Graphic Design / Visual Communications MFA

[commandzhee]

Here's my list (MFA Graphic Design)

VCU- ?? (The website says acceptance notifications are sent out March 3rd, today!) I noticed on twitter that someone has already been accepted to the Visual Comm MFA program at VCU, I think they were accepted just yesterday. Not sure what to make of this. Would VCU notify accepted students at different times, or all at once?

MICA- Interview on 2/1

Pratt- ?? (The website says notifications are sent out before 4/1)

SVA- ??

Good luck everyone. The wait is almost over.

[Betty]

@Commandzhee, what was your MICA interview like? And did you hear back from VCU?

[commandzhee]

@Commandzhee, what was your MICA interview like? And did you hear back from VCU?

The interview was conducted by two people, so that was a little wierd. Overall it went well.

I've not heard back from VCU. The website says they send out acceptance notifications on March 3rd. Not sure if that means by mail, telephone call or what.

I have heard on twitter that two people got into VCU. This makes me a little nervous. You would think they would notify all the accepted candidates at once, right?

Where all did you apply?

March is going to be a L O N G month.

[Jestem]

The interview was conducted by two people, so that was a little wierd. Overall it went well.

I've not heard back from VCU. The website says they send out acceptance notifications on March 3rd. Not sure if that means by mail, telephone call or what.

I have heard on twitter that two people got into VCU. This makes me a little nervous. You would think they would notify all the accepted candidates at once, right?

Where all did you apply?

March is going to be a L O N G month.

I think those two people must be Ellen Lupton and Jennifer Cole Phillips. Did you do an in-person interview or a phone interview?

Looks like you really want to get in VCU. Good luck on your application!

[commandzhee]

I think those two people must be Ellen Lupton and Jennifer Cole Phillips. Did you do an in-person interview or a phone interview?

Looks like you really want to get in VCU. Good luck on your application!

In Person. Did you have an interview?

[Jestem]

In Person. Did you have an interview?

Mine is next week. I'm doing a phone interview 'cause I'm an international applicant.

Is it more like a chat or more a formal interview where they grill you? Thank you!

[commandzhee]

Mine is next week. I'm doing a phone interview 'cause I'm an international applicant.

Is it more like a chat or more a formal interview where they grill you? Thank you!

A chat. It was nice. Don't worry about it.

[grad_wannabe]

Jestem have you heard anything from NYU ITP yet? I haven't, but I checked the google analytics for my online portfolio and I've gotten minimal-to-no NYC traffic (3 visits that lasted all of 17 seconds), so I'm not holding my breath...

[natalierachel]

Jestem have you heard anything from NYU ITP yet? I haven't, but I checked the google analytics for my online portfolio and I've gotten minimal-to-no NYC traffic (3 visits that lasted all of 17 seconds), so I'm not holding my breath...

I'm waiting to hear from ITP as well.. according to the Survey results on this website, 2 years ago people found out towards the end of march, whereas last year it was the first week... so I have no clue when to expect something! Any ideas? Let me know if you hear back! Good luck!

[grad_wannabe]

I'm waiting to hear from ITP as well.. according to the Survey results on this website, 2 years ago people found out towards the end of march, whereas last year it was the first week... so I have no clue when to expect something! Any ideas? Let me know if you hear back! Good luck!

At the interviews in January (did you go to any of those? I was at the noon January 13 interview, if you were there then we met!) they said "mid-March."

[Jestem]

I'm waiting to hear from ITP as well.. according to the Survey results on this website, 2 years ago people found out towards the end of march, whereas last year it was the first week... so I have no clue when to expect something! Any ideas? Let me know if you hear back! Good luck!

Nope, not a word from NYU ITP. I haven't even got an interview! I'm getting ZERO ZILCH NULL NADA traffic from NYC. Good luck!

What was the group interview like? I wish I could be there. Never been to the States.

Edited March 5, 2010 by Jestem

[beane428]

Here's my list (MFA Graphic Design)

VCU- ?? (The website says acceptance notifications are sent out March 3rd, today!) I noticed on twitter that someone has already been accepted to the Visual Comm MFA program at VCU, I think they were accepted just yesterday. Not sure what to make of this. Would VCU notify accepted students at different times, or all at once?

MICA- Interview on 2/1

Pratt- ?? (The website says notifications are sent out before 4/1)

SVA- ??

Good luck everyone. The wait is almost over.

Hi again... What is the link to the VCU twitter page that has this on there? All I could find was the VCUarts one and I don't see anything on there... Did you hear today at all? I am assuming we will both hear maybe tomorrow??!! I only have there and SVA left. I am slowly losing confidence in myself!

[commandzhee]

Hi again... What is the link to the VCU twitter page that has this on there? All I could find was the VCUarts one and I don't see anything on there... Did you hear today at all? I am assuming we will both hear maybe tomorrow??!! I only have there and SVA left. I am slowly losing confidence in myself!

Do a search for "vcu design" on twitter. It was a few days ago now.

I asked the gd department at VCU and they said they've already sent out some acceptance/rejection letters, but not all of them.

So we're still in business.

[Jestem]

@grad_wannabe / I just realized I replied to the wrong post. Ha! My last post was meant to answer ur question but somehow I made a mistake! Silly me

[grad_wannabe]

Nope, not a word from NYU ITP. I haven't even got an interview! I'm getting ZERO ZILCH NULL NADA traffic from NYC. Good luck!

What was the group interview like? I wish I could be there. Never been to the States.

The group interview was intimidating! It was a generalized optional preliminary interview, I just went because I wanted to look at the campus. It was headed up by George Agudow (the acting dean) and Dan O'Sullivan (a professor).

All of the candidates (except myself) were late 20's with a few years of work experience, in all different backgrounds. There was (among about 12 attendees) a guy who'd gotten his BA in bioengineering from Harvard, a guy who'd spent the last ten years running his own music production studio in Alaska, and a girl doing graduate work in conceptual physics. Very diverse. Jestem you mentioned that your background is not in graphic design - I think that will work in your favor here. I'd guess maybe only half the kids there had art backgrounds.

We all sat around a large conference table, and we were instructed to pair up and introduce each other. We all spoke briefly about our backgrounds (both educational and vocational) and why we wanted to attend ITP. Then they had a current student come in and show us some of his work and talk about the experience of the school.

They put heavy emphasis on collaboration and cross-pollination of ideas. There are no individual grad studios - everyone works together. Dan mentioned that the most successful students are those that are there ALL the time, hanging out with other students. The vibe was very warm and friendly. Everyone was easy-going, hanging out in rooms full of equipment and technology everywhere. It seemed like a great atmosphere for the sharing of ideas.

They mentioned that Wikipedia had been there recruiting the week before, and that Apple and Google were scheduled for the next week. Their graduates go into all different fields - they mentioned design, academia, and law.

Seems like a wonderful place. I kinda shot myself in the foot during the group interview (it was obvious that I was far more inexperienced than the rest of the room) so I don't anticipate getting an offer, but I do plan to reapply. Kudos to anyone accepted! Let the rest of us know!

[Jestem]

The group interview was intimidating! It was a generalized optional preliminary interview, I just went because I wanted to look at the campus. It was headed up by George Agudow (the acting dean) and Dan O'Sullivan (a professor).

All of the candidates (except myself) were late 20's with a few years of work experience, in all different backgrounds. There was (among about 12 attendees) a guy who'd gotten his BA in bioengineering from Harvard, a guy who'd spent the last ten years running his own music production studio in Alaska, and a girl doing graduate work in conceptual physics. Very diverse. Jestem you mentioned that your background is not in graphic design - I think that will work in your favor here. I'd guess maybe only half the kids there had art backgrounds.

We all sat around a large conference table, and we were instructed to pair up and introduce each other. We all spoke briefly about our backgrounds (both educational and vocational) and why we wanted to attend ITP. Then they had a current student come in and show us some of his work and talk about the experience of the school.

They put heavy emphasis on collaboration and cross-pollination of ideas. There are no individual grad studios - everyone works together. Dan mentioned that the most successful students are those that are there ALL the time, hanging out with other students. The vibe was very warm and friendly. Everyone was easy-going, hanging out in rooms full of equipment and technology everywhere. It seemed like a great atmosphere for the sharing of ideas.

They mentioned that Wikipedia had been there recruiting the week before, and that Apple and Google were scheduled for the next week. Their graduates go into all different fields - they mentioned design, academia, and law.

Seems like a wonderful place. I kinda shot myself in the foot during the group interview (it was obvious that I was far more inexperienced than the rest of the room) so I don't anticipate getting an offer, but I do plan to reapply. Kudos to anyone accepted! Let the rest of us know!

Thank you for sharing your experience in detail! Good to know what other fellow contestants are made of (steel from what you described). I also hear that the program regularly admits some limited number of applicants from every country represented by the applicants so as to keep the student body as diverse and international as possible.

I'm 26, entering late 20s, too. My background is quite messy. I did my under in B school. Now I'm freelancing in both translation and graphic design. I'm not so sure if that works toward my advantage. The decision hasn't been made so don't drop your hope just yet! I applied this year expecting to get rejections after rejections, but so far everything's going pretty well for me. You just never know!

[commandzhee]

MFA Graphic Design/Visual Communications

updated 3/8

Rejected: VCU

Interview: MICA

Waiting for decision: PRATT, SVA, MICA

[Jestem]

Phew~~~just finished my interview with RISD GD MFA faculty about an hour ago (where I am, it's mid-night!). The vibes were warm and positive! It was also more like a chat than a formal interview. I applied to the 3 year program but they seems to think that I do not need an extra year. I should have asked them if it's possible that they consider me for the 2 year program. It'll be such huge burden off the shoulder in terms of finance and time.

Admission

CCA

SAIC

Interview

Calarts (done)

RISD (just done)

MICA

Yale

Pending

NYU ITP

Pratt

UIC

Boston U

Edited March 8, 2010 by Jestem

[Betty]

MFA Graphic Design/Visual Communications

updated 3/8

Rejected: VCU

Interview: MICA

Waiting for decision: PRATT, SVA, MICA

I'm so sorry to hear about VCU. Best of luck to you with te rest. I'm still waiting to hear back from all of mine...ugh...shouldn't be much longer now, I hope.

[commandzhee]

I'm so sorry to hear about VCU. Best of luck to you with te rest. I'm still waiting to hear back from all of mine...ugh...shouldn't be much longer now, I hope.

Thanks! What schools are you applying to?

[Mary Ping]

Hi!

My RISD interview is Thursday! Do you have any advice? I applied for the three year program too. It seems to me like you definitely fall in the area of being very advanced for the 3 year class (I did not study design at all and you would be with someone like me who has so little experience) but you'd be more of a beginner amongst the people who did 4 years of undergraduate study in only design. I'm sure the faculty will admit you first and then decide if you belong in 2 year more than 3 year. I saw your posting somewhere else wondering if the skype interview is less helpful than being there in person, but I don't think you should worry about it at all. They will get a good impression of you either way.

The other program I am interviewing for is Yale too in a couple weeks - Good Luck!

[Jestem]

Hi!

My RISD interview is Thursday! Do you have any advice? I applied for the three year program too. It seems to me like you definitely fall in the area of being very advanced for the 3 year class (I did not study design at all and you would be with someone like me who has so little experience) but you'd be more of a beginner amongst the people who did 4 years of undergraduate study in only design. I'm sure the faculty will admit you first and then decide if you belong in 2 year more than 3 year. I saw your posting somewhere else wondering if the skype interview is less helpful than being there in person, but I don't think you should worry about it at all. They will get a good impression of you either way.

The other program I am interviewing for is Yale too in a couple weeks - Good Luck!

I think you're visiting RISD for an in-person interview, right? The interviewers are very nice people. The whole process wasn't specifically grilling. In my case, they did more talking than I did. I suggest that you give a thought on the connection between what you did or studied before and graphic design, and just relax! Bethany Jones, the graduate coordinator will lead the interview along with 2 other teachers most likely.

I've just decided not to visit Yale for the interview. I certainly hope it won't affect my chance. Good luck to you with your interviews! Have you sent your pieces to Yale already?

[Mary Ping]

I think you're visiting RISD for an in-person interview, right? The interviewers are very nice people. The whole process wasn't specifically grilling. In my case, they did more talking than I did. I suggest that you give a thought on the connection between what you did or studied before and graphic design, and just relax! Bethany Jones, the graduate coordinator will lead the interview along with 2 other teachers most likely.

I've just decided not to visit Yale for the interview. I certainly hope it won't affect my chance. Good luck to you with your interviews! Have you sent your pieces to Yale already?

Thanks for your reply! I'm looking forward to the interview and seeing the building, etc.

I am trying to think about what questions would likely be asked, and I think you're right that the connection between past studies and the design program is an important one.

Since I'm not far from Yale I'm going in person and don't have send anything in advance...I think. That is honestly the part that concerns me the most. I submitted almost everything I've ever done of value, so that does not leave anything too compelling to add to what I've already shown. But they say you should bring additional pieces not represented in the portfolio...this is a problem for me. Just have to do the best with what I have I guess.

Congratulations on getting through a bunch of your interviews already.

[savantarde]

For crap's sake! When can we expect to hear from Parsons for Graphic Design???

[Jestem]

For crap's sake! When can we expect to hear from Parsons for Graphic Design???

I remember Parsons only offers AAS for graphic design. Is that what you applied to?

And by any chance do you know when is the deadline of acceptance of offer for SAIC VCD?

Cheers!