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Gwhar1

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Everything posted by Gwhar1

  1. Gwhar1
    Yaaaas! Congrats!!
  2. Gwhar1
    Wahoo! Fantastic!! Congrats
  3. Gwhar1
    Yes!! Congrats
  4. Gwhar1
    Yup, me. I'm over 40 and couldn't be more excited about committing to an MFA and dedicating all day everyday (except when I'm at day job) to my practice. My profs and peers have all been supportive and advisers tell me not to hide, but to put forward my age as it helps with configuring a diverse cohort - life experience and all that. And I'm not even the oldest kid in my undergrad program. If I don't find a program this round I'll try again. One of my fave profs got his MFA at 51 and his career is growing to the point where he has difficultly finding time to take teaching gigs. Of course multiple rounds without being selected will test the most resolute, no shame in voicing that aggravation, but I concur: age really isn't a concern
  5. Gwhar1
    Phone Interview with Glasgow School of Art. I think I did well but I've thought that at job interviews before and ended up kicking rocks so fingers crossed. I stammered hard on the "What will you bring to the program?" I almost said "I'm really nice." :/
  6. Gwhar1
    Tyler!! Fantastic Congrats
  7. Gwhar1
    Congrats! Very Cool
  8. Gwhar1
    Holy smokes you are getting it done!!
  9. Gwhar1
    Congrats! You rock!!
  10. Gwhar1
    I applied to Delaware. Haven't heard anything since I submitted
  11. Gwhar1
    Very Cool!! Congrats
  12. Gwhar1
    Welcome stranger - there are other printmakers on this forum who are also applying during this cycle.
  13. Gwhar1
    Yes!! Congrats.
  14. Gwhar1
    Good choice. All of my professors (without exception) tell me that going into significant debt for an MFA is “ridiculous.” “Don’t do it!” they say. Same goes for all of the visiting artists who spoke about the benefits of the MFA experience. “If you are going to go into debt, make it as little as possible, it is never going to be worth it.” Meaning, the experience is both priceless and un – quantifiable but don’t pay dearly. At least that is the message I am receiving. The obvious extrapolation would be: unless you are able to afford an MFA without taking loans or are being funded in large part, then re-apply until you get funding. The thing is, that many of these same profs and proffs will offer a caveat, “don’t borrow to go, unless you get into your number one, then do whatever it takes.” So I am wondering, same as you; what gives? This rationalization of “going for it,” while simultaneously lamenting that decision is more confusing than it is helpful. So am I willing to burden the future me with an onus he can’t manage? Not really. But on the other hand, I have been able to handle whatever the young me threw at the older, present-day-me and trust me, that kid (me) made some terrible decisions, so I’ll be OK. Maybe. Or how about that I got rejected from #1 and there is a new #1? How about that I have four number ones anyway? What if my #3 isn’t fully funded but is near enough that I can keep my job, but part of the reason I went to art school at my advanced age is because I am sick of my job? I’m thinking this is not only a decision about who I will be in the future but also about who I am right now. This has the proportions of an existential crisis. I can move the barre where ever I want and still feel like I am listening to reason but I don’t want to be the guy who tells future students that I regret taking on debt and I don’t want to be the guy in a program he only kind of likes, thinking to himself “I should have waited for another cycle.” I want to make the right decision NOW! Of course, there might not be a real answer except to say that whatever is decided should be acknowledged as the best decision available at the time, and it sounds like you have done just that. I am grateful for your disclosure in this forum. It will help to know that sanity can prevail if I find myself in this situation after my interviews.
  15. Gwhar1
    congrats!!
  16. Gwhar1
    Yes!! Congratulations.
  17. Gwhar1
    I'm with you on this. What a ridiculous email. Poor grammar, Type-O's, ugh. And the invitation to apply to a program I have no interest in???
  18. Gwhar1
    What was the Glasgow interview like? I am interviewing next Thursday with them. I won't be able to attend without some funding so I feel your pain. What school is offering full funding for you. That is going to be a huge factor in your decision of course...
  19. Gwhar1
    Dang, just got another rejection. This time from Hunter. I think it is a good fit so it stings a little, less so than the first rejection, so a marked increase in my resilience is one take-away from this stressful process. This is my first cycle and I thought I’d have some choices by now. I applied to 9 programs and have been rejected from 4, invited to interview at 2 and haven’t heard boo from the remaining three. I have heard that toughening-up the hide is necessary to survive the art world and to this end I am off to a good start Silly but true. Also, there have been other marked progressions in my practice, obvious in retrospect, but unexpected at the outset. First, I learned to be comfortable talking about my work. The first essay (Yale) was the hardest and the clumsiest. I figured I’d get the important one out of the way and I would use whatever smart stuff I came up with for all my applications. It turned out that schools want different information, and after amending, rewriting, and surmising, many times over, my essays got good at the end of the submission process -when the program mattered the least to me. Of course, It doesn’t mean that My UD essay would have wowed the folks at Yale, or that I’d get accepted into my less desirable program. We all know that qualification for candidacy does not guarantee selection. The point is that I’ve developed fluency when discussing my own visual language, intention, and process. This has given my work a voice it didn’t have, and my work is stronger as a result. So that’s the other thing. My work got better after my applications were in. Totally. All the documentation, descriptions, resizing, personal statements, SOP’s, and artist’s statements, clarified what my work was about in a way that made is easier to see where it should be going and my work is starting to look as cohesive as I wished it was when I put the application packages together. All this is to say that, if I don’t get any offers I can afford, or any offers at all, I am looking forward with a new-found confidence despite the rejections. This on-line community has been a great help and congratulations to all the folks who have received offers!!
  20. Gwhar1
    @artdreamer I would like to see your work as well. Can you link a drive, or a site?
  21. Gwhar1
    congrats! I hope you get in.
  22. Gwhar1
    I am still waiting on PennDesign but I'm pretty sure there are some in this forum who have been asked to interview already
  23. Gwhar1
    COngrats!!
  24. Gwhar1
    Hell YEs!! Congrats.
  25. Gwhar1
    The reviews I have heard have been great. A little complaining about walking around between parking, studios, or something but I am going for the tour/interview to see what gives. I am also excited about the MFA/MA dual degree opportunity.
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