Warning to anyone considering AKI Academy of Art & Design (Enschede) especially the Crossmedia Design and Moving Image programs
I studied both Crossmedia Design and Moving Image at AKI Academy in Enschede and finished roughly two years ago. As of 2026, I see the same people still running the same programs and classes, so I'm writing this for anyone currently considering studying there.
False promises from the start
The way the program is advertised is misleading. They create the impression that teachers come from the industry who will genuinely guide you, that you'll receive individual attention in a close-knit academy. None of that held up in practice. "You will be guided throughout your study" turned out to mean a shallow 15-minute "how's it going" check-in. "Artistic freedom" turned out to mean you were free to create, while absorbing careless, aggressive feedback and having your process largely ignored. So called "critical and independent thinking" was more of an ideological conditioning that you could barely speak up against.
They also use students' final work to promote the program without asking for their consent.
Evaluation and feedback (or the absence of it)
This was one of the most damaging parts. No proper engagement with your work. No professional critique. Most of the feedback, when it came at all, was superficial; "not good enough," "be more open" delivered at times in aggressive or harassing tones. When you sought dialogue or clarification, you were met with avoidance and stonewalling. They would say one thing and hold you accountable for another. In one instance in our third year, a teacher yelled at my classmate in front of everyone over things that were simply not true.
On paper, the third year in Moving Image study gave you space to develop your own project with guidance; in reality, that guidance was nowhere to be found, and students were still failed for not completing work while being told completion wasn't required.
Ideological filtering disguised as mentorship
What they call "critical and independent thinking" functions more like ideological conditioning. If you don't fit their framework, intellectually, politically, or otherwise, expect feedback that is consistently aggressive and discouraging, and increasing difficulty accessing teachers at all. They want full transparency into your process and inspirations, but then neither engage with what you share nor offer any meaningful response to it. Based on my experience and observations across departments, the pattern is consistent: students who align with the prevailing ideology are encouraged, others are gradually pushed out. Certain teachers made openly toxic comments involving skin color and gender. This wasn't marginal, it shaped the atmosphere.
The broader pattern
What I experienced and what I've heard from others, amounts to a prolonged pattern of destabilising interactions, public humiliation, inconsistent and withheld evaluation, power asymmetry, and institutional avoidance of accountability. As a student who was psychologically harmed during my time there, I'll add: accessible English-speaking psychological support in that area is nearly nonexistent. You'd be on your own.
AKI may present itself as a place that develops artists. In my experience, it is more often a place that wears them down. If you find yourself in any conflict, minor or major, know that you are dealing with an institution that is hijacked by people who avoid resolution while maintaining full evaluative power over you.
Don't hand over your creative process, your time, your resources, or your mental health to a place that has shown, repeatedly, that it won't be accountable for how it treats you.
If you're set on studying there despite all of this, I genuinely hope your experience is better than mine was.