How to make an art portfolio for art school: what to include, and how to present it

An art portfolio is a collection of your best work. For admission, it shows a school your creativity, thinking and skill, and at OCAD University it is the main basis for an offer.

OCAD University describes a portfolio as a collection of your best art and design work that shows your creativity, thinking and skill (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)). It bases offers of admission primarily on the strength of the portfolio, as long as the applicant meets the minimum academic requirements (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)).

Sheridan College selects applicants to its Bachelor of Animation on their grades plus the results of their portfolio (Sheridan College (opens in a new tab)).

Drawing from direct observation, a range of media and subjects, recent work, and sketchbook or process work, all of it your own. Schools ask for drawing from life rather than from photographs, and turn away copied work, fan art and AI images.

OCAD University asks applicants to include drawing from direct observation, such as figure drawing, still life, interiors and landscapes (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)). Sheridan’s sample requirements for its Bachelor of Illustration state that drawing from a photograph of a person or an object is not observational drawing (Sheridan College (opens in a new tab)).

OCAD University looks at skill, fit for the programme and variety, wants at least half the work relevant to the programme, and says your most recent work, from the past two years, best shows your current skill (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)). York University asks for at least two different media (York University (opens in a new tab)).

Process work, such as sketches, experiments and research, should link to several of the finished pieces (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)). Sheridan’s sample Animation requirements prefer an unedited sketchbook and ask applicants not to make one specially for the portfolio (Sheridan College (opens in a new tab)).

Everything must be your own. OCAD University requires the work to be of your own creation, and calls plagiarism an offence (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)). For Illustration, it says work in an established style such as Disney or anime does not help it assess skill (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)). Sheridan’s sample Animation requirements accept no existing cartoon characters, no tracing, and no generative AI (Sheridan College (opens in a new tab)).

Two of the drawing skills art schools ask for have their own guides here: perspective drawing and still life drawing.

It depends on the programme: in Ontario, from 5 pieces for Seneca Polytechnic’s Animation programme to as many as 15 for Sheridan’s Illustration. Give each school exactly what it asks for.

OCAD University asks for 8 to 10 finished pieces, with a separate file of process work of roughly 15 to 25 pages (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)). York University’s Visual Arts programme asks for 8 artworks, and a sketchbook counts as one of them (York University (opens in a new tab)). Western University’s BFA asks for 12 pieces of recent work, in chronological order (Western University (opens in a new tab)).

Seneca Polytechnic’s Animation programme asks for five pieces in total (Seneca Polytechnic (opens in a new tab)). Sheridan’s sample Illustration requirements ask for 10 to 15 pieces of original art and 15 to 25 sketchbook pages, alongside a drawing test (Sheridan College (opens in a new tab)).

Toronto Metropolitan University counts your ability to follow its requirements as part of the assessment (Toronto Metropolitan University (opens in a new tab)). Requirements change every year, and Sheridan’s published sheets are samples, so follow each school’s current instructions.

What six programmes ask for, on the portfolio page

In even, low-glare light, on a plain background, filling the frame without cutting off the work or distorting it. Then crop away the background and upload each piece as its own file.

OCAD University asks for well-lit photographs on plain backgrounds, and for each finished piece as a separate file, not the whole portfolio in one PDF (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)).

The University of Waterloo’s Fine Arts guide suggests a well-lit place with little glare, such as shade or an overcast day, and a camera on a tripod at the height of the artwork’s centre, levelled to match the art. Fill as much of the frame as possible without cropping the artwork, and check the edges for keystoning, where one side looks longer than the side parallel to it (University of Waterloo (opens in a new tab)).

OCAD University and Western University take portfolios through SlideRoom, which accepts images under 5 MB (SlideRoom (opens in a new tab)). Western suggests images of around 1024 by 768 pixels, and warns that once you press submit, you can no longer make changes (Western University (opens in a new tab)).

Early. Elena Ant advises parents to bring a child who shows real interest in drawing to learn academic drawing and practise the skills early. Applications open in the fall of the last year of high school.

OCAD University’s application usually opens in October through the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre, and its deadline is typically February 1 of the year you would start (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)).

Elena Ant sees many students arrive at college without perspective, form, tone, symmetry or composition, and struggle with work they were never taught to do.

At National Portfolio Day, which in Toronto is held at OCAD University. Art schools review portfolios and give feedback there, but make no admission decisions.

Toronto’s National Portfolio Day takes place at OCAD University. Art schools review portfolios and give feedback there, but no admission decisions or scholarships are offered (OCAD University (opens in a new tab)). Most reviews last 10 to 15 minutes, and the organisers suggest bringing a range of work, up to 10 to 12 pieces, including works in progress (National Portfolio Day Association (opens in a new tab)).