MFA 2021 Freak Out Forum

[BrownBunny87]

On 2/18/2021 at 1:08 AM, dramallama_07 said:

So this was my second time applying and I'll tell you what all things I did different but idk if that's gonna help you a lot since the first time I applied, I made some pretty obvious and glaring mistakes that shouldn't have been made in the first place.

Firstly, I had only applied to a few UK schools last year and since they don't ask for recommendation letters themselves from our recommenders, we had to upload them ourselves. Ik. Weird. Anyway, I was so so stupid that I uploaded the recommendation letter on a plain paper and not on an official letterhead. Also, my SOP was very average and I unknowingly missed putting a few stuff on my CV. Even with my portfolio, I displayed my works as composite photos (which means putting many pics in the same slide- like a collage). Most US colleges make it a point to NOT do this EVER but I never saw this on any of the UK college websites and since it was my first time back then, I was pretty much an idiot about the whole process. But thankfully it was all free since there wasn't  any application fees for those colleges.

Basically I'd say that my approach was too casual and rushed last year in the process and the committee catches onto that. I also made some very very reckless mistakes like with the rec letter. The whole thing could've been avoided had I just included some trusted advisors into the admission process and not have the hubris of doing it all alone. Also, if I could've planned better so I wouldn't have to be hasty through the process- since the committee can catch on to this.

This year I did things differently. I had good planning for my timeline, had IMPECCABLE recommendations attesting not only to my personality but also my achievements and my artistic language and why i should be pursuing grad school right now. I also widened my search to the US this year and applied to some very good colleges like SAIC, Yale, SVA, Parsons and MICA. But these colleges were very carefully selected. Unlike last year where I randomly applied to ALL the top colleges in UK, I was careful in selecting my picks this year. My work is sort of abstract representational and deals with some heavy philosophy of existentialism, trauma, decay and communal/institutional memory. Although I was very tempted to apply to places like RISD or even CalArts, I knew my kind of abstract works just wouldn't get me in. I therefore had to go through a long process of looking at ALL colleges I was interested in and looking through all faculty works and student works to see what fits me the most. Did the same with UK colleges as well. Also this year I applied to wayyyy more colleges than last time.

This greatly increased my chances as I had applied to a lot of programs this time which might cater to my artistic languages. I can understand that applying to a lot of colleges can increase application costs but I've found that if you show keeen interest in the colleges you're planning to apply to by mailing them and attending their webinars, they're gracious enough to waive off the application fees. That's how I could apply to a whole lotta places at almost zero cost.

Anyway, to sum it up what I did differently this time- I carefully curated my colleges instead of just randomly applying, I got impeccable recommendations, improved presentation of my portfolio, planned better. Oh and I also attended a lot of Portfolio review days.

Anyway this really paid off cus although I wasnt able to secure a position in ALL the colleges I wanted, I still got interviewed by most of them. And for the ones I got rejected from, I already kinda expected and even knew what it would be that would lead the college to reject me. Here's my list:

Early Acceptance- SVA

Rejection- Yale, SAIC, Goldsmiths

Interview- Parsons, MICA Rinehart, MICA Mount Royal, Glasgow School of Art, UAL

Pending- RCA

I know the list isn't as impressive but if anybody would like to comment on it, I'll be open to hearing what y'all have to say.

Tbh SVA was my second choice and SAIC my first and that's why I'm just a lil disappointed. Ik I'm supposed to say Yale was my top choice but tbh I already kinda expected them to reject me. I've had a hard look at the faculty works and student works and even talked to some of the students there and I've found out that they REALLLY have a thing for representational and figurative works and need a lot of 'diversity' in their cohort. A LOT of students in their programs work on BLM or communal identity. They're all mostly very representational too. Hardly any abstraction- unless your works are based on color theory. And this has a good reason. From what I can figure, a lot of admission process is done by Meleko (works on BLM- figurative) or Anoka (abstract- works on color theory). I doubt if Robert storr is involved in the admission process which is a shame because he was the reason I'd applied to Yale.

Anyway, I realized I digressed a lot lol but here are my 2 cents. Lmk if you wanna know anything else

I am astounded that you’ve reduced Meleko’s work to BLM, when his work primarily addresses colonialism in South Africa and amending historical representation. I hope “diversity” in any cohort you end up in is helpful to your understanding that experiences of POC in the world are not so binary.

 

wow.

Edited February 22, 2021 by BrownBunny87

[antlore]

On 2/21/2021 at 8:55 AM, GwenC said:

That's really encouraging to hear, MIT is my first choice! I'm super nervous about the interview and don't know what to expect since this is my first interview. Would you or your roommate have any tips?

from what I remember they asked him more about his interdisciplinary background & research interests than any of the other programs he interview for! Also the same kinds of questions about his practice, why SMACT, and what he wanted to do there : ) ... i hope this is helpful!! Good luck with your interview 

[dramallama_07]

2 minutes ago, BrownBunny87 said:

I am astounded that you’ve reduced Meleko’s work to BLM, when he’s from South Africa and his work primarily addresses colonialism and amending historical representation. I hope “diversity” in any cohort you end up in is helpful to your understanding that experiences of POC in the world are not so binary.

 

wow.

No shit. I'm POC too. I'm well aware of what I'm talking about. If you see through my further posts, you'll find I've rectified my mistake in terms of adressing Meleko's works

No need to be butthurt ?

Edited February 22, 2021 by dramallama_07
--

[_haloween]

 

Has anyone heard from Bard Film/Video?

Kinda devastating to hear with the delayed response from them that people got interviews but they couldn’t simultaneously inform those that didn’t...See people have reported interviews from Painting, Photo, and Sculpture now, and unsure if it’s that Film/Video might be behind, or that Bard is informing people of interviews before rejections...

 

Did anyone get an interview with Film/Video or did anyone who applied to Painting, Photo, or Sculpture get a rejection this morning?

 

I got rejected by Yale Sculpture, haven’t heard anything from UCLA New Genres (recommenders weren’t even contacted) so expecting rejection, and was kinda pinning hopes on Bard a bit here. Otherwise, pretty certain I got into UPenn, but haven’t gotten final decision yet and won’t until mid-March. 
 

Was really hoping I might have at least one other program considering me for interview ?

[PlzTakeME]

SMFA decisions are out, just got my acceptance!

[PlzTakeME]

22 minutes ago, BrownBunny87 said:

I am astounded that you’ve reduced Meleko’s work to BLM, when he’s from South Africa and his work primarily addresses colonialism and amending historical representation. I hope “diversity” in any cohort you end up in is helpful to your understanding that experiences of POC in the world are not so binary.

 

wow.

he is from Botswana

[basilmari]

5 minutes ago, _haloween said:

 

Has anyone heard from Bard Film/Video?

Kinda devastating to hear with the delayed response from them that people got interviews but they couldn’t simultaneously inform those that didn’t...See people have reported interviews from Painting, Photo, and Sculpture now, and unsure if it’s that Film/Video might be behind, or that Bard is informing people of interviews before rejections...

 

Did anyone get an interview with Film/Video or did anyone who applied to Painting, Photo, or Sculpture get a rejection this morning?

 

I got rejected by Yale Sculpture, haven’t heard anything from UCLA New Genres (recommenders weren’t even contacted) so expecting rejection, and was kinda pinning hopes on Bard a bit here. Otherwise, pretty certain I got into UPenn, but haven’t gotten final decision yet and won’t until mid-March. 
 

Was really hoping I might have at least one other program considering me for interview ?

I think something that helps me through this time is remembering there is quite a bit of subjectivity in these processes. Programs in any given year may be interested in working with artists whose work addresses things that align with the focus of their current cohort or maybe, oppositely, want to choose artists who have different approaches/material interests than their current cohort. So much is about fit, not always about the quality of the work. Also, I went to the UCLA open house and heard one professor say that she was looking for work that "excited" her, and I try to keep that in mind as well. Everyone's ideas about that can really be different. And also, on a personal level, I know my work tends to be very "quiet" and that isn't everyone's cup of tea, but in the end, I can only be myself.  Hopefully this encourages a little!

[slickjaketheruler]

33 minutes ago, PlzTakeME said:

SMFA decisions are out, just got my acceptance!

I just received my acceptance as well. Congratulations!

[lizavetar96]

got interviewed by Photomedia UW this morning. It went great, and I am really hopeful!

Questions they asked:

1) what is your work about and what is at stake?

2) would you like to teach and why? (or what kind of teacher you are?) 

3) what are you working on at the moment?

4) what art are you consuming right now?

5) why grad school now and why UW specifically?

6) a lesson from your life and what it taught you?

(maybe there was some other question that I forget)

It was kind of weird that they did not address my portfolio at all.

I really like their financial aid package and their faculty is really interesting and accomplished, BUT I am really worried that they are SO outlandishly conceptual and experimental as my work is abstract stylistically but it does not really stretch the medium. 

i had time to ask them 3 questions of my own (they accept only 3 students this year) 

[mfaer]

1 hour ago, Artist99 said:

Has anyone heard from UCI? I was expecting an update last week following my interview at the beginning of the month. Also, did anyone else apply to USC, I have heard anything at all. I am so anxiously awaiting the results. ughhh

In my interview with UCI for photo they said 1st week of March for updates.

[Artist99]

7 minutes ago, rettetsvo said:

In my interview with UCI for photo they said 1st week of March for updates.

Who did you interview with, because they have an interdisciplinary program? There are only emphasis of concentration that you choose once you are admitted. Who told you that UCI would be putting our updates the 1st week of March? I am just curious!

[hello this is]

hi people... been lurking for a while but now, a question:

I got accepted to RISD painting w/ a very generous financial aid fellowship. the thing is- they are pressuring me to make a commitment by March 1, which seems very early. I still have interviews (including one w/ Yale) all this week until as late as Feb 27, so i don't exactly feel ready to commit without knowing all my options! Is this happening to any of y'all? arent there some rules or something about how long you can take to accept an offer?

 

yikes

[cabindweller]

1 hour ago, _haloween said:

 

Has anyone heard from Bard Film/Video?

Kinda devastating to hear with the delayed response from them that people got interviews but they couldn’t simultaneously inform those that didn’t...See people have reported interviews from Painting, Photo, and Sculpture now, and unsure if it’s that Film/Video might be behind, or that Bard is informing people of interviews before rejections...

 

Did anyone get an interview with Film/Video or did anyone who applied to Painting, Photo, or Sculpture get a rejection this morning?

 

I got rejected by Yale Sculpture, haven’t heard anything from UCLA New Genres (recommenders weren’t even contacted) so expecting rejection, and was kinda pinning hopes on Bard a bit here. Otherwise, pretty certain I got into UPenn, but haven’t gotten final decision yet and won’t until mid-March. 
 

Was really hoping I might have at least one other program considering me for interview ?

The Bard website says deny letters won't be sent out till the end of April...

March 6, 2021	Interviews for selected candidates.
March 12 -15, 2021	Candidates notified of acceptance and financial aid. Waitlist candidates notified.
March 25, 2021 April 30, 2021	Accepted candidates decision and $515 enrollment deposit due. Deny letters sent.

[Paintyface]

11 minutes ago, hello this is said:

hi people... been lurking for a while but now, a question:

I got accepted to RISD painting w/ a very generous financial aid fellowship. the thing is- they are pressuring me to make a commitment by March 1, which seems very early. I still have interviews (including one w/ Yale) all this week until as late as Feb 27, so i don't exactly feel ready to commit without knowing all my options! Is this happening to any of y'all? arent there some rules or something about how long you can take to accept an offer?

 

yikes

Someone posted this link a while ago, I believe that legally you don't have to make any decisions before April 15th.

https://cgsnet.org/april-15-resolution-1?nl=

[Hphphphp]

2 hours ago, dramallama_07 said:

No shit. I'm POC too. I'm well aware of what I'm talking about. If you see through my further posts, you'll find I've rectified my mistake in terms of adressing Meleko's works

No need to be butthurt ?

 

“No shit. I'm POC too. I'm well aware of what I'm talking about.“

being a POC doesn’t absolve you from racism ?

[_haloween]

51 minutes ago, cabindweller said:

The Bard website says deny letters won't be sent out till the end of April...

March 6, 2021	Interviews for selected candidates.
March 12 -15, 2021	Candidates notified of acceptance and financial aid. Waitlist candidates notified.
March 25, 2021 April 30, 2021	Accepted candidates decision and $515 enrollment deposit due. Deny letters sent.

I saw this and I would assume deny letters on April 30th would mean for those that didn’t get in following interview process or thru waitlist...not for those that simply have been kept in the dark since the app deadline. Expected they would tell those that didn’t get an interview they were denied when they sent out interview requests. Seems weird to wait until April 30th to finally say anything to an applicant who wasn’t invited along in the process.

 

Still, in all this, am wondering if anyone for a rejection today or if they’ve heard from Film/Video?

[everyonelikesbubbles]

2 hours ago, dramallama_07 said:

No shit. I'm POC too. I'm well aware of what I'm talking about. If you see through my further posts, you'll find I've rectified my mistake in terms of adressing Meleko's works

No need to be butthurt ?

Condensing an artist’s practice (Meleko or otherwise) to “working on BLM” is so reductive that it almost sounds like a code word for something worse. Actually makes me nervous of the possibility of ending up in a cohort with someone with such regressive views. 

[theundoing]

1 hour ago, hello this is said:

hi people... been lurking for a while but now, a question:

I got accepted to RISD painting w/ a very generous financial aid fellowship. the thing is- they are pressuring me to make a commitment by March 1, which seems very early. I still have interviews (including one w/ Yale) all this week until as late as Feb 27, so i don't exactly feel ready to commit without knowing all my options! Is this happening to any of y'all? arent there some rules or something about how long you can take to accept an offer?

 

yikes

do they expect you to make a deposit with your commitment ? you could always back out. but if you have to give them a deposit it is a different story.

[hello this is]

1 hour ago, Paintyface said:

Someone posted this link a while ago, I believe that legally you don't have to make any decisions before April 15th.

https://cgsnet.org/april-15-resolution-1?nl=

thank you for this info! tragically RISD doesn't seem to be a member of the 'council of graduate schools' ? which makes me wonder if they can do whatever the want. I reached out to the chair again so hopefully she will clarify..

[hello this is]

25 minutes ago, theundoing said:

do they expect you to make a deposit with your commitment ? you could always back out. but if you have to give them a deposit it is a different story.

it was a very vague conversation.. there was mention of a deposit but no details. I suspect they are just trying to pressure me which is a little anxiety inducing - I felt really good about the faculty who interviewed me, liked them a lot and all. but now they r stressin me out. 

 

anyway. i'm hoping to have a choice between risd, yale, and carnegie mellon. but also afraid to have to make that choice ?

 

thanks for your response 

[Hphphphp]

22 minutes ago, hello this is said:

it was a very vague conversation.. there was mention of a deposit but no details. I suspect they are just trying to pressure me which is a little anxiety inducing - I felt really good about the faculty who interviewed me, liked them a lot and all. but now they r stressin me out. 

 

anyway. i'm hoping to have a choice between risd, yale, and carnegie mellon. but also afraid to have to make that choice ?

 

thanks for your response 

Worst comes to worst you could make the deposit to reserve the spot. If you backed out you would loose the deposit money though and it’s probably significant ?

ugh, I feel like it’s so fucked up that they pressure you... I hope they can give you at least to end of the first week of March. That seems reasonable doesn’t it? Giving you at least two weeks to decide? Hopefully, we will have heard from Yale by then. 

 

[art_star]

9 hours ago, piers2 said:

Anyone have any insight into what kind of questions they ask in the Yale Photo interview? Mine is this week and I've never done a grad school interview before!

Seconding this, but specifically I would love to hear about Yale Painting/Printmaking, if anyone cares to share. Also how did the virtual tour with the students go? 

[rororiroor]

Anybody hear back from Columbia photo? A friend of mine got an interview last week for Columbia painting and some people on here for sculpture, but i’ve heard nothing from any photo applicants. Any word?

[NoraEllie]

Received notice about another interview from Parson. Did anyone else on here? Is that good or bad bc I thought it was just one round? 
 

Also, is it just me or are the rates for these schools ridiculously expensive. Especially for schools being in NYC. Yale was another story since they have a great financial aid package/funding program. But like it’s scary to accept an offer with Columbia, Parsons, NYAA, etc. to only come out with as much debt as a healthcare professional would. I don’t want my Dad having to pay for my entire tuition when I’m 25 and working due to not making ends meet when I graduate. Jesus, LOL. Has this ever led any of you to reject an offer? 

[lizavetar96]

22 minutes ago, NoraEllie said:

Received notice about another interview from Parson. Did anyone else on here? Is that good or bad bc I thought it was just one round? 
 

Also, is it just me or are the rates for these schools ridiculously expensive. Especially for schools being in NYC. Yale was another story since they have a great financial aid package/funding program. But like it’s scary to accept an offer with Columbia, Parsons, NYAA, etc. to only come out with as much debt as a healthcare professional would. I don’t want my Dad having to pay for my entire tuition when I’m 25 and working due to not making ends meet when I graduate. Jesus, LOL. Has this ever led any of you to reject an offer? 

Hey, congrats! What department are you?

 

And yeah... I might reject SVA because of how horribly expansive it is.