As one of the top ranking universities in the world, the University of California, Irvine is a class apart. A member of the prestigious Association of American Universities, the university was ranked at number 58th in Fine Arts and as 45th best national university by U.S. News Best Colleges rankings this year. The QS World University Rankings placed it at 148th spot this year. The University of California, Irvine is known for its academic thoroughness as much as it is known for attracting the best and the brightest students from across the world.

The university has its name associated with a number of Nobel Prize winners and has more than 35 American Academy of Arts and Science members. The university’s Claire Trevor School of the Arts is one of the most distinguished and highly renowned fountainheads of talent in the creative arts industry. The School offers courses in the fields of dance, drama, music and studio arts, as well as a minor in digital arts. As one of the US’ most-acclaimed centres devoted to the creative industries, the School is famous for some of the most celebrated actors in America.

Pic: University of California, Irvine.

Pic: University of California, Irvine.

Dance
Inspiring and cultivating generations of creative minds, the Department of Dance is renowned for its quality. It offers the largest and the most comprehensive range of university dance programs in the country. Not restricting itself to any one dance form, the department offers a variety instead: jazz, tap, ballet, tango and many more. With rigorous practical training to perfect the moves with grace and nonchalance, the dance education here also involves courses like dance history, choreography, videography, kinesiology, research methods, injury prevention, critical issues in dance, music, dance and digital technology, dance management, Laban Movement Analysis and so on. This wide canvas of areas covered is just one example of the vast scope and in-depth understanding the School offers. The department offers two undergraduate degrees – BA and BFA, and one graduate degree—MFA.

Drama
As the Department of Drama celebrates its 46th year as a leading drama education centre, one needs to focus on what makes it so good. The professional attitude, awesome resources, eminent faculty, regular events to meet distinguished people from the world of drama and an exhaustive list of illustrious alumni are just some of the many reasons why this drama department is a cut above the rest. Students are not just taught to get into the skin of the character and deliver the dialogues, they are also made to learn so much else about drama. How to explore, imagine and inspect various elements of a performance; why the social, political, religious and cultural backgrounds play an important role in understanding the nuances of a theme — students are taught everything.

Music
Offering the best in facilities and technology, the Department of Music adheres to the highest quality and output in music. Students are expected to deliver high standards of aesthetics, performance and theoretical inquiry. The undergraduate and graduate degrees offered by this department are accompanied by non-major courses allowing students to explore music in “the humanistic domain”. The faculty constitutes the best of the talents from around the world and includes music theorists, conductors, performers, musicologists and composers. The faculty members are all active professionals in the field of music and belong to some of the elitist ranks of the Pacific Symphony, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and so on. The versatility of the curriculum is remarkable.

Studio Arts
This department offers Bachelors as well as Masters programs in art practices. Experimentation is encouraged while inter-disciplinarily approach is a norm. Each student is taught to develop an individual style and approach to ‘media, materials and techniques’. Studio Arts covers painting, sculpting, photography, digital imaging, drawing, and more.

Digital Arts Minor
This undergraduate Digital Arts Minor course blends art with technology. It offers classes in digital imaging, theatre design, interactive digital media, dance and music technology, sound and video, computer music composition and so on. Benefiting from its association with the University of California, Irvine, the School offers interdisciplinary projects to allow computer science and engineering students to work together with the arts students to collaborate and share a practical experience.

International
The University’s Education Abroad Program offers students the opportunity to study abroad. Special programs for Studio Art majors are offered in Venice. International partnerships through programs such as Paris Dance Tour, Singers Tour (Mexico), art students’ exhibits in various galleries and numerous opportunities to display their creative talents as groups or individuals keeps the enthusiasm of the students high.

University of California, Irvine

When it comes to locations, it doesn't get much better than this. Pic: University of California, Irvine.

Campus Life and Facilities
The location of the School, in Orange County, is considered as one of the safest places to live in America. Geographical variety in beaches, mountains, deserts and numerous entertainment activities make life at Irvine something special.

The campus’ Daniel Aldrich Park offers a 21-acre ‘oasis of serenity’. The marvellous architectural designs of the building give a special character to the campus. The School offers some of the most envious infrastructure and facilities to its students and staff. With six on-campus theatres, the CyberA Cafe, The Beall Center for Art + Technology, two art galleries, a costume design and construction studio, a stage production shop, digital arts labs and a motion capture studio, the School provides excellent facilities to support artistic development and after-class life.

The newest addition to the School’s infrastructure is the Contemporary Arts Center at the Claire Trevor School of the Arts campus. It houses a variety of facilities, including a new black box theatre or Multi Media Performance Space (MMPS), an art gallery, Colloquium Room, Performance Capture Studio, Meyer Sound Lab and Costume Shoppe, as well as MFA studios, faculty offices, meeting rooms, and the latest technological and fibre optic set-ups available. The official Grand Opening Celebration will take place on November 9, 2011.

You can connect with the University of California, Irvine and Claire Trevor School of the Arts on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter