NYU Tisch Special Programs Online High School Filmmakers Workshop

There's no set class time. NYU Tisch releases pre-recorded lectures each week on Smashcut, and you watch them when it suits you, but you'll have daily or weekly assignments to upload by the deadlines in your syllabus. Live sessions with your professor, teaching assistant and classmates are scheduled during the term, and Tisch lets you choose a meeting time that fits your schedule.

The harder part is the crew work. Your documentary and music video are made with classmates who may be in different time zones and countries, and Tisch makes it each student's job to work out how the crew collaborates and when to meet. One alum, Kaonna Hyacinthe, recalls a three-hour Zoom call late at night editing with the group.

You'll need a camera that shoots high-quality footage (a prosumer camera, DSLR or phone), a desktop or laptop with a webcam and microphone, a fast internet connection and the Chrome browser.

NYU Tisch names five instructors for the online filmmakers workshop: Gay Abel-Bey, Chris Chan Roberson, Maxim Dashkin, Philip DeRise and Shivani Khattar. Tisch says its high school courses are taught by Tisch undergraduate faculty, and teaching assistants also review and respond to your work during the term. Tisch doesn't publish class sizes or say which of these instructors you'll be assigned to.

You leave with 4 NYU college credits and a letter grade for the course, listed as SPEC-UT 200, along with the short films you made. If you later enroll at NYU as a full-time undergraduate, the credits apply to your degree automatically, and the grade counts toward your NYU GPA. Every other college sets its own transfer policy, so you'd have to ask each one after you're admitted.

Grades are posted by September, but NYU doesn't send transcripts automatically, so you need to request one from the NYU Registrar if you want it for an application.

You need to be a current high school student, from freshman to senior year, when you apply, with at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA on a 4.0 unweighted scale. Students from any country can apply. If English isn't your first language, you'll need English test results unless you've completed three or more full-time consecutive years of school taught only in English. You don't need film experience, since NYU Tisch says most students start with little or none.

• Written responses

  Three answers of up to 250 words each, plus any prompts specific to the workshop.

• Creative résumé

  Your training, awards, projects, community service and work experience, in or outside school, with optional links to videos or photos you've made.

• Transcript

  A PDF covering every semester of high school. Homeschooled students' parents email a record of coursework instead, and non-English transcripts need an official English translation.

• Profile form

  The NYU Tisch Supplemental Profile Form, completed alongside the application.

• Your own voice

  Tisch strongly recommends against using AI tools in the application.

The summer 2027 workshop costs $8,368, which NYU Tisch lists as the total program cost, plus a $75 application fee that isn't refunded. You can ask for a need-based waiver of that fee by emailing Tisch Special Programs Admissions to explain your financial hardship. You also supply your own camera, computer and editing setup.

Once admitted, you hold your place with a $1,500 deposit and pay the rest through NYU eSuite before classes start (international students pay through Flywire). NYU's payment plans and payment extensions don't apply to this workshop, so the full amount is due before the start. The deposit is never refunded, but if you drop by email within four days of classes starting, you get the rest of your tuition and fees back.

Tisch has a limited number of need-based scholarships for students who show the most financial need, and it doesn't publish the amounts. The scholarship form arrives by email after you submit a complete application. Tisch also suggests looking for outside sponsorship and notes that past participants approached local businesses, larger companies such as airlines, government offices and fundraising sites.

Applications go through NYU Tisch Special Programs' SlideRoom portal.

1. 1

   Submit the application and the $75 fee on SlideRoom by 1 June 2027 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

2. 2

   Complete the NYU Tisch Supplemental Profile Form by the same 1 June deadline.

3. 3

   If you need a scholarship, watch for the emailed link, which arrives within two business days of the profile form, and submit by 4 June 2027 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

4. 4

   Look out for your decision, including any scholarship outcome, by email on 8 June 2027.

5. 5

   Confirm your place by paying the deposit by 21 June 2027 at 11:59 p.m. ET, or the spot is withdrawn.

6. 6

   Pay the balance, submit the NYU program forms signed by you and a parent, and set up your Smashcut account before classes begin on 12 July 2027.