grad_wannabe

@Sophialab what program did you apply for at CalArts?

Ay, too true. Last week I got a text on my phone: "One new email received from MIT admission office." My heart leaped into my throat and I tore through the office back to my desk, practically knocking over the receptionist and two chairs on the way there. Turns out it was just an, "applications are currently being considered, you will hear from us soon!" email. ARRRGHHH.

I applied to the same program. Let me know when you hear anything!! Dream program, for sure.

What program did you apply to at MIT? Congrats on your acceptance to Davis!!

I applied to NYU ITP also - haven't heard anything. Let us know when you hear! Congrats on your upcoming interviews.

I've generally heard that inquiring "would be able to write a favorable recommendation" (as you wrote) is the best way to go. I would try to scope her out. Tell her about your application plans, see how she reacts. Does she voluntarily offer her services? Or do you have to press for a letter? If she volunteers, she would probably write you a good letter. But, if she does not offer anything even after you tell her of your application plans, probably better to find someone else.

Got an interview at CalArts, via email.

Possible upside of the holiday (which someone also mentioned about the snow days) is that no classes are being held that day = more time for them to spend reading our applications!

Jesus, imagine the carbon footprints made by everyone FLYING around to look at schools and interview??

i know for certain that there are people giving misleading information on the written forums, at any rate. I don't know about the results search. Over on the visual arts board, one person claimed to have gotten into School X last year and "for some reason, just didn't go - I'm reapplying this year!" I personally spoke with the director of that program last month - he told me that for the last 8 years, their department has had a 100% offer-of-admission retention rate: NO ONE has turned down an offer of admission. This school's funding track is renowned for its generosity (it's essentially free), so I believe him.

Ah! I understand the evils of sitting in front of a computer at work all day, with the devil's "refresh" button there taunting you. Baking muffins and getting a dog is all well and good and wonderful on your own time, but the frustration of waiting can get especially hard at work. I try to find giant, in-depth online databases of fun stuff that I can troll through ad infinitum. Recently I've been working my way through the websites for the London Review of Books, The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, and Atul Gawande's and Woody Allen's written archives for the New Yorker - most completely online. Find something you like, then find a treasure trove of related material that will keep you diverted and riveted for hours.

I just checked the results page - totally collapsing into a tide of Ball State jokes! Ahaha priceless.

I wanna meet some of these Ball State applicants: Ball State University Proctology, PhD (F10) Rejected via E-mail on 11 Feb 2010 I felt like I was such a good fit :-( I am as tall as I am wide!

I like the bitter and childish remarks - good for a laugh, and a lot more fun to look at then page upon page of "accepted" or "rejected." Adds a little life and humanity. Sometimes I actually cruise the results page just to read those notes. And all those "your school sucks anyway" remarks - that's called sour grapes. Of course they wanted to get in. They applied, paid the application fee, waited for months, got the rejection, and posted it online, and bitched and moaned in the comments box. C'mon, let em have a moment of anonymous self pity. If you don't want to read them, then ... don't.

You might find more info on the Arts -> Performance subforum

I've heard nada... Based on the results search data, they should be sending interview invites out within the next two weeks...

Oh my lord, THIS. It's such a struggle to not launch into a convoluted tirade about applications in every conversation. For awhile there I was practically accosting strangers. But, it's definitely worth it to clamp down on that. Once you stop talking about it, it becomes much easier to forget. I went to visit my aunt last weekend determined to keep quiet, and it worked beautifully - we talked about everything under the sun and I had a lovely, peaceful, non-stressed afternoon. As I was leaving she suddenly said, "Oh! Your applications! I forgot to ask - hear anything back yet?" and I was able to calmly and cooly say, "Nope, still waiting" without tearing my hair out.

some questions to ask yourself: 1) what kind of work do you make? do you paint, take photos, make videos, installation, textiles, sculpt, etc? What schools are especially strong in those areas you work in? 2) who are your favorite artists? where did they go to school? who are THEIR favorite artists? where did THEY go to school? 3) are you strict in your medium? some schools, like Yale, have clearly defined boundaries between departments. Others, like USC, are more experimental and interdisciplinary. 4) what kind of art do you WANT to make? do you want to be a commercial artist or a fine artist? Do you want to make magazine ads (you'd want a school like Art Center) or do you want to show in galleries (a school like UCLA)? 5) Okay, so you want to live in or near a city - but what kind of city? Bustling and fast-paced, like New York? Culturally rich and diverse, like Los Angeles? What kind of weather do you want to live in? 6) What are the industries you want to be close to? Align your grad school choice so you'll be in close proximity to those careers, goals and people you want to be a part of. Your UG professors, knowing you and your work, should be able to guide you here. And yes, SVA is a giant in the field, with 14 MFA programs. You sure it's not in your books?

Hi everybody! My list is below. I've heard no news (besides the rote "we're processing your application" emails).

I arrived home to a thick envelope from one of my schools on the dining room table, and my mom saying, "Honey, you got an envelope from [school X]!" only to find it was a measly brochure. This is the same school that sent me an email with "Admissions notice" in the subject line, with nothing more than "we are processing your application" in the body.

I know the feeling of the rapidly depreciating confidence level. I've started giving myself anti-pep talks: "You don't want to get in there, anyway! It's too cold there! Phooey on them!" to prepare myself for complete and total rejection, even though none of my schools have sent out any decisions yet. It must be hell once decisions from your schools start popping up on the results search. My mom said to me the other day, "Oh, honey, you got an envelope from [a school I applied to] in the mail today." I RACED over to the table, heart thumping out of my chest, only to see that the envelope held nothing more than a measly brochure. According to the results page, that program typically sends all its interview invites out during the next two weeks, so ... I'm gonna be tossing and turning a lot.

One of my rec letter writers was friends with Andy Warhol. It took me a minute, the first time she told a story with something like, "Ah, yes, and then Andy said it was fabulous, fabulous..." to realize exactly who she was talking about. And this one isn't really about a professor, but I just heard it yesterday and wanted to share: One of the legal secretaries at my work used to be a Lakers Girl in the early 80s. She knows Magic Johnson.

You have an MA and you're temping? This is my worst nightmare, one that will probably come true. I used to read a blog written by an actor on the TV show Mad Men (Harry Crane, for fans of the show); he started the blog after he got his masters in drama, but before he got the gig on Mad Men, and he was - wait for it - temping. It was actually kind of fascinating reading about this normal guy who got an amazing opportunity, stuff like, "Just got home from another horrible day temping at some office. Tomorrow I have an audition for some new show called Mad Men...the script is good, I wonder if it will work out..."

Boo! This is what I was afraid of... I heard it's really competitive to get an English-teaching job there, and the TEFL requirements are expensive. Don't they know this is my back-up plan?!

Pending my across-the-board rejections, I want to move to Hong Kong and get a gig teaching English. Or, I might WWOOF it - anyone else done this? World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. You get free food and a roof over your head for six hours of farm labor a day - awesome way to see an unfamiliar place. I lived - for free - on a farm in Pudong, outside Shanghai for about two weeks in July. I'll never forget it.