Students applying to Pratt as freshmen must complete an online school application form and submit a $50 fee. The application fee may be paid online via electronic check or credit card. Additionally, students must send official high school transcripts, SAT or ACT test scores, an essay, and one letter of recommendation written by a teacher or other adult person who has knowledge of and experience with the student's artistic/academic work. Art, design, and architecture applicants must submit a 12- to 20-piece portfolio of their work. This should be in the medium that the student intends to study. Non-studio art history students should submit a written portfolio in lieu of an artistic portfolio. Portfolios may be digital and can be submitted online.
Transfer admission is granted to students that have previously completed a minimum of one semester or 12 credit hours of study at another college. College requirements for admission as a transfer student are a completed online application with the $50 fee, official transcripts from all colleges attended as well as high school transcripts, a minimum of one letter of recommendation from a professor or other adult with substantial knowledge of the student's abilities, an essay, and a visual or written portfolio. Portfolio requirements are the same as those for freshmen.
Pratt offers two associate programs, an Associates of Occupational Studies and an Associates of Applied Sciences. These two-year programs can either be taken as a career track professional preparation program or as a college transfer program. Admissions requirements for the associate programs are identical to those for bachelor's level freshmen.
Non-U.S. students may apply for admission to Pratt Institute. Requirements include the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) for non native English speakers or the SAT/ACT for students whose first language is English, official transcripts from all schools and institutions attended (foreign language transcripts must be translated into English), test results from exams such as the Hong Kong School Certificate of Education, visual portfolio, and a completed online application with a $90 fee.
Students interested in Pratt's graduate level programs must submit a completed online application with a $50 fee, all transcripts from post-secondary institutions (transcripts must show evidence that the student has earned at least a bachelors level degree), three letters of recommendation from a professor or person who has knowledge of the student's skills and talents, a statement of purpose essay that focuses on long-term goals, a visual portfolio for the department that the student is applying to, and GRE scores for art history, master of library science, and architecture programs only.