lady rainicorn

Does anyone know where on the website the recipient list will be posted?

I had a really random list that I wanted to accomplish before starting grad school, and somehow (after much time out) managed to hit all of them: 1. contribute some time and effort to cancer-related research 2. explore Korea, its culture and language 3. find biological family 4. develop my teaching pedagogy 5. pay off the bulk of my undergrad loans

ENTJ!

Anyone else apply to the AAUW career development grant? I know we won't hear until April, but I was wondering if anyone knew how competitive the it is? Thanks!

Hi Lzhang917- I was an ETA in Korea a few years ago, and so I know it's hard. Looking back at the experience, I remember it fondly, but the first 6 months were pretty challenging. I went to Korea with a very limited language facility (and knowing almost nothing about the culture), and so having to learn Korean in my mid 20s was really difficult for me, foreign languages are not my strong point. It's definitely lonely at first. I was stationed in a small factory town in the middle of the country. I also had a very close person in my life pass away my second day of teaching, and had to both mourn and act as a support system from overseas (as you know, I couldn't leave the country to go to the funeral b/c this person wasn't in my immediate family). This made teaching extremely difficult because I had to perform and exhibit a cheerful countenance to the hundreds of middle school students I saw every week. I also had to teach one of the worst classes that had rolled through my school in a while (all the teachers agreed that that particular class of 400 students as a whole was pretty bad behaviorally). That said, the latter half of my grant year was amazing. I was a much better teacher, my language ability went up (with a lot of studying, I took a language class over the winter break), and I was beginning to connect with people in my community more. Personally, I wouldn't terminate early, unless you experience something really out of the ordinary negative. But what you described so far (alienation, loneliness, housing drama) seemed to be the norm in my year, and I think everyone stayed until the end (and Korea was def NOT for everyone, and some people were able to switch host families). During my grant period, Fulbright admin stressed the importance of not picking up and leaving suddenly b/c it causes a lot of administrative issues for the host school and the relationship between that school and Fulbright. The attitude may be different in your respective host country though, I can only speak for Korea's program. I did consider terminating early b/c of the complicated nature of the person who passed away, but in retrospect now, I am really happy that I stayed in Korea. I even renewed for a second year. I agree with Torrid that you should talk to the commission in your country. If things really are going beyond the normal amount of isolation/depression that is expected with living abroad in a foreign country, that may warrant a relocation or ultimately the final decision to leave. Only you can decide what is best for you in the end. Your mental health should come first, but make sure you talk it out with people, especially if you have other ETAs you trust. You will probably find that they are having difficulty too. Best of luck! PM me if you want to!

Nothing yet... this wait is driving me crazy, especially since I have more free time now to think about it over the winter break. >_<

I got mine last night too! Gahh, waiting another month, oh the torture!

Nope, I also haven't received an "application received" email yet either. @obot, two years ago you didn't receive any notification at all with regards to your final status??? Yikes, that's terrible! Eee, come on interview invites for all of us this year!!

Yeah, I'm applying for funding for my second year (if you want to talk specific programs, feel free to pm me). I dropped the ball on researching scholarships during my grad application process, partly b/c I honestly didn't think I wasn't going to get into school on my first try. I have also been out of school for some time, and one of my letters was a professional reference, though from a completely different field. I just hope my strange background isn't a weakness!

Yeah, that was confusing. I didn't realize until too late that we could send a CD in. Though, I included some examples of work in the exhibits section. I feel like for me it's a shot in the dark anyway, especially after reading past fellows' bios, but who knows. When do we find out about interviews?

Just submitted my application, eeee, the waiting begins! I feel like I am constantly waiting for rejection letters >_<. Anyone else now in the waiting game?

I'm applying too. I figure I have a shot in hell, but hey, at least it's a chance?!.....

Exhibition history isn't important, or at least with my experience with the whole admissions process, it wasn't important to the schools I applied to. I have been out of undergrad for 7 years now and got into mfa programs this past application season, but I would say that my art resume isn't terribly impressive. However, depending on the program, I think a rich personal history is more important, or at least beneficial when presenting a story of yourself/your intellectual interests/motivations for making art to the admissions committee. In the end, a person with solid work and no exhibition record vs a person with mediocre work and a long exhibition record, the person with the better work will have a much higher chance of getting in. All of the conversations I had with faculty during this process were focused around the work, and never about my past showing record. Good luck to everyone applying for 2014!

Oh sweet, that's awesome that you're going to RISD! Congrats!!

Hey Katelogue, I interviewed for printmaking that day, and got the call from Tomas the next day. I would call if you haven't heard back yet. Good luck!!!! Eudorauser, I would apply, and not worry too much about age. The average age of students (or was it applicants? can't remember) for Columbia is around 28 I believe, so if there are any 23-year olds, there won't be too many. I'm almost 30. I'll be attending in the fall, and so far, all of the prospective students that I've met have been really amazing people, with a wide breadth of experiences behind them.