What does Art School look like in the Age of AI?
Something weird is happening in New York City right now. (Isn’t it always?) While everyone's freaking out about AI taking over creative jobs, Gen Z is doing the exact opposite of what you'd expect – they're flooding into art schools like their lives depend on it.
Pratt has waiting lists for painting and drawing programs that just enrolled their biggest classes ever. The School of Visual Arts is seeing more applications than it knows what to do with. Parsons has watched applications jump 64% since 2016.
Maybe Gen Z isn't running away from the AI revolution. Maybe they're charging toward what machines can't touch: the messy, unpredictable, deeply human act of making stuff with our hands.
I've spent decades watching the entertainment business get turned upside down by new tech. From the OG days of digital filmmaking to the AI revolution, the creators who survive these periods of transition learn to work with the new tools rather than fight them.
If you're eyeing art schools, film programs, or, for some insanely optimistic reason, journalism degrees, those glossy brochures and YouTube commercials might not be giving you the whole story.
Here’s what you need to know before dropping serious cash on a creative education when the AI armada is thundering down Fury Road to reshape everything and everyone.
Show Me Your AI Curriculum
Most creative programs talk big about "preparing students for the future" while teaching like it's still 2015. When you visit schools, don’t be afraid to ask the uncomfortable question about the artificial elephant in the room: "Show me your AI curriculum."
The good programs aren't just name-dropping ChatGPT awareness and calling it a day. USC's School of Cinematic Arts has a dedicated initiative called AI for Media & Storytelling (AIMS). Actual courses like "The Future of AI Media: From Workflows to Worldbuilding," where students dive into how generative AI is already disrupting Hollywood business models and learn how to create their own entertainment franchises using AI tools.
USC's approach includes wrestling with the big questions: Which stories can and should be told with AI? How do we invent, adapt, and sometimes resist these tools? What does AI-assisted storytelling mean for authorship, truth, and accountability?
My art school of choice is SCAD. They’re taking a different but equally smart approach through their School of Creative Technology. Weaving AI into everything from industrial design to architecture, teaching students to use tools like Midjourney and Sora for ideation and research. Their new game development degrees are built around the assumption that AI will be part of the creative and production processes, not separate from them.
These schools teach students not to go Ostrich and hide their heads in the sand from AI, but to go full Remora and hitch on to that Great White so they don’t get left behind.
What Machines Can't Do (Yet)
AI can't read a room. Feel the vibe on set when actors nail emotional moments. Navigate the complex human dynamics that make or break a room full of disparate and opinionated scribblers.
When I have the chance to hire writers, I look for emotionally intelligent humans who can think through complex character arcs, understand visual storytelling, and work well with directors, actors, and executives. The schools that grok this are focusing on storytelling that connects with audiences, collaborative problem-solving, and cross-disciplinary communication.
These skills will keep you employed when the Terminator can generate more evocative concept art than you in 1/10 the time.
The Entrepreneurial Reality
The OG model was simple: graduate, get hired, climb the ladder. That ladder doesn't exist anymore. The creators I know who thrived always treated themselves like startups from day one.
Seek out the schools with incubators where students actually launch projects and make stuff. Offer industry mentorship that goes beyond the "here's how to get an agent" blather. Places that support non-traditional career paths in new media. Because chances are, you'll be building your own career path anyway.
Do the Math (Seriously)
Too many talented people get crushed by debt from programs that promised more than they delivered. Before you sign anything, track down recent graduates and ask the hard questions:
- What percentage of your class is working in their field?
- How long did it take to pay off loans?
- What skills from school do you actually use?
- What do you wish you'd learned but didn't?
The brutal truth? A kid who spends four years building a YouTube channel might be better prepared than one with a $250K film degree. Scribblers leave the industry because they can't afford to be unemployed. And unemployment comes with the territory.
What I Tell My Kid
My son just finished his freshman year at SCAD. I tell him the students who thrive see art school as a launching pad, not a destination. They utilize access to equipment, mentorship, and collaborate with others to build their first real projects, not just to complete assignments. They need to understand the business side, not just the creative.
Making movies and video games is commercial art – money matters.
No matter what school you choose, it won't make you an artist. You need to make the most of what the school has to offer to become the best version of the artist you already are.
The Real Question
Gen Z could be onto something with their art school surge. In a world where AI generates content faster than we consume it, maybe the most rebellious thing you can do is learn to make something with your hands, telling a story only a human could.
What do you think – is traditional creative education worth it in the age of AI, or will students just be paying premium prices for an education that's already obsolete?
