and gain the technical skills they need to open up a future of expansive possibilities.” Classes are small, typically around 18 students, and there is an emphasis on one-on-one instruction. The liberal arts are also well integrated, and first-year programs include courses on critical and creative practices and art history. The single campus building houses a professional art gallery, studios for fibre, glass, ceramics and jewellery, a metal shop, a foundry and a wood shop. Many programs also provide students with personal studio spaces in their third and fourth years. Perched on top of the city’s North Hill, adjacent to Calgary’s vibrant Kensington neighbourhood, the campus overlooks the Bow River and Calgary’s welcoming urban skyline.
Campus buzz: Students can showcase their work in more than 20 student-run galleries and 125 exhibitions across campus each year.
Quick facts
Tuition (includes compulsory ancillary fees)
$7,970
Median Entering Grades
Arts: 85%, plus portfolio
Student Body
Undergraduates: Full-time: 1,045 | Part-time: 230
Graduates: Full-time: 16
International Students: First-year: 7% | Graduate: 56%
Housing Facts
Residence Spaces: There are no residence on campus, but students can apply for residence at nearby SAIT
Standout programs
Standout Programs
Fibre: Students engage in intensive studio-based research and study techniques ranging from papermaking and weaving to dyeing and painting cloth.
Visual Communications: Students choose from two streams—advertising and graphic design or character design and illustration—preparing students for a variety of careers.
Studio Art: Students pick one or two concentrations from twelve disciplines: animation, ceramics, drawing, fibre, glass, painting, photography, sculpture, media arts, print media, jewellery and metals, and object design and digital fabrication.