Frequently asked questions

Freshmen students are not required to live on campus. However, ASU guarantees housing to all first-time freshmen. To apply to live on campus, please log in to My ASU Housing to complete your housing application.

Some scholarships are given out by the schools individually based on application and audition criteria. Please search the ASU Scholarship Portal for a complete list of available scholarships.

Most of the Herberger Institute undergraduate programs are located on ASU's Tempe Campus.

Yes. Barrett students can major in any undergraduate Herberger Institute degree program.

You will be asked to pick a first and second choice major on your ASU application. If you are an incoming student and have not yet attended orientation, you may change your major online through your My ASU account. If you are a current student, you will need to meet with your advisor. To schedule an appointment with your advisor, please visit herbergerinstitute.asu.edu/advising.

There is no essay required for the ASU application. However, some of our Herberger Institute undergraduate programs do require additional materials/applications, and all Herberger Institute graduate programs require additional application materials. To learn about additional program requirements, find your degree in the ASU Degree Search and choose your specific program for degree requirements.

Our residential college, Arcadia, is a thriving arts community designed for students who are pursuing a major throughout the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts.

Visit visit.asu.edu to register for a campus tour and information session. Submit a Herberger Institute tour request form to schedule a tour of a Herberger Institute school. Our tour date and time options follow the Undergraduate Admissions Experience ASU schedule and are either before or after the Experience ASU event on Mondays and Fridays, excluding national holidays.

Yes, visit our internship and careers page for more information about undergraduate internships for Herberger Institute students.

The Disability Resource Center provides services to qualified students with disabilities on all ASU campuses. For convenience, students will find offices located at the Downtown, Polytechnic, Tempe and West locations. You can contact any DRC office with the following information:

Phone: 480-965-1234
FAX: 480-965-0441
Email: DRC@asu.edu

Website for more information: eoss.asu.edu/drc

Yes! Visit mystudyabroad.asu.edu/ for more information. You can also discuss study abroad opportunities with faculty and academic advisors.

Yes, the Tutoring and Writing Centers at ASU offer assistance to ASU students. Visit tutoring.asu.edu/ for more information.

No, we do not offer conditional admission to any Herberger Institute graduate programs.

Yes, the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts Office of Student Success provides academic advising to undergraduate students in the Herberger Institute. Graduate students are advised through the faculty members in their area as well as the graduate coordinators in their school.

Submit a Herberger Institute tour request form to schedule a tour of a Herberger Institute school. Our tour date and time options follow the Undergraduate Admissions Experience ASU schedule and are either before or after the Experience ASU event on Mondays and Fridays, excluding national holidays.

The graduate program coordinator for each Herberger Institute school will provide instructions and a list of courses to enroll via email. We strongly recommend our incoming graduate students to register early. Visit Degree Search and choose your specific program for degree requirements.

For information on financial aid, visit students.asu.edu/financialaid/paying.

Visit visit.asu.edu to schedule a tour of the ASU Tempe campus.

It depends on the graduate programs. Please contact individual graduate program coordinators in the affiliated Herberger Institute school for more details.

After all application materials have been received, ASU will review your application file. ASU admission decisions generally take four to six weeks. 

A portfolio is not required at the time of undergraduate admission to ASU to study studio art or design. However, portfolios may be required at a later point in order to continue into a program.
For more specific information regarding the BFA Art Declaration Process, visit art.asu.edu/admissions#undergraduate.
For more specific information regarding the Design Milestone,

Submission of an ACT or SAT score is highly recommended for merit-based scholarship consideration. Please visit https://students.asu.edu/freshman/requirements for more information.

Yes. Learn more at https://cfo.asu.edu/transportation.

Along with your application for admission, you must include your application fee, all official transcripts and proof of English proficiency (U.S. school transcripts are required to be sent to ASU directly by the school. Foreign school transcripts can be sent by the student as long as they are official and original documents). Visit students.asu.edu/international-students-faq for more details.

Visit students.asu.edu/international-students-faq for more details.

Visit students.asu.edu/graduate/proficiency for more details.

View requirements for English proficiency.

In addition to a general ASU application, School of Music applicants must submit a School of Music application and complete a live or recorded audition the semester prior to coming to ASU in order to be accepted. Interviews may also be required for some degree programs. For more information on audition and application requirements, visit music.asu.edu/admissions/undergraduate-steps-to-apply. 

All students who don't meet the admission standards will be evaluated through a process called Individual Review. Through this process Admission Services will review all available information about a student's application, carefully considering all aspects of a student's academic background and accomplishments. Submission of an ACT or SAT test score is highly recommended. In some cases, additional information might be requested by ASU Admission Services directly.

A master's degree is the first level of graduate study. To pursue a master's degree you usually must already hold an undergraduate degree (a bachelor's degree).

Also known as a bachelor's degree, this degree is typically a four-year program encompassing 120 credits of college courses.

Digital culture is a program designed for students interested in computer technology as well as design and arts disciplines. Digital culture is the only undergraduate major in the School of Arts, Media and Engineering, but there are 11 design and arts concentrations that students can focus their studies on. For more information on digital culture, visit artsmediaengineering.asu.edu/degree-programs/digital-culture.

Students in the filmmaking practices concentration receive grounding in fundamental production skills; entertainment and media ethics; feature, short and episodic screenwriting; and general film industry history and practices. Students will have the option of two tracks of study in the upper division: screenwriting or pre-professional. Students who choose the track in screenwriting will be required to take multiple writing courses at the intermediate and advanced levels; students in the pre-professional track will chose among a series of course options in each of the areas of writing; producing; and film and media technology. Production experience is regularly available through select lower-division courses that provide creative coursework options; the upper-division course FMP 300 Focus on Film (3); and credited opportunities to work on projects produced by students, faculty and the School of Film, Dance and Theatre. All students will complete a yearlong senior project, initiated and developed by the students and supported with dedicated faculty mentorship.

Students pursuing the film and media production concentration develop a comprehensive and practical knowledge of production; awareness and impact of media and entertainment on audiences and culture; and an understanding of the role of the artist in society. Students have access to digital cameras, lighting and sound equipment, post-production software and facilities, and other resources and technologies that will give them an opportunity to produce a final capstone project of exceptional technical quality. Within this concentration, students have the option of three tracks of study: directing, producing or media and technology. Each of these focused courses of study is supported by the degree-wide emphasis on ethical filmmaking practices, innovative creative expression and preparation for a career as an industry professional.

For more information, visit filmdancetheatre.asu.edu/degree-programs/film-degree.

All film students enter as majors in the filmmaking practices concentration. After completing the five required core film degree courses (15 credits), students are eligible to apply to the selective, studio-based concentration in film and media production. Students who enter ASU as a freshman typically apply for the film and media production program in their third or fourth semester; transfer students may apply earlier depending on academic record, experience and preparation.

You will be asked to pick a first and second choice major on your ASU application. If you are an incoming student and have not yet attended orientation, you may change your major online through your My ASU account. If you are a current student, you will need to meet with your advisor. To schedule an appointment with your advisor, please visit herbergerinstitute.asu.edu/advising.

Please send your standardized test scores when you apply to ASU. If you take or retake a test after you apply, continue to send scores to ASU, as ASU will take the highest score you receive. Test scores need to be sent to ASU by the end of July in order to be considered for fall scholarships.

Here are the typical important dates for fall admission:

July 1 _ Application for admission is available
The freshman application for fall is available.

Nov. 1 _ VIP admission date
Complete your application for admission by this date (including official high school transcripts and application fee*) to receive these select benefits: expedited admission and scholarship decisions, priority access to ASU New Student Orientation and housing registration, and exclusive event invites and campus visit offers.
*If you self-report your grades, you do not need to submit an official transcript to receive your admission decision. An official final transcript will be required before you enroll in classes.

Oct. 1 _ Submit your FAFSA
Starting Oct. 1, you can file your FAFSA with ASU (Federal School Code 001081) to find out what financial aid you might be eligible for. Students may submit the FAFSA to ASU prior to applying and admission to the university; however, only students admitted into ASU degree-seeking programs will be reviewed for and offered financial aid.

Jan. 1 _ FAFSA priority date
File your FAFSA to ASU by this date to maximize the amount of financial aid you could qualify for. Eligible students who apply by this date have a greater chance of receiving need-based aid. We encourage you to submit your FAFSA even if the priority filing date has passed.

Feb. 1 _ Priority admission date
Complete your application for admission by this date to ensure you're considered for the maximum amount of scholarship opportunities. Late applicants will be considered for university admission and financial aid, but ASU programs with higher admission standards will give priority consideration to applications submitted by this date.

May 1 _ Enrollment deposit date
Submit your enrollment deposit to ASU to become an official Sun Devil and secure your spot in our fall incoming class. After you submit your enrollment deposit, you can register for your orientation date and submit your campus housing preferences.

Apply early: Many of our degree programs are highly selective.
Visit herbergerinstitute.asu.edu/admissions to review the additional entrance requirements and secondary application deadlines related to your area of study.

Application deadlines are set and enforced by individual Herberger Institute schools. Visit program descriptions found on Degree Search for deadline information.

Apply early: admission to our graduate programs are highly competitive and require additional admission requirements to be submitted to the schools directly by specific application deadlines. Visit individual Herberger Institute school websites for more details.

School of Art

School of Arts, Media and Engineering
The Design School
School of Film, Dance and Theatre
School of Music

Herberger Institute students living on campus live in the Arcadia Residential Community, which includes Best, Hayden and Irish halls. For more information on Arcadia Residential Community, please visit herbergerinstitute.asu.edu/arcadia-residential-community.

All official transcripts and test scores should be sent to ASU Admission Services at the following address:
Admission Services Applicant Processing
Arizona State University
PO Box 871004
Tempe, AZ 85287-1004