OCAD University

If you’re an international student considering attending here, don’t. You’ll basically be treated like a cash grab and get no support. The administration is a disaster who won’t listen to students needs and make reckless decisions that screw everyone over. There’s no way of getting into your required classes because they’re all waitlisted or they outright get canceled. If you’re in a more traditional program like drawing and painting or illustration good luck actually learning about art. And if you’re in the animation program even more luck cause it will teach you 0 relevant skills for the industry. Some classes are good but this is more due to good teachers and technicians than the disaster that is this place. Just go somewhere else unless you want to get screwed over by bad administration.

They let instructors begin a semester without giving you a syllabus, or not show up for class because the alarm didn't work, or encourage vandalism in the name of design to promote their community. They had that assignment in which a student made a package with a message to indicate that it was not an explosive device during a charity fundraiser and it was on the news. Instructors that get tired of teaching aren't told to retire. It's a small school with nothing.

Save yourselves thousands upon thousands of dollars and the feeling of being cheated. You can learn anything art related from successful professionals online for memberships or PPV fees less than $100 a year- and that's with the added bonus of not having to deal with the disorganized, incompetent school administration system. They weren't great before the pandemic but now it's bad bad. Like incoherent and dismissive responses for concerns and inquiries bad, like are we speaking the same language bad. Anyway I hope you like desperately fighting to get into classes you need to graduate that are sometimes offered only one term a year which means sometimes you're wasting months of your life at a time ok byeeeee x

No one answers the phone, no one replies to emails and it is impossible to get an appointment. No idea why we pay for facility and admins fee. Which university operates this way. Impossible to get through anyone. Just grab hard earned money. Where are all of you so dishonest to the students. When are opening to in person teachings.

honestly and truly, do not go to this school. it shouldn't even be called a school, it's a corporation. they do not care about you. they won't even pretend to care about you. you will have to figure everything out on your own, and you will be paying them thousands of dollars for absolutely nothing in return. i was incredibly optimistic when i started, OCAD was the only school i even wanted to go to, and my first year went fairly well. ever since the pandemic struck, admin has been useless. they are lazy, unprofessional people who can't be bothered with the concerns of the students who pay their salaries. they admit more students than they know what to do with, which makes course registration a nightmare as you have to literally fight for MANDATORY courses, something NO ONE should have to do when they're paying THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS to attend. they refuse to listen to the students when we challenge their decisions, believing that since /they're/ at the top, /their/ opinions must be the right ones. they will not acknowledge you when you ask them why they are charging exorbitant tuition prices for an education equivalent to taking a skillshare course. they will advertise the "hands-on experience" constantly, but i am going on two straight years without stepping foot in a studio or shop because i was outright lied to (told a course would be hybrid only for it to be entirely online) and denied (not able to register for any in person classes due to the abysmal, unfair course registration system.) they treat you as if you're acting entitled for asking for the BARE MINIMUM from them. now i am left with the decision to continue my studies just to get a useless degree at a school that i hate, or drop out and have wasted my money for nothing at all. i ignored all the warnings about the school, and i really wish i hadn't. don't make the same mistake. no school is perfect, but NONE are quite this bad. you can study art and make a career for yourself, but it's not going to happen here. go to a real school instead.

I am finishing my final year in the MAAD textile program after dropping out in 2020. I have to say, the difference between then and now is night and day. I'm not sue if it a pandemic related, but there is much more emphasis on getting students out into the world to show and work. I've gotten lots of support, encouragement and feedback on my work and career prospects. I think the MAAD program is very unique and I was lucky enough to have some great faculty. I also minor in Drawing and Painting, and I have to say that it's a much weaker program in my experience. I think they have the "clout", and the connections you *can* make might be beneficial, but you have to come in with a pre-exiting skill-set. Don't assume you will be taught actual technical skills like anatomy or paint handling. It's more like an MFA in that regard- you are expected to come prepared and work hard to push you work and boundaries conceptually. There's not enough time or space to really focus on skill building and conceptual thinking so if you want to learn the basics, I would suggest a school like TSA or another university with a technical focus. OR learn academic art. For MY purposes, OCAD works well because I came in with previous experience, knowing what I want to get out of the program. In some ways I think this school is better suited to an older demographic, not those straight out of high school. I think there is plenty of room for improvement, especially regarding their treatment of international students, the way they handled online/studio courses during the lockdowns (charging full tuition while forcing students to do everything at home for example) and their treatment of sessional instructions and teachers as a whole. It's a decent option for those in Toronto, but you will only get back what you put into it and you have to fend for yourself. If you can leave the city, you will likely find other more suitable programs. Also, they have expanded the fabrication studios so facilities for design are good- but again, you have to figure it out for yourself. There is no hand holding. Get it- get what you need- get out. That's my recommendation.

Building façade architecture is neat! The Grad Ex (2022) had some highlights such as the animation, stop motion, illustrations and some jewelry exposition that caught my eye. If you're worried with covid, please be aware many of the visitors were not masked.

On our tour of Toronto we were shown the daring futuristic building of the Sharp Centre for Design. It is located 3 blocks to the west of University Ave and easily accessed from the downtown Toronto (about 10 minutes' walk from our hotel, Shangri La Toronto). Today, the building inaugurated in 2004, is a widely recognizable city landmark. The structure resembling an intergalactic spaceship, is a box, notably elevated from the ground and supported by pillars varying in colors and their angles. The feat of the modern architectural thought, the Sharp Centre for Design, is the joint work of the famous British architect Will Alsop in partnership with Toronto-based Robbie/Young + Wright Architects. The design received many influential awards and praises of the world architectural and engineering organizations. Looking to the south, down McCaul St, enjoy the view of the CN Tower. Please bear in mind that this amazing building doesn't require a tour, admission, or exploring its interior; it can be simply viewed as a stop of your tour of Toronto.