henryfive

Yes, I did!

I think on the forum from last year or the year before people had their decisions posted on the site before being contacted, too. Congrats!

Yes! There is a “Decision” link now. It says I was accepted! 😍 I didn’t get an email or anything though.

Wheel-throwing is so difficult at first! What a wonderful way to distract yourself. I think starting a new hobby, doing a lot of self-care (whatever that looks like to you) to keep the stress in check, spending time with your loved ones, etc. are all nice ways to pass the time. I took a great mini vacation in a nearby city over the weekend with one of my best friends and it was just what I needed. I think it's worth noting that last year I only applied to one school and didn't get in. I was super bummed but it ended up being an amazing year for me professionally. I moved into a new work position that has been life-changing and it wouldn't have happened if I got into that program. I find that it is often true that things work out as they should. Keep your chins up and try to think positively! I know that can be difficult. But I know that I did my absolute best with my applications and that's all I can do.

UT Austin looked at my site the day I submitted my app but besides that no other .edu hits. Things should start picking up in the next couple of weeks, especially in early Feb.

Did they say why the rate is down?

It was for a another concentration. I wouldn’t worry! I think it’s common for various departments to contact people at different times.

Got a call from Ohio State University today! I have an interview later this week. 🤩

Some schools want you to talk about your work mostly and other schools want you to talk about your study and professional goals mostly. You should give them what they ask for which is an artist statement. However, you can certainly add in why you want to go to their MFA program!

Depends on the school. It usually says on their application pages if they do interviews or not. I know some schools only do Skype/video/phone interviews that way it is equal for everyone including those who can't afford to be there in person. Some schools, such as UT Austin, will pay travel expenses for accepted students before the prospective student makes their decision. However, most schools do expect the individual to pay for their own travel for interviews, but also offer the option to do Skype/etc. interviews. The downfall of that, of course, is that the people who go for in-person interviews have a lot of advantages. I am only planning to pay to travel for one in-person interview and that will be the school I'm most interested in out of my offers. As far as I know most MFA programs do interviews but some don't.

I think you should mention specific artworks if you use them in a way that connects to your artist statement as a whole. It seems to me that a lot of schools want to see a strong common thread throughout your work and more or less a singular vision as an artist. As long as you tie in the individual works in a way that strengthens the whole, I say go for it. I mentioned one individual work in my letters because it sums up a lot of the aspects of my current series.

Does anyone know if Columbia College Chicago does interviews during the selection process?

Don't forget about obsessively checking Google Analytics! 😂

I'll probably just go in person to one or two. Since I'm applying to schools all in different states it would be too stressful to go to all of them in person... and expensive!

I sent all of mine in today, too! Best of luck to you!