Apr 03, 2014


Remember when Pam Beesly of NBC’s hit show The Office temporarily ditched her day job to study graphic design at Pratt Institute a few years ago? Then there was April, the Institute architecture student diagnosed with lymphoma in 2009 on the HBO series In Treatment, which starred Gabriel Byrne.

Now Pratt has returned to the TV screen to play a cameo role in the plotlines of two other prime time shows, Switched at Birth and The Carrie Diaries.

ABC Family’s Switched at Birth features two teenage girls, Bay and Daphne, who were accidentally switched as newborns in the hospital. In Season Three, which is still airing, Bay hopes to attend Pratt and has been doing her best to ensure the success of her application. In a recent episode she met with a Pratt recruiter (fictional, of course) who advised, “You should definitely include that [you play field hockey] in your application. It’s those sorts of activities that will really make you stand out.” How well that advice will play out for Bay, however, still remains to be seen.

On the CW’s The Carrie Diaries, which tracks the pre-Sex and the City adventures of Carrie Bradshaw and her high-school friends, the recent season finale featured the happy news that Carrie’s friend Walt was accepted to Pratt. If The Carrie Diaries returns for a third season, perhaps Walt will lure Carrie away from Manhattan to visit the Brooklyn campus. Who knows? Maybe the Pratt Fashion Show will give Carrie a chance to indulge her legendary passion for fashion. Stay tuned.

Text: Marion Hammon