hi all, longtime lurker here and i need help making a decision.
i was accepted to CalArts (still waiting on potential finaid package), SAIC with no funding, Hunter CUNY with a scholarship of $5000 every semester, and waitlisted at University of Chicago. i work in installation, sculpture and performance for reference. i'll also add that i'm from a car city but i am all in favor of public transportation and would love to mostly use public transit.
so my dream school since I was young has been SAIC but $80K a year in this economy sounds like im going to be signing myself up for poverty. i visited the campus and the staff and students are wonderful, but im concerned about the debt.
and Hunter is great - i visited last month. but i'm a sculptor and it feels more like a painter school. i know it's basically free and it's frickin New York and anything is possible is New York! plus i have a community of artist friends who are currently working there and doing quite well for themselves, so i know it is possible. i don't know if it's all in my head but when i visited, i felt the lack of community/comeradery between students and the small tiny wood and metal shops for hard sculpture. also, half of the campus is on the other side of NY... how am i supposed to transport sculpture around efficiently? i'm just struggling with envisioning myself in that academic setting happy. this one is tricky.
now CalArts: i think feels quite abstract for me because i haven't visited yet. my family loves the idea of California, since there's opportunity for me to work in Hollywood entertainment - which although is not fine arts, is actually quite promising for me since i have skills in acting/music. i come from a big car city so i'm not excited about having to drive myself around LA.
UGH i need HELP!!
