Academy of Design

The International Academy of Design and Technology is a private college which means they are profit driven. Trust me, it becomes very clear.
After university I wanted to do something a little more creative and hands on. About 2 years later I graduated from the digital photography program. Overall I was happy with my experience. The program coordinators, administration staff, and most importantly faculty are great people. They are dedicated to the students, their education, and eager to help whenever requested. The critiques are vital to creative /​technical advancement and the small classes make this a perfect setting. I had hands on experience with equipment that many of my colleagues at other colleges /​universities dream of.
The only problem I have is with the upper administration of IADT. They are in need of a serious shake up. They need to listen to their students and get some need new blood in senior positions. I assure that I am not the only alumni, student, or faculty to believe this.
PROS:
Fast registration & enrollment. No more OCAS deadlines to deal with.
24 hour access. Campus is shared with CBC giving the college 24 hour security and access to students.
Small Class Size. My class started with 16 and we graduated with 8. This allowed personalized critiques, hands on time with all the equipment, and becoming close with your classmates and faculty.
Access to the latest equipment. SLR and DSLR: Canon, Nikon, Fuji, Medium format: Hasselblad 500 series and H series, Phase digital backs, Large format, and lenses for the above, lights: Speedo, Elinchrom, Profoto, grip, stands, seamless backgrounds, gels, lens, film magazines, sandbags, reflectors, cases, location kits, softboxes, most of which can be borrowed.
Industry professionals as instructors.
Academic Councilors who actually know your name. I’m serious.
Intensive short term programs. My program was only 18 months and we went right through the summer. You can opt to take the summer off.
Working experience before graduation. I worked with ACT, the Toronto International Film Festival, L’Oreal Fashion Week, the FDCC, and others well before my senior terms.
CONS:
Very very high tution costs. You could get a degree in 4 years for less then it cost me for 18 months.
Programs need to coordinate and work together better. The photography students worked with the fashion design, fashion merchandising and marketing, acting, and graphic design but there was need for far more cooperation.
The college needs a better method of feedback from the students. Have a comment for the school? …Have fun getting anything done about it.
Ridiculous limited number of guests for graduation. You get 2 guest tickets. That means my parents could come but my girlfriend could not. Good luck if you have a non-​traditional family structure. Two tickets is it. If they use the limited space argument, I would reply with find a larger venue. Tuition is absurdly high, the least the school could do is allow our families to see us graduate.
Program budgets based on enrollment numbers. The board is blind to anything but numbers. A program doesn’t get a budget increase or new equipment until the number of students go up. However the program can’t attract new student without upgrades to equipment and benefits. Catch 22?
*UPDATE*
All that reading you just did was for nothing. Turns out all the programs that couldn’t offer degrees got the chop. As far as I know the entire college got the chop from the board members down in the U.S. The four or five remaining programs that the government allowed to grant degrees have been amalgamated into some division of the Yorkville Education Group. Ever heard of it? Neither have I. I’m left with a very sour taste in my mouth.

At one point in my life of bad and ill-​advised decisions, I considered going to the International Academy of Design & Technology. I made an appointment to take a school tour, and it seemed like a really cool place to attend. All the programs are arts related, from fashion design to video game design and film production, it seems like a kick ass school.
Well Kick-​ass School comes at a ass kicking price. For the program I wanted to take, it would cost I believe $ 18,000 for a year (a two year program). Not exactly pennies. Most of their programs are exceptionally high — something that is not advertised on their website. One year of their schooling was almost equivalent to a 4 year tuition at U of T!
The entrance exam consists of an assignment, which obviously varies depending on the program. It’s not that hard if you have a creative bone in your body and can prove that you have an aptitude for the program of your choice.
Overall, the school is really good for specialized arts field. You really get hands on experience and it seems like a good place to network and get a job in your field. But it comes at a hefty cost.