Curious12345

Good observation, I have gotten my MFA since I last posted - I stand behind my words and think that people should apply to the program because it has a lot to offer! It is so small and gets a good amount of applicants, so treating it as a safety school is not very smart.

You have to realize that Jane Chapman (who was the person giving the presentation) has always been somewhat unfriendly to the idea of a MFA. Almost all of those statistics are skewed in one way or another. Look at all of the artists who have work in the major collections, who show at the other 90% of galleries in LA she didn't include in her stats, they don't even look at you if you don't have a MFA. With that said...is it worth the TIME, not the money, but the TIME. I'd say it is, I'd say the connections are crucial, the polishing, the professionalism...it is all very important.

I think your work would fit in at UCSB, talk to Jane Callister and Phil Argent there.

Yes, there are plenty of TA opportunities, as every school will tell you though, nothing is guaranteed. None of the grads work besides TAing...so that should tell you something. Family housing is great, its like a 10 min WALK to campus, I can see the studios from my front porch and the rent is super cheap. I live in the best one you can get, 2 story, 2 bedroom, and its only $1200 a month including ALL utilities and everything.

Hello fellow Norcalian, I grew up in Rohnert Park. I'd heavily suggest taking a look at SFAI. Do you know Cathy Ellis? She just started here at UCSB.

Figure it out, deadline is approaching, email it to me.

UCSB has good family housing that is close to the graduate studios along with an on campus child care center for students. I'm not blogging about my MFA per-se...but I blog in general about what I'm doing in art. I'm a current grad at UCSB, ask me anything you want.

Ima current grad at UCSB if you have any questions, I made a couple posts about the program if you wanna search my past posts. Funding is great, studios are awesome, program is pretty sweet all around.

SFAI has awesome facilities, UCLA had decent ones when I visited, RISD had good equipment and facilities, USC doesn't...at least not at their grad studios...CCA does...those are all I can remember right now.

The San Francisco Art Institute (where I went for undergrad) has excellent film facilities...hell, they even had a working color processor until a couple years ago.

Sent you a PM!

I'd say very competitive. Any program worth its time - I would imagine would snap you up.

From my UCSB thread, this is what I described as "rookie mistakes": "Rookie mistakes: Not having coherent work, IE: pieces that don't work together, are wildly different, look like they came straight from an undergrad project, and so on. Having documentation/pieces that you can't tell which are which, I saw a video that someone submitted for documentation of their project that we couldn't tell if it was documentation of the project, or if the video was the piece itself. It was dual channel and had all kinds of "artistic" effects going on and TONS of jump-cuts to abstract video documentation of what the person was doing. In that same vein, Poor documentation: Bad lighting, weird angles, close ups of big projects when the shot should include something for scale, and so on... Concepts for projects: I kid you not, there were people who included google sketch ups of things they made or were planning on making. Copying and pasting whatever school you were applying to into your statement, it comes through when you are talking about the school and there are things that don't line up. Like saying this or that dept. when neither of those depts. exist at that school, or even worse, forgetting to copy/paste one out. I read multiple statements that had OTHER school's names in them. If you are interested in a school, do some research and don't be lazy. I don't know, there are a few others, but the gist of it is to be authentic and honest." That'd be my advice, keep it tight and focused, get another set of eyes on everything as well.

If you truly believe that, how come you aren't applying to any that have better reputations than the ones you've selected? IE: Yale, UCLA, UCI, RISD, CalArts, SFAI, CCA, etc etc. I'd say getting a job "blind" would be about reputation, but most teaching positions are granted on face to face interaction and networking, or possibly the schools you graduated from. Personally, I'd go for a school that gives you massive amounts of teaching experience. I'm going to UCSB and I'm TAing 2 classes or more for the rest of my stay here. As an employer, I'd think I'd want a candidate that has experience, not someone fresh from a "reputable" program that has 1 TA'ed class under their belt. Just my 2 pennies!

Some schools do it, some don't, I don't know, it all depends on the person. Here at UCSB I know the professors encourage people to contact them beforehand.

I visited U of Michigan, they seemed to have a really good oncoming student package (iPad/ipod touch/macbook pro) and program. They are 3 years and really seemed to have an interdisciplinary focus and some really cool MFA/MSI or MFA/MBA dual degree programs.

I'm at UCSB right now as a graduate student and you get CRAZY amounts of TAing here. I'm TAing more than 1 class a quarter from this summer till I graduate.

For those of you looking for a fully funded interdisciplinary program with tons of freedom, checkout UCSB. No one ever told me about the program and I'm glad I applied and came. Big studios, crazy good weather, close proximity to LA, tons of TAing... I think we may be hosting a day for perspective grads in the fall sometime...

I disagree with you there, good applicants make the school that much better. More applicants = more competition = more win for everyone. No one talks about the schools that the no ones came from before they even had a chance to become somebody, but they ALWAYS talk about the someones and where they went after they did become somebody, catch my drift? UC Davis gets absurdly high number of applicants because of the Bruce Nauman and Co. that went there in the 70s. That creates more competition there in the 2010's. When I said dismal, I really do mean that. Dismal applicants included people who failed to research the program and submitted industrial design portfolios, graphic design portfolios, and so on. We don't have either of those programs available in the art dept, therefore dismally prepared. Their work may have been stellar in their respective fields, but very dismally prepared. Its like applying for a gardening job with an advertising resume, it just doesn't make sense. As for the rest of the questions, Michael Webster is 100% dead on, portfolio! That and coherence of your statement vs. the portfolio. Artists today have a wide range of practice, myself included, and that means there is a lot to look at. Focus on visual coherence! How does it all tie into what you are interested in? The faculty are aware of contemporary art making and its many forms, so don't think you have to have work that all looks the same or is all the same medium, just make sure it "flows", THAT will get you noticed. Also, it is a GREAT idea to have someone else read your statement and look at your work to see if it makes sense, hopefully you are fortunate enough to have worked with someone who is familiar with your practice...and lastly COME VISIT US!

Rookie mistakes: Not having coherent work, IE: pieces that don't work together, are wildly different, look like they came straight from an undergrad project, and so on. Having documentation/pieces that you can't tell which are which, I saw a video that someone submitted for documentation of their project that we couldn't tell if it was documentation of the project, or if the video was the piece itself. It was dual channel and had all kinds of "artistic" effects going on and TONS of jump-cuts to abstract video documentation of what the person was doing. In that same vein, Poor documentation: Bad lighting, weird angles, close ups of big projects when the shot should include something for scale, and so on... Concepts for projects: I kid you not, there were people who included google sketch ups of things they made or were planning on making. Copying and pasting whatever school you were applying to into your statement, it comes through when you are talking about the school and there are things that don't line up. Like saying this or that dept. when neither of those depts. exist at that school, or even worse, forgetting to copy/paste one out. I read multiple statements that had OTHER school's names in them. If you are interested in a school, do some research and don't be lazy. I don't know, there are a few others, but the gist of it is to be authentic and honest. Oh, and about the blaming, when people start getting mad at you for calling their work dismal and being like "wow that is unprofessional, especially when you are involved with the admissions process", is somewhat blaming someone else besides yourself for what you have done. If I KNEW I had awesome work and had a nice, cohesive, and professional portfolio then why would I even entertain the idea that mine was included in the dismal categorization? See what I'm saying?

Well the thing that gets me is the assumption that I even saw ALL of the applications, they had been picked through and we were seeing the "top 40" in the faculty's eyes...so I don't even know if I saw any of your applications. What I can say is that these applications look WAY different on the other side than you'd think they look, its a whole different world looking at things objectively when something like whether or not you go to grad school is on the line. But do know that the faculty looks VERY closely at each application.

lols @ all those who think my comments about being dismal were out of line. Just because I got to see your portfolios and read your statements does NOT mean I had any effect on who they let in. Sorry if you didn't get a call and you are putting two and two together with my dismal statement and not being accepted, don't act like I had ANY hand in it (we really didn't). Everyone knows the MFA application process is the most fucked thing to make it through...sometimes you get accepted because you DO suck as an artist. In any case I definitely encourage you to GET ANGRY with some stranger on the internet because they called what they saw dismal...(no but seriously, don't try to blame me). I know people who got into RISD and Yale, but got rejected by schools that weren't even in the top 100. Also, UCSB being commercial??? HA HA HA... I don't even know what you mean by that considering you guys say your sources are "at the top of the gallery scene", "art heavy hitters" (the fuck do either of those things even mean?), what the hell is "the gallery scene" if not completely commercial art sales? Unless you are talking about editorial work or design type stuff...which from what I'm experiencing, couldn't be farther from the truth. One of the grads is making a god damned wooden surfboard right now to do performance work on! Half of us barely make physical work...hahaha. Lackluster alum?? Jesus, just cause we don't tout that Richard Serra graduated from here or that there are two artists on Steve Turner's roster that are UCSB MFA alum (should I go on?) doesn't mean that people who graduate from here are deadbeats. I too am personal friends with some "heavy hitters" and they didn't actually know anything about UCSB. Like they said, its no UCLA or USC, but when it comes down to it, when you are at the top, there is nowhere to go but down. I think at LEAST half of the top schools are living on their own credit half of the time. Take UC Davis for example...even their own people dont even know why they get so many applications. In the end, it really doesn't matter what school you go to, ya it might be "easier" if you get into one of the top 5, but even then, the "failure" rate is still huge at those schools too. It is all about the person from what I've seen. Look, the lesson here is that you shouldn't take one person's opinions as the end all of what you consider your work to be. Have some confidence! Also, you should go experience things for yourself if you really want to consider a school. Like I said, I visited before I accepted. If you want to see our work: 2012) http://artsite.arts....e/graduate/2012 2013) http://artsite.arts..../graduates-2013

They have sent out all of their acceptances in case anyone was wondering..

Double lurk.

Congrats! Hope I see you next year, you won't be disappointed. UCSB and SB are unreal...it was 80 degrees and sunny today. If you have any questions, send me a PM. To the others, they always contact by phone first. Most places do it that way.