Prospective students, both freshmen applicants as well as transfer students, should declare ART as their major. Students must then be accepted to Virginia Tech, SOVA is not involved in the acceptance process. Once accepted, students will be enrolled in the three prerequisite courses: ART 1204 Principles of Art and Design, ART 1404 Drawing I, and ART 1604 Principles of New Media Art & Design for the fall semester.
The School of Visual Arts prepares undergraduates to enter visual design professions and graduate programs in the visual arts. The School serves the public, regionally, nationally, and internationally through events, exhibitions, internships, competitions, workshops, and courses that nourish and renew the vitality of art and design as it interfaces with technology.
A goal of the school is to present the world with culture-enriching leaders, talented visual communicators, and innovative designers. The studies of Art History, Studio Arts, Creative Tech and Graphic Design lead to careers in museums, auction houses, galleries, graphic design, computer animation, and more. SOVA’s FourDesign is the school’s professional student-run, faculty-led graphic design agency.
Prospective students wishing to study Art or Art History at SOVA should apply through Virginia Tech Admissions. All students who wish to pursue a bachelor of fine arts in the Studio, Creative Technology (CT) or Graphic Design programs must take foundation art courses (ART 1204, 1404, 1604).
MacBook Pro is recommended laptop. If you have a recent computer less than two years old, you can keep using it. Update once in school with better insight rather than buying new as a freshman.
Apple is transitioning to Apple Silicon. It would be wise to get the new Macs with an M1 processor. Ideally 14inch or 16inch version. If you need a bigger monitor, add an external monitor for home use. Get AppleCare +!
Adobe Creative Cloud is required for majoring in Studio, Graphic Design, and CT. Adobe Creative Cloud subscription will provide updated software requirements for Foundations of Art and Design courses. Billing and distribution is managed by VT Software per annual base. Annual cost is much lower then you would pay as an individual. Once the fall semester starts, students need to go to Student Software Distribution for sign up.