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The College

Chester College of New England is a close-knit community of visual and language artists. The College offers students a foundation in the liberal and fine arts and a thorough preparation for careers in the professional arts. Chester College of New England offers majors in creative writing, professional writing, graphic design, fine art, and photography and media arts; an interdisciplinary arts major is offered through the Department of Interdisciplinary Studies. The College also offers minors in creative writing, illustration, photojournalism, and professional writingpublishing. The programs are complementary. Students specialize in intersections among art, graphic design, photography, and the written word.

The low faculty-student ratio (12:1); artist/writer-in-residence programs; a robust program of visiting artists, exhibitions, art contests, and shows; internships; and relationships with professional associations complement and strengthen the Colleges offerings. The Colleges aim is to provide all students with the education, knowledge, skills, and experiences they need to become both thoughtful citizens and successful professionals.

Students at Chester College of New England find that the tranquil setting of the campus provides them with the kind of environment that is essential for creative inspiration. The College is close to Manchester and Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Boston, Massachusetts. The College also offers a study-abroad program that is linked to the majors cited above.

Chester College of New England is a private, coeducational, nonsectarian institution. It is accredited to award the Bachelor of Arts degree by the New Hampshire Postsecondary Education Commission and by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.

The College has an enrollment of approximately 250 students. Although the ages of students range from 17 to 35, the average age of students is 19. Most of these students live on campus, but a number of students enroll as commuters. All resident students are full-time. Commuters may choose to enroll on a full-time or part-time basis. The classroom student-teacher ratio is very low, approximately 12:1, which allows for a great deal of personalized instruction. The College believes that this sort of interaction is critical, given its focus on visual and language arts.

A new residence hall opened in 2002. This coeducational residence houses the majority of the Colleges resident students and has lounge areas, meeting rooms, laundry facilities, a small kitchen, a study room, and an art studio open 24/7. To accommodate the growing resident student population, Adams Hall was completely renovated in summer 2006, providing a second residence hall on campus. This smaller residential building houses 30 students, in double rooms. All student rooms provide broadband Internet access.

The Dining Commons provides meals for students, faculty and staff members, and visitors. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served in this facility seven days a week during the academic year.

Extracurricular programs are designed to enhance and enrich the learning experience, and students are expected to be active members of the campus community, both in and out of the classroom.

Location

Chester College of New England offers the aspiring artist a natural setting that nurtures both artistic and intellectual development. The campus is situated on 75 acres in the center of Chester, New Hampshire, a classic rural New England town near Manchester, New Hampshire, and just a short drive from the states beaches and ski resorts. The campus buildings are a mixture of restored eighteenth-century houses and new buildings that preserve the feel of Colonial New England while providing modern conveniences and spaces appropriate for classroom learning and artistic creation. Many of the houses in the vicinity of the College are beautifully maintained antique homes from the Colonial, Federal, and Victorian periods. The town square, only a few hundred yards from the campus, includes a classic white Colonial church, the town hall, and a general store. Chester, New Hampshire, is very close to both Manchester and Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and less than an hour from Boston, Massachusettscities that are rich in history and culture. Students frequently travel to these cities to work at internship sites, visit galleries and museums, and attend an assortment of performances and exhibits.

Majors and Degrees

The College offers a Bachelor of Arts degree with majors in creative writing, fine art, graphic design, interdisciplinary arts, photography and media arts, and professional writing. Minors are offered in creative writing, illustration, photojournalism, and professional writingpublishing.

Academic Programs

An artist cannot be fully prepared to create without an understanding of the depth and breadth of human experience and inquiry. New movements and ideas cannot evolve in a vacuum. The artist must have an appreciation of the intellectual, cultural, and historical context in which he or she works. That is, the artist needs a solid foundation in order to be able to create. Chester College of New England is committed to the liberal arts as one means of providing this necessary foundation. Close acquaintance with the liberal arts sharpens students oral and written communication skills; provides them with opportunities to explore historical, social, and scientific concepts; and develops an appreciation of ideas and experiences that form the basis of all human endeavors.

The General Education Core courses integrate liberal arts courses with courses in the creative arts to provide students with an interdisciplinary approach to their education. This core program views courses as a continuum rather than a set of isolated experiences. The faculty at Chester College of New England is committed to preparing its students to face the multidisciplinary needs of the work world, integrating what students have learned in disparate fields. In addition, interdisciplinary modes expose students to a greater variety of teaching perspectives and opinions about society, enabling students to think critically from a great number of vantage points.

The liberal arts component begins by establishing a foundation in English composition, art history, and the humanities. Students then move on to three traditional and challenging areas of study: the sciences, the social sciences, and history. Finally, they explore the liberal arts in greater depth by choosing from among a variety of course offerings, some of them at the upper level. The result is a unique blend of courses that helps students discover how the liberal arts and the visual arts work together to educate the whole person.

The creative arts elements of the General Education Core introduce students to the majors offered and provide the concepts, vocabularies, and insight that are essential preparation for further study. Core courses emphasize verbal, visual, technical, and written skills. The curriculum is carefully sequenced to provide varied and complementary courses that interact with other foundation coursesas well as with the liberal arts component of the curriculum. Requirements include a 6-credit senior project that may be satisfied in various ways, depending on the students interests, skill level, and the program requirements. For example, a student may complete this requirement with an internship or by combining the senior project with an advanced-level seminar.

Professional Practices is another creative arts requirement that underscores the Colleges commitment to graduating artists with a practical knowledge of their field. Students may choose from a variety of courses with similar learning objectives, depending on their areas of interest. These courses include Small Press Publishing, Visiting Artists Seminar, Professional Practices in Art and Illustration, and Galleries. All of these courses are designed to expose students to aspects of life in the working world as professional artists.

The curriculum integrates courses in the liberal arts, fine arts, and professional arts throughout the undergraduate experience, along with opportunities to learn from and interact with a faculty of practicing professional artists, poets, designers, photographers, and writers. The Colleges internship program and Student Success Center prepare students to enter their chosen professional fields with the appropriate knowledge, skills, experience, and preparation to succeed.

The programs leading to the Bachelor of Arts degree require a minimum of 120 credits.

Chester College of New England follows a traditional academic calendar of two semesters. Summer-session courses are optional. Fall semester generally begins at the end of August; spring semester begins in early January.

Academic Facilities

Office, classroom, and living spaces on campus are relatively compact and create a comfortable environment for highly personalized interaction. The largest classroom holds no more than 40 people, and classes at the College rarely exceed 15 students.

The Photography Studios are located in the Photo Barn and include a darkroom with multiple workstations for black-and-white and color printing. Separate studio areas are provided. In the exhibit areas, each student has the opportunity to have photographs selected for display for the benefit and enjoyment of fellow students and the College community. The Photo Barn also houses a Mac lab, where students learn digital video technologies and techniques. The Visionaries Institute International (VII), a center for the creation and study of media that inspires positive social change, is also housed in the Photo Barn.

Douglas Hall, a renovated governors mansion, currently houses art, drawing, illustration, and sculpture studios as well as three general-purpose classrooms and senior space, small, private studio space reserved just for students with senior status.

The Wadleigh Library provides academic research support for the programs offered on campus. The library also provides individual study space, meeting spaces for study groups, a large classroom for lectures and presentations, and three computer labs. The Colleges Student Success Center, also housed in the library, is intended to help students succeed not only academically, but also in their decisions about future career paths.

The three computer labs housed in Wadleigh Library are equipped with Macintosh computers for graphic design, digital imaging, and advertising classes, using state-of-the-art software. In addition, Wadleigh Library houses networked personal computers and printers specifically for student use. These machines are equipped with current releases of word processing software and provide students with Internet access.

Each student is permitted to have one car on campus, and parking is provided for a $35 annual fee. The College provides occasional transportation to Manchester, Portsmouth, and Boston and to recreational sites.

Costs

In 200708, tuition for full-time students is $15,400. Room and board (double room) are $7850. Tuition per credit hour for full-time students and part-time students (8 to 11 credits per semester) is $640. Photography majors should anticipate book and supply expenditures of $650 per semester ($350 per semester for other majors). Other charges included a semester service fee of $135, a technology fee of $130, a summer session fee of $445 per credit hour, a parking fee of $35, and a freshman-orientation fee of $90.

Financial Aid

Chester College of New England is dedicated to helping its students determine the best possible means for financing their educations and offers advice to students and their families regardless of income level. Through its programs of need- and merit-based financial assistance, the College makes every effort possible to assist students who wish to attend. These programs consist of loans, grants, work-study jobs, and scholarships. The College offers opportunities through federal financial aid programs that include the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Federal Stafford Student Loan, Federal Work-Study Program, and PLUS loans. The College also offers merit-based scholarships to incoming students, which range from $1000 to full tuition for up to four years of study. More than 85 percent of the students at Chester College receive some form of financial aid.

Faculty

The faculty is made up of both full- and part-time instructors who are master teachers and working artists and professionals. Faculty members participate in advising students in curriculum and career planning and act in supervisory capacities for internships.

Student Government

Student Government members, in consultation with the coordinator of student activities, plan and schedule activities and events for the academic year. The campus calendar offers numerous events, including dramatic performances, skiing and snowboarding trips, art and photography exhibits, dances, on-campus musical performances, and lectures and discussion groups concerning important social and political issues.

Admission Requirements

Chester College of New England is a small college by design and enrolls limited-size classes of highly talented women and men in its Bachelor of Arts programs. The College admits freshmen and transfer students and seeks a diverse student body. Students may be admitted for the September and January semesters. Applicants for admission are judged by many criteria, including academic performance, artistic achievements and potential, extracurricular accomplishments and activities, communication skills (both oral and written), standardized test scores (SAT or ACT), energy and determination, and portfolio quality.

The College recommends but does not require the submission of SAT or ACT scores. Students who do not submit test scores are not penalized in the admission process.

Admission requirements include submitting a completed application form (either paper or the online version, which is available at http://www.chestercollege.edu/apply), the $35 application fee, official copies of transcripts from all secondary schools and any colleges or universities attended, two letters of recommendation, and a written personal statement. A personal interview is required, either in person or via telephone.

Depending on the students choice of major, artistic achievement may be a significant factor in the admission decision. Also, a number of merit-based scholarships are available, and only students who have submitted a portfolio are given consideration for these scholarships. For these reasons, while the College does not require the submission of a portfolio, it is strongly recommended.

Students are encouraged to arrange for a campus visit and tour, which provides an important opportunity to gain valuable firsthand knowledge of Chester College.

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