Department of Design

Your portfolio should comprise 10 to 12 samples of original work that demonstrate a wide range of ideas and competency with different media and tools. At least one piece in your portfolio should present word(s) and image(s) that communicate a message.

In addition to the types of work listed below, 8-10 images from a sketchbook or concept/idea book are required. Your portfolio should contain your best work from at least 3 of the following areas (areas 1-6 are highly recommended for inclusion):

• Two-dimensional design work e.g. designs for posters, logos, letterheads, book/magazine covers and interior page spreads.
• Typography e.g. poetry or words using an expressive font or page layout, typeface designs, expressive lettering, projects with text settings designed for clear communication. Drawings and experiments with typographic form.
• Interactive media e.g. web site design and/or other interactive work.
• Motion graphics e.g. video or animation using images and typography. Short pieces with a strong message are preferred.
• Drawing & Illustration e.g. direct observational drawings are preferred (not drawn from photographs). Imaginative drawing is also welcome. It is good to demonstrate the use of a wide variety of media (pen & ink, charcoal, pastel, coloured pencil, marker pen, collage, digital drawings).
• Photography e.g. B&W prints, colour prints, hand-tinted prints, digitally manipulated.
• Painting e.g. representative and/or non-representative in oil, acrylic, watercolour, gouache.
• 3D Design/Sculpture e.g. scale models from plan drawings, craft and fibre experiments.

The sketchbook or concept/idea book is a very important component of the portfolio. It should contain a variety of studies and examples of your media/tools experiments and demonstrate an exploration of visual and annotated ideas, comments and critiques. It will represent a variety of things that interest you and the ongoing development of ideas. Include 8-10 pages from your sketchbook as a single file.

Typically, the applicant selects the art pieces to include in their portfolio from school-assigned projects, independently developed art projects, extra curricular art classes or professional work where appropriate. Any original artwork developed by the applicant can be included in the portfolio. 

Show only work which reflects your strengths – both creative and technical. After you upload your portfolio files, add a title to each piece. This will help the reviewer in understanding your portfolio work. Please limit your titles to a maximum of thirty (30) characters.

Typically, the applicant selects their pieces to show in their portfolio from school assigned projects, personal interest projects (e.g. a book cover you designed on your own for your favourite novel), ideas (sketchbook, concept/idea book, etc.), development/variations of ideas (design process documentation), extra curricular art/design classes and professional work where appropriate.

Undergraduate students can request enrolment into a course that requires departmental permission by completing the MachForm at ampd.yorku.ca/permission. This form may be used up until the last date to add a course without permission. To find the dates for the current academic term, refer to registrar.yorku.ca/enrol/dates under Add/Drop Deadlines.

After such time, students need permission of the instructor to add a course. AMPD Departments handle these permissions differently and it is best to ask the Department for advice or to get copies of the required paperwork (if by voicemail or email, always include your full name, student number, the course code and instructors name).

Six credits from the AMPD 1900 3.00 series of courses, outside the major, are required of all School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design degrees. These courses may be used toward satisfying the humanities general education requirement, the in/out requirements or an AMPD elective. For students admitted to the School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design with a minimum of 54 transfer credits, the six credits from the 1900 3.00 series of courses outside the major are optional. Only courses with FA/_ _ _ _ 1900 in the course code fulfill this requirement. You can find them in the York University Courses website by searching School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design, the Department and 1900 under 'Faculty, Subject and Number.' Some 1900 courses such as Dance have online lectures so when you add them to your schedule there won't be a scheduled time for class but there may still be a scheduled tutorial.

If you are currently enrolled and registered as an undergraduate student and wish to request a transfer to a different academic program/degree, please review the information at the Program Change page. Submit your program change request via this link.

A number of AMPD programs require an audition/interview/portfolio review before you can be admitted. When you submit your program change request, you should also contact the Department office.

To apply directly to the Design program from an Ontario high school, you must meet specific academic requirements. For a complete breakdown of these criteria, please review the details on our How to Apply page and select your program.