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grad--and his work is AMAZING. he just won the international sculpture center's awd for most promising young sculptor (or some title like that)--not that that should neccessarily give his word any more cred...

Which program are you applying for (do they specify?)--I had a friend who went there a couple of years ago for sculpture, and he hated it: he transferred out after one year, to SUNY Albany. That's just one person's experience, and I think it had something to do with the faculty person he wanted to work with being on sabbatical, so it may very well be a fine program, but that's the only thing I know about it.

I just added this to my list, last minute, because my boyfriend is applying to a master pgm there, and i figured 'why not?'--has anyone heard anything (good or bad) about the MFA program there?

yes, this was super weird. i had the exact same experience. question: they offered me a 1pm time next mon, and asked if that would be convenient, but i'm actually going to be traveling for work, so i wrote back and (very politely) asked if there were any alternate times. that was last night, and i still haven't heard--they wouldn't retract the interview just because i asked for a different time, right? i'm so jumpy and paranoid, that i'm starting to convince myself that that's what happened. should i not have asked??

no, no indication why--very weird, but i assume it was an administrator who told me 'no interviews' and she may have been mistaken?? it's a phone interview with several of the faculty...yikes!

Interview at PennDesign (despite the fact that they told me that they don't conduct finalist interviews?!?). Notice via email this evening, scheduled for Monday, Feb 14th.

Hi, On this (somewhat unnerving) note (the Plan B note), I'm wondering if anyone has recommendations for residencies (anywhere in the world) for young, pre-MFA artists. I think I'm going to apply to a few--ones with funding, preferably, as a plan B. So far I have Vermont Studio Center and Djerassi in CA on my list. Any other great ones? Thanks!

I'm honestly not sure: I think a lot of people are applying for painting, and I don't have a sense of how much they separate things out in the review process. I didn't think it was a very competitive program going into this, but I'm realizing now that I might have been wrong about that...I'm curious, also, if they conduct interviews. (on another note): PennDesign emailed back and said that they do NOT conduct finalist interviews.

got an email from Penn Design today saying that we can all 'check our online account as of March 14th' for our decisions. i wrote back to ask if they interview. will post if i hear back.

has anyone heard from VCU re: interview? it looks like last year they were sending notifications via email around this time... (painting and printmaking)

Some more--I'm obsessing a bit, and some of these are repeats, but hopefully helpful. Mica (Hoffberger) - Accepted 3/19 WUSTL (Sam Fox School) - Accepted 2/18 Sfai - Accepted 2/17 Risd - Waitlisted 3/30 Yale - Interviewed 3/26 Columbia College Chicago- Accepted, March 11 SVA-Rejected, March 12 SAIC-Rejected, March 16 I heard from VCU painting via email on February 3 that I have an interview rejected by Tyler via letter on February 12 email feb. 6 that i was a "finalist" for the mfa painting at tyler Rejected Univ NC-Chapel Hill 2/1 Accepted UW-Madison - 2/10 RISD Interview on March 24 Hunter Interview March 20 UT Austin Wait List Feb 25

here are some more dates i dug up for a few programs (all rejections...). it's helpful to see when schools respond, anxiety-level-wise. UT Austin - rejected via letter mid-February Tyler Painting - rejected via letter on 3/12/09 Tyler Sculpture - rejected via letter on 3/28/09 VCU Sculpture - rejected via letter on 3/30/09 RISD Sculpture - rejected via letter on 3/17/09 UMD College Park - rejected via letter on 3/24/09

I visited there (Mount Royal, mind you, which i think it sort of the 'black sheep' of the MICA family--and i mean that in the 'cool-black-sheep' way) last spring, and initially thought that it would become my first choice, because it touted so many of the things (multidisciplinary study, close contact with faculty, tight network of connections, etc.) that i really wanted in a program. however, after visiting a number of other programs (almost 10 others) over the course of the last year, i ended up crossing it off of my list. i realized that the student work i saw there felt too glossy and 'market-driven,' and that something about the way students talked about the program (current Mt Royal students at the time) felt 'too cool for school' to me--this is totally just my take/ experience and for some it might be the perfect program. also, ultimately, the price was prohibitive. i don't want to graduate from an MFA program with 75k or more in debt. those are my two cents, but you should certainly do your own research.

Oh, what does that mean?

what? what is FTW?

i wrote them cards as well--but i think it's totally your call and depends on your relationship with them. my thinking was also that, if things don't work out this year, and i have to ask them to do this all again, i want to have put my best foot forward...

I'd be careful about relying on those numbers: some programs (like VCU, Yale, etc.) have very different acceptance rates for different media (paint, sculpture, e.g.). I think Petersons just averages that out, which might give inaccurate %s overall. Also, I think for MFA programs these kinds of #s are so variable: app #s can change vastly from year to year...

I'm also applying to carnegie and am surprised that i haven't seen it on many people's lists--i LOVE the program there. wondering what drew you to it and what sort of work you make. i really love the contextual practice bit and emphasis on academics as well as studio practice, and i make multi-media print-based but moving-into-installation kinds of things. L

in some cases, if you don't waive your right, schools won't put as much faith in the word of the recommender: if you can demand to see the letter, the writer might hold back about negative stuff. that said, if you haven't looked at the letters and this was a total accident, i don't think there should be any problem with you writing to the grad office and just telling them that it was an honest mistake, that you haven't seen, and never plan on seeing, those letters, and to please change the form to reflect this. re: the GPA, from everything i've heard this isn't a big factor in grad MFA admission--the portfolio is the primary thing, obviously, as well as your statement. all of that to say: don't give up hope.

I totally agree. I have visited all of them, actually, except for Cornell (they have really strange policies about how you may/ may not visit). If you're looking for hardcore printmaking (like 'will make you a master printer) programs, these are not the right ones--my list is all interdisciplinary, though I did make sure that every program was set up for screen printing, as that's what I mostly use in my work. for the serious printmaking programs go to the us news and world report rankings. i've hear great things about UT Knoxville, Tyler and SAIC, among others. Mine are not listed in order of preference. That would look like this: Cornell Carnegie Mellon VCU Purchase PennDesign Rutgers Brooklyn These programs, aside from encouraging interdisciplinary work, all offer funding as well as teaching assistantships (both essential for me). They also all have great studio spaces--Brooklyn actually has some of the nicest I've seen. Good luck and holler with other questions. L

I am, but only at programs that are discipline specific in the application process--my work is print-based but really multi media. Applying to: Rutgers Purchase Brooklyn College Carnegie Mellon Cornell PennDesign VCU what about you?

just for our peace of mind can you say which school that was?

I'm going to choose not to believe that, because in most admission offices that time stamp doesn't necessarily have anything to do with when your materials arrive: they can arrive and sit in a mail bin for three days before they are processed and filed. I'm only arguing for the sake of others reading--personally, I've realized that I'm not concerned about that and I think deadlines are deadlines for a reason--it's not fair to prioritize students who apply earlier (pre-deadline), and as an admissions officer myself I know ethically that's against best practices--so i don't think anyone should worry, though it's been helpful to understand that many people applied early because they had a few very early deadlines and just did one big push. really a stylistic difference, i think, nothing to do with 'wanting to go more.'

thanks--it's funny, because deadline stuff is not my worry, it's more a concern that there's an advantage on the admission end to getting materials in early. i actually work in undergraduate admission, and the word in the biz, generally, is that it's really no big deal if letters of rec or even transcripts directly from institutions come a day or two after the deadline--it generally never reflects on the applicant. obviously with programs like yale and columbia who need a myriad of ways to weed people out, it may be more intense, but i think generally as long you get all of your own stuff in on the deadline and try your hardest to get recommenders to be punctual, it's ok. (one of my recommenders is super tardy with everything and sent my letter to VCU three days late. i called them to check, and they were totally relaxed about it and told me not to worry).

Thanks--yes, I agree with those advantages, of course, and have been very careful to double and triple check all websites and make fastidious lists of all requirements. It's really just an issue of actually dropping transcripts in the mail and submitting slideroom stuff--almost everything is filled out and ready to go, i'm just taking my time and working on it a little every day, so that I don't rush and make careless mistakes. Thanks for this, it's calming and helpful, though!