MFA 2021 Freak Out Forum

[SocialKonstruct]

On 10/22/2020 at 1:06 PM, rettetsvo said:

UCLA isn't accepting MFA students in Photography for 2021.... ?

Hoping to get into BARD...a little concerned hearing that they are accepting a smaller class for Summer 2021? Any other interdisciplinary programs out there that come recommended? 

Hmm... I would try to hunt down New Genres places like Columbia, etc.

[SocialKonstruct]

Here is a cool video about MFA's.

 

[theundoing]

On 10/22/2020 at 3:06 PM, rettetsvo said:

UCLA isn't accepting MFA students in Photography for 2021.... ?

Hoping to get into BARD...a little concerned hearing that they are accepting a smaller class for Summer 2021? Any other interdisciplinary programs out there that come recommended? 

Hi, I asked my friend who is in Bard Photo. Bard is kinda weird right now because they allowed students to be part time and return in the same year. So it really depends on the discipline...is what my friend thinks. I asked them and they said that Bard will be accepting 3 new people in photo which is a pretty normal class size bc apparently most Bard photo people did not chose the part time option. 

[theundoing]

On 10/14/2020 at 9:39 PM, SocialKonstruct said:

Nice. Btw, I am originally from Brooklyn.

In any case, my goal is to be entering into the NYC/LA contemporary art scene so I plan someday to have my art studio/second home close to one of those two cities. I really enjoy living in Utah and hope to have a family someday but on a practical level, my type of conceptual art doesn't jive at all with where I live at.

Yale is just tough to enter and they want a variety of students in their program and not just artists who have thick resumes.

Columbia and UCLA and and SAIC and RISD and Yale are pretty much in the kingmakers if you want to be recognized in the contemporary art world (we are talking about gallery representation and nods in Art in America, ArtNews, and ArtForum if you are lucky... plus art fairs). However if you want to have a quiet less hectic art practice, then pretty much any MFA where you find a kindred professor and student body is important so anywhere would be fine in that case.

cool, I'm living in Brooklyn now. 

I think most of the artists that I know who still want to be connected to the nyc scene but want a more relaxed life live upstate. But hopefully it works out for you to have a split nyc & utah life --sounds awesome. 

Yeah, Yale is impossible. No one should plan around going to yale lol. 

I would add Bard to your list of kingmakers esp. because the painting mafia is strong at bard lol

[Squirrel8296]

On 10/7/2020 at 9:51 PM, aniben3 said:

I'm applying, but I have to say it's hard to keep up motivation with everything going on right now. Maybe that's why people aren't posting? 
I'm a fiber / interdisciplinary person. Got into SAIC & Cranbrook last year, but couldn't afford it unfortunately, especially with all the uncertainty with the uh, state of the world. This year's list is Oregon, Iowa, VCU, ASU, Indiana -Bloomington, and Pennsylvania.

We'll see how it goes, haha, I really like the programs.

I got into Bloomington last year but ended up turning them down because of cost. Just know that almost half of you ~16k stipend will go to paying your course fees and buying materials. To make it work you will have to go into significant debt to be able to afford to live. And its not like you can adjunct to make ends meet after the first year either since the next nearest school where you can adjunct it over and hour away (one way).

[zoopsia]

14 hours ago, SocialKonstruct said:

Here is a cool video about MFA's.

 

Great video! That was really helpful.

I'm getting application materials ready currently. I'm planning to apply to mostly international schools- Staedelschule in Frankfurt, Kunste in Berlin, Universitat de Barca in Barcelona. Each of these places has a different way of applying and vastly different deadlines. The schools in the US seem to be more standardized and have more detailed information on their websites about what they want.  In the US, I'm looking at MIT, Cranbrook, UCLA, Yale... I figure, while I have the materials flowing, I may as well try, even if it's only throwing money way. I have a background in ceramics, electronic arts, installation and photography so I'll be applying in sculpture. Currently, I'm three weeks deep into writing my statement. It's a pain in the ass to have to define one's self on paper, an incredible time sink, but also very revealing and ultimately useful. I'm hoping to finish today. Anyone else struggling on their statement? 

[omgartist]

18 minutes ago, zoopsia said:

Currently, I'm three weeks deep into writing my statement. It's a pain in the ass to have to define one's self on paper, an incredible time sink, but also very revealing and ultimately useful. I'm hoping to finish today. Anyone else struggling on their statement? 

I totally agree with you that it's stressful when writing personal statement. I'm still working (struggling) on mine. I hope your process goes smoothly and you'll get into the school you love.

[theundoing]

1 hour ago, omgartist said:

I totally agree with you that it's stressful when writing personal statement. I'm still working (struggling) on mine. I hope your process goes smoothly and you'll get into the school you love.

this may be widely known but ...the most helpful advice that I received from a prof about an artist statement for applications is that it should have a : What, How, and Why. Most people write too much about the Why and forget about the What and the How.  

[aniben3]

5 hours ago, Squirrel8296 said:

I got into Bloomington last year but ended up turning them down because of cost. Just know that almost half of you ~16k stipend will go to paying your course fees and buying materials. To make it work you will have to go into significant debt to be able to afford to live. And its not like you can adjunct to make ends meet after the first year either since the next nearest school where you can adjunct it over and hour away (one way).

This is really good to know, thank you! I read online that returning students have to reapply for funding - does this mean I'm not likely to get it, or that I'd have to do my GA at another campus? (They should really put that on the financial aid page if so...lol) 

My problem is that fiber is not the most sought after medium for uhhh, lots of historical reasons, so there aren't that many reputable programs that offer it, so I'll probs need to apply anyway. I am currently teaching abroad and one of my schools is an hour away, so I could probably do that.

[SocialKonstruct]

7 hours ago, theundoing said:

cool, I'm living in Brooklyn now. 

I think most of the artists that I know who still want to be connected to the nyc scene but want a more relaxed life live upstate. But hopefully it works out for you to have a split nyc & utah life --sounds awesome. 

Yeah, Yale is impossible. No one should plan around going to yale lol. 

I would add Bard to your list of kingmakers esp. because the painting mafia is strong at bard lol

I am the opposite route. I want the bustle and drama of a huge city either LA or NY. It would be funny if I got back into Yale again for a MFA (I already got a MPH from there). I don't think it's impossible as one of our U of U graduates got into the sculpture dept. However their photography dept could be much harder to get in...

[SocialKonstruct]

18 minutes ago, aniben3 said:

This is really good to know, thank you! I read online that returning students have to reapply for funding - does this mean I'm not likely to get it, or that I'd have to do my GA at another campus? (They should really put that on the financial aid page if so...lol) 

My problem is that fiber is not the most sought after medium for uhhh, lots of historical reasons, so there aren't that many reputable programs that offer it, so I'll probs need to apply anyway. I am currently teaching abroad and one of my schools is an hour away, so I could probably do that.

SAIC for fiber I gather is pretty awesome. We have a professor at Weber State named Cara Krebs and she seems to be having a blast after she graduated from there.

 

[aniben3]

7 minutes ago, SocialKonstruct said:

SAIC for fiber I gather is pretty awesome. We have a professor at Weber State named Cara Krebs and she seems to be having a blast after she graduated from there.

 

I got into SAIC fiber last year, and even received a TAship, but it would have put me tens of thousands of dollars in debt, so I had to turn it down. It's a shame because it's a really nice program, and I liked the faculty. 

[SocialKonstruct]

23 minutes ago, aniben3 said:

I got into SAIC fiber last year, and even received a TAship, but it would have put me tens of thousands of dollars in debt, so I had to turn it down. It's a shame because it's a really nice program, and I liked the faculty. 

Yeah... it's hard and honestly I am probably to lay down a ton of dough for my MFA in 2 years soon so not looking forward to that

[Squirrel8296]

3 hours ago, aniben3 said:

This is really good to know, thank you! I read online that returning students have to reapply for funding - does this mean I'm not likely to get it, or that I'd have to do my GA at another campus? (They should really put that on the financial aid page if so...lol) 

My problem is that fiber is not the most sought after medium for uhhh, lots of historical reasons, so there aren't that many reputable programs that offer it, so I'll probs need to apply anyway. I am currently teaching abroad and one of my schools is an hour away, so I could probably do that.

So that's what I never got a clear answer about. You have to reapply each year (which seems to be pretty common) and they acted like you should continue to get it but it definitely seemed like they could take it away if they felt like it (or more likely didn't want to continue to fund you). Its not a cheap program either if you lose funding (my tuition waiver was almost 60k by itself).

Have you looked at interdisciplinary programs or low residency programs? You could totally do fiber in one of those and while low-residency programs usually don't have much funding, there are tons of funded interdisciplinary programs.

[aniben3]

1 hour ago, Squirrel8296 said:

So that's what I never got a clear answer about. You have to reapply each year (which seems to be pretty common) and they acted like you should continue to get it but it definitely seemed like they could take it away if they felt like it (or more likely didn't want to continue to fund you). Its not a cheap program either if you lose funding (my tuition waiver was almost 60k by itself).

Have you looked at interdisciplinary programs or low residency programs? You could totally do fiber in one of those and while low-residency programs usually don't have much funding, there are tons of funded interdisciplinary programs.

Yeah, I'm applying to two interdisciplinary programs and then four fiber ones! I'm hoping for the fiber ones because they have the specialized facilities that I'm hoping for. 
Not gonna lie, I wish it wasn't possible to lose funding. I know some programs are really good about that, so thanks for the heads up. 

[XSX]

10 hours ago, zoopsia said:

Great video! That was really helpful.

I'm getting application materials ready currently. I'm planning to apply to mostly international schools- Staedelschule in Frankfurt, Kunste in Berlin, Universitat de Barca in Barcelona. Each of these places has a different way of applying and vastly different deadlines. The schools in the US seem to be more standardized and have more detailed information on their websites about what they want.  In the US, I'm looking at MIT, Cranbrook, UCLA, Yale... I figure, while I have the materials flowing, I may as well try, even if it's only throwing money way. I have a background in ceramics, electronic arts, installation and photography so I'll be applying in sculpture. Currently, I'm three weeks deep into writing my statement. It's a pain in the ass to have to define one's self on paper, an incredible time sink, but also very revealing and ultimately useful. I'm hoping to finish today. Anyone else struggling on their statement? 

Hi there. I'm also applying to international schools. Most in the UK. I can't find anything on Staedelschule website on how to apply/application details. Was wanting to apply there as well. Does the uni in Barcelona conduct classes in English that you're aware of?

[SocialKonstruct]

9 hours ago, aniben3 said:

Yeah, I'm applying to two interdisciplinary programs and then four fiber ones! I'm hoping for the fiber ones because they have the specialized facilities that I'm hoping for. 
Not gonna lie, I wish it wasn't possible to lose funding. I know some programs are really good about that, so thanks for the heads up. 

I agree but sadly enough money rules everything around us :(.

For me, since I am trying to enter the contemporary art world admittedly prestige of program is going to be the main deciding factor for me.

[SocialKonstruct]

19 hours ago, omgartist said:

I totally agree with you that it's stressful when writing personal statement. I'm still working (struggling) on mine. I hope your process goes smoothly and you'll get into the school you love.

Just so you know as a former English major I will volunteer any time to proofread any artist/personal statements here. Just e-mail me at albertabdulbarrwang@gmail.com and I can provide feedback.

[Strawberrycat]

On 10/24/2020 at 9:03 PM, SocialKonstruct said:

Here is a cool video about MFA's.

 

This was really helpful, thank you for sharing it! Last year, I wrote and spoke about wanting to one day teach as one of my motivations for applying to MFA programs. I didn't know that was a faux pas at the time. I understand that it shouldn't be the main or only reason, but I think it's interesting that you absolutely need to do it to be able to teach, but have to be quiet about wanting to teach until you're already in. 

[SocialKonstruct]

6 minutes ago, Strawberrycat said:

This was really helpful, thank you for sharing it! Last year, I wrote and spoke about wanting to one day teach as one of my motivations for applying to MFA programs. I didn't know that was a faux pas at the time. I understand that it shouldn't be the main or only reason, but I think it's interesting that you absolutely need to do it to be able to teach, but have to be quiet about wanting to teach until you're already in. 

Indeed, there is a separate art education track for master's level if you want to teach. Studio art MFA's should be focused on being an artist first... teaching should be secondary or an adjunct.

[Strawberrycat]

8 minutes ago, SocialKonstruct said:

Indeed, there is a separate art education track for master's level if you want to teach. Studio art MFA's should be focused on being an artist first... teaching should be secondary or an adjunct.

Thank you, but I wasn't trying to suggest otherwise. 

[cornchip]

On 10/13/2020 at 1:51 PM, SocialKonstruct said:

I think that the contemporary art world is doing rather well but just not the American scene. Right now China is making a "killing" on opening up new galleries and showing somewhat cutting-edge work. UK is doing all right.

Much of it depends on what you want to do with your MFA. I would recommend it if you want to make the proper connections with those who are big leagues in the contemporary art world as sadly enough, those connections will help a ton.

But if you are the next JR or Banksy forget about it... that is art school. You don't have to be in a MFA program if you are into street and underground art scene. But you will need luck and some publicity stunts to make yourself known if that's what you want. 

late reply but yes I agree with you. I was in Japan previously, and the art world, although somewhat difficult for me to understand bc language barrier, seemed to be on a slightly different track than the US - tons of small galleries that weren't 100% profit driven, art that wasn't conceptual, permeable barrier between art and craft...
But yeah, I do want to make connections and find a community. I enjoy being in school. I wouldn't mind the added perk of being able to teach during and post grad. 

[incoming first year mfa]

I have the ever-present question of "which genre/discipline do I choose for my application" looming over my head. I work typically in fiber, but I have made some installations and some flatter fiber works that may feel more painting-adjacent. It leans more craft than "New Media." Applying mainly to interdisciplinary programs...but many programs still ask you to identify a discipline. Does anyone have any insights/thoughts on how to approach this?

[SocialKonstruct]

11 hours ago, incoming first year mfa said:

I have the ever-present question of "which genre/discipline do I choose for my application" looming over my head. I work typically in fiber, but I have made some installations and some flatter fiber works that may feel more painting-adjacent. It leans more craft than "New Media." Applying mainly to interdisciplinary programs...but many programs still ask you to identify a discipline. Does anyone have any insights/thoughts on how to approach this?

I would base your decision on faculty in the dept.

[cornchip]

On 10/29/2020 at 1:07 PM, incoming first year mfa said:

I have the ever-present question of "which genre/discipline do I choose for my application" looming over my head. I work typically in fiber, but I have made some installations and some flatter fiber works that may feel more painting-adjacent. It leans more craft than "New Media." Applying mainly to interdisciplinary programs...but many programs still ask you to identify a discipline. Does anyone have any insights/thoughts on how to approach this?

I feel like I'm kind of in the same boat- my work is almost always made from fiber/textile, whether flat or 2D. I think sculpture tends to be a catch-all for art that is interdisciplinary or wavering between 3D and 2D. Obviously if there is a fiber specific program that might be the best fit. Otherwise, sounds like sculpture to me.