SPRING 2026 UNDERGRADUATE ILLUSTRATION, DESIGN AND ANIMATION PORTFOLIO REVIEW

(Applications will be accepted starting March 18 and due March 20 by 10 a.m.)

This Spring review accepts 36 to 40 students into a combined Illustration, Design and Animation Program. Students are not IDA emphasis until they pass this second review. The first review is for admittance into the School of Art and to declare your interest in becoming an IDA student. 

ELIGIBILITY CHECKLIST

• I have taken most of my First Year Experience (FYE) classes.
• I have taken or am currently enrolled in ART 265 and ART 266. It is best to take at least one of these classes in the Fall before the review. However, there is no penalty for going through the review multiple times, so you should apply even if both required classes are being taken during the review semester. (Transfer students should make sure they have had the equivalents of ART 265 and ART 266. Check with School of Art advising to confirm.)

PORTFOLIO REVIEW PROCEDURES

• Portfolios can be submitted online starting Wednesday, March 18, 2026, and are due by 10 a.m. on Friday, March 20, 2026.
• IDA faculty will review and rank the applications. This procedure may take a few days.
• You will be notified via email of your acceptance and the required classes for Fall 2026. Please note that you will forfeit your place in the IDA program if you do not register for the required courses in the Fall.
• You will also be notified via email if you are not accepted into the program. Please make an appointment with advising to discuss your next steps and get feedback on your portfolio.

PORTFOLIO GUIDELINES

What to Include

• Original work only. Every piece should be created entirely by you, from concept to design to execution. Work should come primarily from Art 265 Beginning Design and ART 266 Beginning Illustration, but can be supplemented with other coursework from FYE or equivalent studio classes if you are a transfer student.
• Range of skills. Include work that shows variety (e.g., drawing, design, composition, color, storytelling, experimentation).
  
• Creative process. Include sketches, ideation, or documentation that shows how your projects developed.
• Personal voice. Submit work that expresses your own ideas, experiences, and point of view.

What Not to Include

• AI-generated images or content. Work created or assisted by AI image generators (e.g., DALL·E, Midjourney, Stable Diffusion, etc.) is not accepted. All artwork must be completely human-made. 
• Fan art or copyrighted characters. Do not include work based on existing intellectual property (e.g., Marvel, Disney, anime, video games, or other artists’ creations). 
• Collaborative pieces without clear authorship. If a piece was created as a group project, clearly indicate your individual contributions.
• Uncredited stock imagery or templates. All visual elements other than typography must be created by you or properly licensed and credited. 

You may use this Google Slides template and find this document on Combining PDFs helpful to create a multi-page landscape 1024×768 pixels format PDF portfolio that includes the following pages.

SLIDE 1

This slide should contain your completed 2026 IDA Application Form.

SLIDE 2

This slide should display your visual response to the photograph below and at least one word from the word list. Respond to the image and word pairing in a way that feels meaningful to you and incorporates your preferred medium, style, and format. Think about how combining images and words can generate new meanings. Your visual response can take the form of a poster, album cover, book cover, illustration, collage, or animation. Pay attention to the mood, directionality, composition, shape, and color, and consider how changing the context, scale, framing, positioning, or mood might affect what you express visually. The photograph and word may or may not be part of your final work. Still, your final piece should reflect your interpretation of the concept inspired by the image, along with an element suggested by one of the words from the list below.

Along with your visual response to this prompt, please submit a brief (150 words max) written description of your concept for this piece, including your choice of word pairing.

Photo Credit: Hector O’Connor on Unsplash

Recluse

Transient

Container

Play

Commerce 

Nomad

Velocity 

Idle

A high-resolution image of the photo can be downloaded here.

SLIDES 3 – 5 (use as many slides as necessary)

The following slides should showcase one of your projects from process to finish. This should include a project description, research including reference images, mind-maps, brainstorming lists, thumbnail sketches, roughs, iterations/alternate variations, color studies, etc. Use as many slides as necessary to clearly show your process of creating one of your assignments. Your chosen assignment should preferably come from ART 265 or ART 266. Transfer students may choose any project from prior classes or self-initiated work. Please note that this process is not about showing the evolution of a single illustration from start to finish (i.e., partially complete to completed), but rather all the preliminary work required to showcase the development of your ideas.

NEXT SLIDES

The following slides of your portfolio should showcase three projects of your choice, including at least one from Art 265 and one from Art 266. For each of these three works, please add a brief description and a final image of the project. If your project is three-dimensional or multi-page, include as many viewpoints and detailed pictures as needed to clearly display your work. Animations, videos, and websites should be represented with a single still image from the project and include a hyperlink to the actual work online.

FINAL SLIDES

Please scan or photograph 6 pages from your sketchbook that show how you utilize a sketchbook. These pages should not be finished artwork but show process, exploration, and personal interest.

Submission Process:
Please name your PDF portfolios using your last name and first initial with the .pdf extension. (Leslie-K.pdf). Your PDF portfolios should be under 100MB. If you need help reducing your PDF’s file size, you can compress it here. 

Upload your PDF submission to Portfolio Submission. If you have any problems with the upload, contact Kelly Leslie at kleslie@arizona.edu.  

EVALUATION, ACCEPTANCE, AND ADVISING

• The work submitted should: Show an eye for composition and application of formal principles (scale, balance, weight, texture, direction, etc.); Communicate an understanding of form and sensitivity to materials; Show a clear understanding of color relationships; Demonstrate excellent skills and attention to detail; Show a facility with software. Ideas embodied in the work should be innovative and strong. Digital uploads should be clear and readable.
• If accepted into IDA, your name will be placed on a list allowing you to register for the required courses* online. Register on time to get a seat in fall classes. You will only be guaranteed courses in the sequence indicated on the IDA grid (included with acceptance). If you do not register for the required classes in the fall semester, you forfeit your place in the program. If there are extenuating circumstances, contact IDA Program Chair Nicole Antebi  (nantebi@arizona.edu) to discuss.

*You must maintain a 3.0 GPA in IDA classes to be guaranteed admission into IDA classes. Any IDA grade below 3.0 will place you on probationary status for the remainder of your studies.

2026 IDA Application Form