This past spring, Prattfolio caught up with soon-to-be grads—and a few current students and faculty and staff members too—at the Brooklyn and Manhattan campus Grad Fairs.
One question we asked: What advice would you give a new student? Here’s what they told us.
“Don’t be afraid to try new things. Step out of your comfort zone. Really embrace this new part of your life, where you can try new things and do new things and just let your passion for design drive you to do amazing things.”
—Catherine Chattergoon, BArch ’24
“Take pride in your work. I think that sometimes critique can be harsh, and sometimes it’s hard to separate yourself from your work, but take pride in what you do . . . be happy that you created something that you feel is close to you and that you’re proud of.”
—Kayla Jones, BFA Film ’24
“Remember that you came to Pratt because you have an artistic vision and artist’s intuition, and trust that . . . trust that you’re here for a reason, and that you’re talented and amazing.”
—Alex Brinkman, BFA Film ’24
“Don’t rush yourself to understand everything.”
Kyle Howard, BFA Communications Design ’24
“Enjoy these first few years of being lost and experimenting. Don’t rush yourself to understand everything. I think there’s value in being lost, and I think that’s where you find yourself. . . . It could push you further, and in a direction that you would’ve never thought of.”
—Kyle Howard, BFA Communications Design ’24
“Take advantage of all the resources you have here. There’s so much you can do. As long as you have the ideas and you’re creative, you can do practically anything with that.”
—Kailea Zheng, AOS Graphic Design ’24
Check out “Givetake in Steuben—it’s a really cool place. All your old materials that you’re never going to use again, you go and drop them off, and you can also scrounge around for scraps and other things.”
—Maiu Romano-Verthelyi, MFA Communications Design ’25
“Make sure you take time for yourself.”
Gwen Cierniak, BFA Communications Design (Graphic Design) ’24
“Make sure you take time for yourself. Don’t let yourself get burned out. It’ll affect all of your work. Take time to explore the city, or do something fun, or just maybe sleep all day. Take time for yourself.”
—Gwen Cierniak, BFA Communications Design (Graphic Design) ’24
“Maximize the connections you make on campus. Make friends and network.”
—Favour Ritaro, MPS Arts and Cultural Management ’24
“Know that you’re the coolest, and talk!”
Euneek Turner, BFA Communications Design ’24
“I’ve heard this phrase before and it helped me: Time management gets better. The workload still [grows], but you manage your time a lot better.”
—Melanie Tran, BArch ’24
“Yeah, you have to take things one step at a time. Think ahead and make sure you don’t leave everything for the last minute.”
—Wengelyn Muñoz, BArch ’24
“Always stand in your power. Know that you’re the coolest, and talk!”
—Euneek Turner, BFA Communications Design ’24
“Break everything that you make and try to figure out how to fix it.”
Nene Villalobos, assistant to the chair of Undergraduate Communications Design
“If you are kind of an independent person or a shy person, just study in communal study places. You’ll end up making friends.”
—Maiu Romano-Verthelyi, MFA Communications Design ’25
It will be okay to make mistakes—break everything that you make and try to figure out how to fix it.”
—Nene Villalobos, assistant to the chair of Undergraduate Communications Design
“Make the most of your time! Get into every shop that you possibly can. Really just spend all of your time here in-studio and everybody that you meet is going to be your family forever and ever.”
—Amanda Huynh, assistant professor, Industrial Design
“Be at your own pace.”
Alyssa Bement, MS City and Regional Planning ’24
“Don’t get caught up in all of the hustle and bustle of New York City. Just do your own thing. Be at your own pace and don’t look at what everyone else is doing.”
—Alyssa Bement, MS City and Regional Planning ’24
“Not just being a Pratt student, but coming into your adult years is learning how to self-advocate. A lot of people miss out on opportunities and just [getting] better at whatever it is because they’re scared to speak up for themselves. They’re scared to say, I need help, or, this is what I need to be successful. Don’t be scared. You need to do that to be successful, and you deserve everything you want, so you should fight for it.”
—Morgan Jones, BFA Communications Design ’24
“You’re all in this together.”
Julia Young, MArch ’24
“Whether you’re starting undergrad or grad, take as many opportunities as you can. When I was in undergrad, I tried to participate in as many clubs, events, volunteer events, and even social events to make friends, network, and just see the city. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there or ask for help.
“Everyone who’s just coming into college is exactly at the same place you are, so you’re all in this together. And don’t hesitate to make friends with people in other years, because they were once where you were, and if they’re cool, they’ll help you out too. You never know where you’ll end up, so make these connections when you can!”
—Julia Young, MArch ’24
“In the School of Information: Introduce yourselves to each other. You are all in the same boat and you may be working together on a group project anyway, so get comfortable.”
—Zeneida Disla, MSLIS (Archives and Rare Books) ’24
“As long as you have the ideas and you’re creative, you can do practically anything.”
Kailea Zheng, AOS Graphic Design ’24
“Don’t put things to the side. Do your work. When you have the time, do it then. You might think, oh, I’ll get to it later. But it’s better to just get it done. Even if it’s just simple work—I’ve had that experience where it all builds up, and if you just do it when you can and get it done, you’ll be ahead of the game.”
—Sierra Schneider, class of 2027
“Get enough sleep.”
—Man-Ling Manning Cheng, MPS Arts and Cultural Management ’24