There is an application fee of $110 per application.

The narrative statement is a very important part of your application for admission. It’s our chance to get to know you better as a storyteller and as a person. This is your chance to tell us your story. Your statement should be no longer than 3 pages in length, and it should contain the following.

The majority of the narrative statement should tell us:

• About your own unique story. What shaped you as a person? What is important to you about the stories you want to tell? The goal is to get to know you as a person and as a storyteller outside of your resume and professional accomplishments.

We’d also like you to touch upon the following questions in a meaningful way in your statement as well:

• Why are you applying for this specific discipline? What people/movies/art inspire you in that field?
• The AFI Conservatory is a hands-on collaborative learning environment. What is your experience as a collaborator in the filmmaking process?
• How do you see the AFI Conservatory benefiting your long-term career goals?

If you are applying to two disciplines, we recommend writing a unique statement for each of your applications that is tailored to and reflects your thoughts and passion about that discipline.

Please make it easy on our diverse admissions committee members and keep your narrative statement easy to read with a conventional font (Times New Roman), size 12, double spaced, and normal margins.

Your resume should detail your professional work, set experience, education level and degree(s) earned (please see additional information in the TRANSCRIPTS section about listing education in your resume).

We ask that applicants submit the names of two individuals who will provide a professional (academic or artistic) recommendation. The recommenders will be e-mailed a link from the GradCAS application portal. No personal recommendations are allowed.

Applicants are responsible for ensuring their recommenders have completed the online recommendation by the application deadline date as your application cannot be reviewed without them. AFI will only accept letters directly from the recommender and not from the applicant. Submissions provided by the applicant will not be considered. No hard copy letters are accepted.

Letters of recommendation are due before or on the application deadline date.

The AFI Conservatory Admissions Office accepts unofficial transcripts* during the admissions process. A transcript is a document that provides a list of courses and grades earned by you at an institution. Unfortunately, diplomas cannot be accepted in lieu of transcripts.

In the online application, please only list schools of higher education where a transcript can be obtained. A transcript is required for any of the schools listed as part of your admissions application. Please note, a school cannot be removed or deleted from your application once you submit it so please keep this in mind when listing the school(s) you attended. If a transcript cannot be obtained, a letter from the school stating so will be required.

If you attended other schools that may be pertinent to your application (for example, you attended extension courses or a workshop), please list these on your resume and not in the application system. Should the AFI Conservatory need additional information about your academic background, we will reach out to you directly.

For international applicants: please submit all credentials and transcripts with an official English translation (if applicable). A bachelor’s equivalency report will be required for Admitted Fellows who decide to enroll at the AFI Conservatory. For more information, please visit our International Applicants page. The Registrar determines final evaluation of applicants’ records.

Certificate of Completion applicants: if you have some higher education history, please list that school in the Academic History section. If you do not have any higher education post high school (primary school), please list where you received your high school diploma and answer the academic history questions to the best of your ability.

All transcripts and credentials are due before or on the application deadline date.

*Admitted Fellows who decide to enroll at the AFI Conservatory will be required to submit official transcripts. Transcripts are considered official if the AFI Conservatory receives them directly from the issuing school either digitally or by post mail, or if the Admitted Fellow sends a physical copy in a signed and sealed envelope.

Applicants who do not hold an earned undergraduate degree or equivalent may be eligible to apply to participate in our program as an Associate Fellow. Eligibility to apply to the program as an Associate Fellow is based upon the applicant having demonstrated exceptional skill through a track record in his/her/their field, and a required number of years of applicable experience, as determined by the Conservatory.

Applicants must:

1. Complete the full application including discipline specific requirements;
2. Document a minimum of 3 years of professional experience and accomplishments;
3. Demonstrate the maturity to participate in a graduate level program (and apply a minimum of 4 years post completion of his/her/their high school in the US or secondary education abroad)

Associate Fellows are required to meet all the requirements and obligations of degree-candidate Fellows. Associate Fellows are awarded Certificates of Completion upon successful completion of all requirements of the AFI Conservatory program within their respective discipline.

The AFI Conservatory is a need-blind institution. Scholarship or financial need is not taken into consideration during the admissions process and would never be used in hindrance to an applicant’s admissions decision.

After you submit your admissions application, if you wish to be considered for a scholarship, please submit this form by February 1, 2023. This form will be submitted directly to the AFI Conservatory’s Office of Financial Aid. Notification of scholarship awards will be sent out after an admissions decision has been rendered and admitted Fellows will receive notification if they have been awarded a scholarship or not.

AFI Scholarship consideration is open to domestic and international applicants. Late applications may not be considered.

International applicants must submit an English proficiency score if English is not the applicant’s native language. The AFI Conservatory accepts the following tests TOEFL (iBT, MyBestScore, and Essentials), IELTS, and Duolingo.

The minimum scores required are:

• TOEFL score requirement is 100 for Internet-based (iBT)/MyBestScore or 11 for TOEFL Essentials.
• IELTS score requirement is 7.0.
• Duolingo score requirement is 125.

Applications will not be reviewed without the minimum test score. No exceptions. For testing information, go directly to the testing sites: TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo. Test results must be taken within 24 months of the date you apply to the Conservatory, or they will be considered invalid. AFI only accepts official test results and not results submitted by the applicant. Please send official test results to the following:

• For TOEFL, please send scores to code B886. TOEFL scores are sent to our application system, GradCAS, and not directly to AFI for processing.
• For IELTS, AFIis registered to receive IELTS scores electronically through GradCAS. Applicants must contact the IELTS test center where the IELTS test was taken to request the official Test Report Form be sent electronically to the GradCAS E-Delivery account, thereby granting permission to share test results with CAS services. We do not accept unofficial copies of IELTS Test Report Forms from applicants. An institution code is not required to send scores through GradCAS. If necessary, to send scores directly to AFI, please use code 9760.
• For Duolingo, when logged into your Duolingo account, please send test score directly to the American Film Institute for processing. The GradCAS system does not process these scores.

We recommend international applicants take the TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo well in advance of the application deadline to report the qualifying minimum score. Please allow appropriate time for test scheduling and the distribution of results.

Qualifying test scores are due before or on the application deadline date.

International Applicants — click here to learn more.