Admissions Dates and Deadlines

The priority application deadline for undergraduate transfer applicants is April 15. Applications received after our priority deadline will be reviewed on a rolling basis for fall term entry.

Transfer Application Instructions

All transfer students must apply through the Common Application or Drexel University’s Admission Application. For a full list of requirements to apply to Drexel, please visit Drexel's Transfer Application Instructions.

Westphal Supplemental Essay

Transfer applicants to Westphal are required to submit a supplemental essay. We view the Westphal supplemental essay as an opportunity for students to express their interest in Westphal and passion for their intended major. The Westphal supplemental essay is different from the Common or Coalition essay and should specifically speak to your interest in the visual, media, or performing arts majors at Westphal. The essay should be 300-500 words and submitted with your Common or Coalition application.

Westphal Portfolio Requirements for Transfer Applicants

We strongly encourage students with collegiate art, design and media coursework to submit a portfolio in order to facilitate the transfer credit process. Transfer credit and level placement will be determined by students’ prior college credits and strength of their portfolio. Applicants are encouraged to follow these portfolio guidelines carefully and submit materials that strengthen their application. Please be sure to select the transfer application when submitting your portfolio in SlideRoom.

Required Portfolios

Applicants to the following programs are required to submit a portfolio for admission:

• Animation & Visual Effects
• Architecture
• Digital Media & Virtual Production
• Fashion Design
• Game Design & Production
• Graphic Design
• Photography

Optional Portfolios

Applicants to the following programs are not required to submit a portfolio for admission, but may elect to submit an optional portfolio to facilitate the placement process:

• Art History
• Design & Merchandising
• Entertainment & Arts Management
• Film & Television
• Interior Design
• Product Design
• Screenwriting & Playwriting
• User Experience & Interaction Design

Audition Process – Dance Applicants Only

Dance majors are required to audition. Auditions can be done live or by video. Visit Westphal College's Dance Auditions page for guidelines and dates.

Portfolio Guidelines

The Admission Committee will examine your work for originality, creative problem solving, and systematic thinking. Applicants should submit eight to 25 pieces of your strongest and most recent work in a variety of media that demonstrate a balance of technique and concept. Thematic work or a series of pieces is received favorably.

Portfolio contents may include any combination of drawings, paintings, printmaking, photography, graphic design, architectural design, interior design, ceramics, sculpture, fiber art, fashion design, jewelry and metals, furniture, designed objects, animation, computer-generated images, film, video, performance art, audio recordings, websites, video games, sketchbooks, scripts, storyboards, or screenplays.

If the portfolio includes audio, film, video, animation, game design, and interactive work, it may not exceed five minutes of total running time. For collaborative works, it is important to provide credits and describe your role(s) within the creative process. Writers, please submit a minimum of eight to 12 pages of written work of either a single piece or numerous smaller pieces.

The portfolio must be completed in SlideRoom only. Upload the highest possible quality of documentation of your creative work. Media requirements are outlined in SlideRoom for files consisting of images, audio, videos, PDF, or embedded media. If the file is an example of a recording, composition, or mix done in Pro Tools, Logic, Ableton, or GarageBand, please include an in-progress screenshot and a detailed description of your process.

Projects for Students with an Art or Design Background

Transfer applicants who have taken art courses, classes related to your major of interest at Westphal, or classes within the realm of media arts and design should try to include three to five examples of work from any class or classes at their previous institution in order to be reviewed for credit. Transfer applicants can also include syllabi and/or course descriptions as PDFs in support of their work.

Transfer credits and level placement will be determined based on a comprehensive review of all aspects of the application during the time of admission; therefore, supportive documentation of previous art, design, or major-specific coursework is required. It is important for applicants to show examples of prior work from all of their art, design, media, and major-related classes. Failure to do so may result in not being awarded credit for those prior courses.

Please submit samples of work, syllabi, and/or course descriptions from those courses in SlideRoom. If applying for a program that requires a portfolio for admission, please be sure to add examples of your work from your major-specific courses to that portfolio. If your program does not require a portfolio for admission, you should still submit creative work from any relative course you would like to be evaluated for credit. Please see above for a list of programs that require a portfolio with application.

Projects for Students with a Limited or No Art Background or Portfolio

If you do not have any background in art or design, you can still apply. For example, you may want to start your portfolio by drawing from life: sneakers, bedrooms, friends, and landscapes are all excellent subjects, or you may photograph and document your day, your life, or an ordinary event in an extraordinary way.

Other examples of creative work may include a mixed-media collage inspired by your dreams, a research-based paper or project, video blogging, online curation, a video game proposal that modifies a children’s board game so that it requires the skill of an adult, a résumé for performing arts or technical theater, business or marketing plans, social media/promotion plans, examining and redesigning an existing product or interior, a narrative outline for a short script or interactive design, or an observational essay of curatorial practice in a museum gallery or public space. When you have eight to 12 projects you want us to see — you have a portfolio! Upload your projects to SlideRoom.

Questions

Should you have questions about the portfolio, please contact Westphal's Director of Recruitment, Tia James at tjm22@drexel.edu.

Feedback on Portfolios

Meet a representative of Drexel's Westphal College for a portfolio review and receive helpful feedback prior to submitting your application. You can schedule a virtual portfolio review here.

We also participate in portfolio review days with the National Portfolio Day Association.