Successful Statements of Purpose

[brianmc]

Would anyone who was successful and beginning a program next year like to share their statements of purpose with those of us who will be re-writing them next year, so that maybe we can draw some conclusions as to which perspective we should approach them from?

[michaelwebster]

http://www.scribd.com/doc/31176262/SOP-SAIC

Here is mine. The intro was the toughest part for me. I wouldn't advise starting with a quote or childhood experience, too cliche. One thing I wish I had included was my answer during interviews as to "why graduate school now" which I got great responses from the faculty in all places.

Try to find the best critique of your work, and try to incorporate that as why you need graduate school now.

[brianmc]

Thanks for being courageous and being the first to share. I hope others will follow. Great job on your statement. Your projects sound very interesting. I remember seeing some of your work through the links thread, but now it really is in perspective after reading your statement. Cool stuff. Thanks again.

[Postbib Yeshuist]

Mine was for Religion, but I'd be happy to share if you want. I'll wait for a response before I put it up, tho.

[peppermint.beatnik]

I'd love to see a religion one Post Bib

[savantarde]

Would anyone who was successful and beginning a program next year like to share their statements of purpose with those of us who will be re-writing them next year, so that maybe we can draw some conclusions as to which perspective we should approach them from?

A Room of My Own

Personal Statement, As Written for SAIC

In her 1929 essay, A Room of One's Own, Virginia Woolf posits that “...a woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction” (4). In the Women's Studies program at the University of Arizona, my undergraduate cohort spoke often about Woolf's consideration of what was necessary for a woman to achieve success in the academic/creative arenas. Typically viewed as an exclusively feminist philosophy, A Room of One's Own need not be limited as such. More specifically, I've come to find that this ideology relates well to the artist, regardless of medium. It is necessary for one to possess time, space, and the support of like-minded others: a complete framework within which to bring their ideas to fruition.

I was 25 before I made my first significant move toward finding “a room of my own.” January of 2007 marked my departure from the small, dusty, Mexican border-town of Yuma, Arizona. I landed a mere four hours east, in Tucson. Although I hadn't left the state, I was finally unfastening myself from what felt like a quarter century long stint of immobility. I didn't realize it at the time, but this history would prove an integral aspect of my burgeoning identity.

I arrived at Visual Communications by way of a double-major in Art History and (as previously mentioned) Women's Studies, at the University of Arizona. Greatly fascinated by the ways in which social theory informs the visual artifact, and vice versa, I was initially interested in pursuing this dual degree, wherein I could immerse myself in the study of two such appropriately intersecting disciplines. Admittedly, I thought that a BA was “safer” than a BFA. This hesitance was rooted in the fact that there had been little in my hometown to help direct me toward a discipline, and too many who would sooner convince me that being an “artist” was simply an impractical dream. Conversely, I had always seen my own creativity as a wellspring of vitality—essential to my being. In whatever capacity or medium, the “gravitation pull” toward the physical construction of art has been too difficult to ignore.

In the spring of 2009, I was granted admission into the Visual Communications program. Thus far, my undergraduate work represents a rigorous program of theory, and practice in the technical nuances of design. The more I've learned, the more possibilities have been introduced into my life and work. From where I began three semesters ago, to now, I have developed a real hunger for self-initiated, conceptually driven work: the kind that unfolds naturally, irrespective of medium. In this sense, I see graduate study as an altogether new, yet completely natural bridge between past and future.

Whenever possible, I have imbued my undergraduate work with references to my identity—the identity that has literally grown out of the sequence of events outlined above. I have occupied many roles in life, most of which fell easily outside the realm of “normativity”--at least in comparison to the company that I kept. While my family and community-at-large were straight, church-going conservatives, I was the antithesis. Having seen and experienced the world almost entirely from its margins, I desire to give voice to the “spaces in between.” I want to call upon my own life experiences, while simultaneously exploring the ways in which they can be drawn parallel to the cumulative experiences of like others—namely those of the members of what would by my graduate cohort.

Drawing from my background at the University of Arizona, as a non-traditional student versed in a number of previously studied subjects, I am most interested in furthering research on the topics of postmodern feminist ideologies, the impact of language upon the understanding of these subjects, and the elements of space and time (linear and non-linear) as shapers of identity.

I believe the focus in my graduate studies would be best nurtured in the environment offered by the Visual Communications department at SAIC. By far, the greatest attraction is the Institute's insistence upon self-exploration and independent study. In October of 2009, I was invited to witness this firsthand, in VisCom graduate seminar. The encouragement provided students, to push themselves to make choices based on their instincts and interests, resonated most with my desires. Another draw: location. I have been swept away by Chicago! I have found it to possess the diversity of people and places that I so greatly want to be an integral part of my living and working experience for my graduate career. I genuinely hope that SAIC will be my next monumental step forward: the consummate place to establish what I believe would be a sublime “room of my own.”

[Artist1]

As part of the Statement of Intent for Syracuse University - It asks "how you expect to finance your studies?"

I'm not sure the best way to address this. Honestly, I really don't have any money to contribute to going to grad school. I'm saving up enough to move, get an apartment, food and supplied. I doubt I will have enough to really contribute toward tuition. So I need ALL of the financial aid I can get. I can only take out Fed Loans (I defaulted Private). I have a strong portfolio for scholarships.

So what do I say about how I expect to finance my studies??????? that I'm hoping to scholarships, grants, and loans? that I'm a struggling artist from a poor lower-class background but will work my ass off TAing and whatever it takes to get the scholarships/grants to go?

[I Paint Faces]

So I'm new to this forum for exactly this topic... WHAT ARE THEY LOOKING FOR???

Now I know its basically that you want to answer any questions they may have, but I'm nervous about standing out at a place like Yale that must go through ridiculous numbers of applications.

If others don't want to share their statements (thank you to those who did) then could you share what you think made your statement unique enough to get you in? What do they prefer that you emphasize (what your work is about, why you want grad school, why you want their particular program, etc, etc)?

I just don't feel like I have a snazzy cohesive explanation of my work ready such as "I'm deeply involved in using mixed media to show how eating disorders affect men as well as women in america and the juxtaposition of newspaper text and paint blah blah blah." Really I am just painting portraits. I think I'm very dedicated to and passionate about my work and like I can speak and write about it intelligently, it's just that I don't feel like I have a concise theorectical concept behind it that most artists do who are a part of the more prestigious MFA programs.

Basically I feel a little lost and any advice would be superb.

Thanks

[colbz]

So I'm new to this forum for exactly this topic... WHAT ARE THEY LOOKING FOR???

Now I know its basically that you want to answer any questions they may have, but I'm nervous about standing out at a place like Yale that must go through ridiculous numbers of applications.

If others don't want to share their statements (thank you to those who did) then could you share what you think made your statement unique enough to get you in? What do they prefer that you emphasize (what your work is about, why you want grad school, why you want their particular program, etc, etc)?

I just don't feel like I have a snazzy cohesive explanation of my work ready such as "I'm deeply involved in using mixed media to show how eating disorders affect men as well as women in america and the juxtaposition of newspaper text and paint blah blah blah." Really I am just painting portraits. I think I'm very dedicated to and passionate about my work and like I can speak and write about it intelligently, it's just that I don't feel like I have a concise theorectical concept behind it that most artists do who are a part of the more prestigious MFA programs.

Basically I feel a little lost and any advice would be superb.

Thanks

When I sent my pre-portfolio to MICA, they seemed to want to know in my statement what I was planning on doing when I get to an MFA program. It was like they wanted to know not only what my work was about, but also where I want it to go in the near future. They also wanted to know my reasons for everything such as color choices, and the use of a recurrent image that I hadn't even noticed I used over and over in my paintings

[colbz]

http://www.scribd.co...176262/SOP-SAIC

Here is mine. The intro was the toughest part for me. I wouldn't advise starting with a quote or childhood experience, too cliche. One thing I wish I had included was my answer during interviews as to "why graduate school now" which I got great responses from the faculty in all places.

Try to find the best critique of your work, and try to incorporate that as why you need graduate school now.

What school did you end up going to? And if you don't mind sharing, I'm curious as to what was your response for "why graduate school now?"

[zaquon]

I've gotten the "where do you plan to go with this?" question too from a couple of schools I had reviews with. They seemed vey pleased that I already had plans to make my work bigger and turn it into installations. I think they really want to see that you'll grow in the program and that you're constantly thinking about what you're trying to say with your work.

I've got my work cut out for me for my statements because my work is very process oriented and everyone who's reviewed my port has asked be to describe my process, but after they understand what I'm doing they want to know why I make the choices I make with it and what I'm trying to say and how I plan to deploy the process in the future. I don't want to burn a whole paragraph in my statements talking about process, but it's important to show how I got to the ideas that I'm exploring as a result of that process. I wouldn't decribe my work as highly conceptual, but I've identified the issues that it engages and there's plenty to talk about in a statement and in interviews, I'm just stuggling with the best way to say it.

My gf is in an English Ph.D. program, but I don't think this anecdote doesn't apply to us: early in her program her advisor told her that he was the one who approved her application. He said to her "I liked the way you think". I view my statement as way to show how I think about my work and about art in general.

[michaelwebster]

What school did you end up going to? And if you don't mind sharing, I'm curious as to what was your response for "why graduate school now?"

I ended up choosing SAIC. People who are coming almost straight out of undergrad with little experience outside of school will always get this question. My answer was that I am currently asking questions about my work and direction that need the two years of dialogue to work out, specifically, how much of my work is dictated, directed, or produced by others. How do I question my own authority within an artwork successfully while still being a central part of the formulation of the artwork. What other roles are possible for me to enact instead of the standard role of artist?

Essentially this question/self critique was what got me into grad school, because my artwork is progressing rapidy, I didn't have 20 strong pieces, I had a range of pieces from somewhat successful to less so, as I was just out of undergrad. I think my interviews were key to getting accepted in my case.