Profiling Savannah College of Art and Design - Atlanta

The Savannah College of Art and Design, is a private, non-profit, accredited and degree-granting university with locations in Savannah and Atlanta, Georgia, as well as Hong Kong and France. The school's campuses encompass 109 buildings. SCAD has been named "Hottest for Studying Art" among America's 25 Hottest Colleges by Kaplan/Newsweek.

In 1979, SCAD opened its doors with five trustees, four staff members, seven faculty member, and 71 students. At that time the college offered eight majors. In May 1981, the first graduate received a degree. The next year, the first graduating class received degrees. In 1982, enrollment grew to more than 500 students. Enrollment then grew to 1,000 in 1986 and 2,000 in 1989. In 2010, the college enrolled over 10,460 students. In 2003, the university launched the SCAD eLearning program, offering certificates and full master's degrees online.

In 2005, the Savannah College of Art and Design established a campus in Atlanta offering bachelor's and master's degrees in 11 majors. In August 2006, the Atlanta College of Art merged with SCAD after approval by the board of trustees of both colleges. The SCAD Atlanta campus is in Atlanta's Midtown near the Woodruff Arts Center and the High Museum of Art on Peachtree Street. SCAD Atlanta facilities provide classroom and exhibition space, well-equipped computer labs, photography darkrooms, printmaking and sculpture studios, a library, a dining hall, fitness center, swimming pool and residence hall. SCAD Atlanta's Ivy Hall opened in 2008 after extensive restoration. In 2009, SCAD Atlanta opened a digital media center.

SCAD enrolled students from all fifty U.S. states and 100 countries in 2010. International student enrollment is about eleven percent. The school is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's and master's degrees. The university confers Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Fine Arts, Master of Architecture, Master of Arts, Master of Arts in Teaching, Master of Fine Arts, and Master of Urban Design degrees, as well as undergraduate and graduate certificates.

The Savannah College of Art and Design exists to prepare talented students for careers in the visual and performing arts, design, the building arts, and the history of art and architecture. The school emphasizes learning through individual attention. The goal of the college is to nurture the unique qualities of each student through an interesting curriculum in an inspiring environment under the leadership of involved professors.