Admissions Requirements
Admission to the Medical Illustration Graduate Program requires the fulfillment of
several important criteria.
A document describing the criteria in detail is available as a PDF; in brief summary, the criteria are:
- A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university
- Advanced ability in drawing the human figure from direct observation
- Sound draftsmanship in rendering from direct observation, including expression of
contour, proportion, perspective, form, light and shadow, tonal values and surface
textural detail
- Accurate interpretation of color in realistic still life studies
- Completion of the following prerequisite courses:
- Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy or Vertebrate Morphology with student dissections of
a mammal
- Human Physiology
- Life Drawing from the nude model, including advanced-level courses
- Advanced courses in realistic drawing or painting from observation
- Proficiency in computer graphics demonstrated by portfolio samples of both vector
images (created with programs such as Adobe Illustrator™, Macromedia Freehand™ or
CorelDraw™) and raster images (created with programs such as Adobe Photoshop™ or Corel
Painter™)
- Also recommended, any of the following courses: A personal interview and portfolio
review with the program faculty (by invitation only after approval of preliminary
application)
- Science Courses: Histology, Embryology, Invertebrate Anatomy, Cell Biology, Molecular
Biology, Genetics, Immunology, Basic Chemistry, Biochemistry, Organic Chemistry, Zoology
- Art Courses: Animation, Architectural Drawing, Cinematography, Color Theory, Drafting
or Engineering Drawing, Graphic Design , Interface Design, Lighting Design , Set/Stage
Design, 2D Design, Type/Font Design, Interior Design, Media Arts, Sculpture, Photography,
Perspective, Print Making (Engraving, Intaglio, Lithography, Serigraphy, etc.), Technical
Drawing, Fashion Illustration, Time Arts, Typography, Videography
- A personal interview and portfolio review with the program faculty (by invitation
only after approval of preliminary application)
- A satisfactory combined score of the verbal and quantitative sections of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is required--a combined score of 900 or more under the old (before August 2011) scoring
system, or 295 or more under the new (after August 2011) scoring system.
Although a specific baccalaureate degree is not required, many of the students applying
to our program have earned an art degree with a major in pre-medical illustration
or an interdisciplinary degree in scientific illustration.
