DO NOT GO TO COURTAULD

[Benton73]

I just want to be honest about my experience. 

 

Courtauld's MA is cash grab- esppecially for international students. They will not offer any financial assistance. The methods course is not even a class, but rather just a professor reading their most recent paper. They don't even discuss the methods they use or teach you leading methods or have discussing.

The whole year has been online, even though the rest of London universities are in person. They told international students only 1.5 weeks before the start of the semester the year will be online so most student had already signed housing contracts.

They ended up closing the Library due to COVID which left student no access to resources or research. They told students just to deal with it and make due and pay for online access to journals themselves. They have extremely limited access to JSTOR. I ended up using my undergrad's library to get things. My professor suggested illegal websites to find articles and books (I know this is normal, but just show how little resources the university has). 

They completely closed campus for a while-- they tell campus is one reason why international student's tuition is so high, yet many of us have no access to it.

They cancelled trips, which was expected because of COVID, but they won't return any tuition. The trips were advertised on the website as part of the program and they won't make it up to students or release the funds.

They didn't lower any tuition, especially for students who are international and pay twice as much. I know many students who couldn't go to London this year and stayed home but are still paying twice as much.

Additionally, their writing resources and other academic advising is only allowed to be access by student physically located in the UK. As an international student who couldn't move to London  during COVID, I was told faculty couldn't assist me even though meetings were over Zoom because I was not physically in the UK and their contracts did no allow them to help students abroad- EVEN THOUGH COURTAULD ADVERTISES THESE RESOURCES.

Overall there has been little to no support to international students. It is a cash grab and they just try to get rid of you soon as possible.

However the positive is that the faculty is extremely talented and leading researchers in the world. But beyond that it has been a horrendous experience with little support.

 

 

 

[roving99]

This is a crummy experience. I’m so sorry this is how you’ve been treated during a time when students need support the most. 
 

Unfortunately, your experience is a relatively common one. Many many terminal masters programs are just cash cows for their respective universities and students end up with the short end of the stick in a majority of these situations. 
 

I would continue to badger them. You need SOMETHING out of them, not just pure dismissal. 

[Hedonismbot2000]

22 hours ago, Benton73 said:

Additionally, their writing resources and other academic advising is only allowed to be access by student physically located in the UK. As an international student who couldn't move to London  during COVID, I was told faculty couldn't assist me even though meetings were over Zoom because I was not physically in the UK and their contracts did no allow them to help students abroad- EVEN THOUGH COURTAULD ADVERTISES THESE RESOURCES.

Wow. That part in particular is completely insane and borderline criminal. I'm so sorry this was your experience. Mostly I thought of the Courtauld as a feeder into top PhDs or as just a solid standalone MA.

This however confirms something I've already suspected about MA programs at elite schools for those who are not funded (NYU-IFA, Courtauld, Columbia, even Williams in the past). They traffic in their reputations, locations, and supposedly robust alumni networks (which does no good when the jobs simply aren't there, like what happened on a mass scale to the art world this year). But from your description, it seems like their MO is to fleece international students and not give a s*** what happens to them after graduation. 

I'd prefer not to think that they are deliberately out to take advantage of students, but it's not hard to imagine, which is profoundly depressing. Ugh.

[paprika21]

Wow I am so sorry that this was your experience. But also thanks for sharing. I'm choosing between Courtauld and another program now and this is helpful information. 

 

[raye237]

23 hours ago, paprika21 said:

Wow I am so sorry that this was your experience. But also thanks for sharing. I'm choosing between Courtauld and another program now and this is helpful information. 

 

Hey I am also currently doing the Courtauld MA so if you have questions about the program feel free to message!

[artstor509]

I don't want to be the cynical older grad student. I really do not. But this does not surprise me at the least. I do not at all mean this to sound like I am dismissing your problems or complaints. Instead, I say this as a way of articulating that art history really is a field with many problems. From professors I know who stole their student's proposal to the frequent complaints I hear about misgendering and microagressive behaviors, it seems to be an arena of brewing problems. I can go on and on about how I feel as though art history is one of the most "conservative" fields despite professors who profess liberal or progressive ideologies.  Yes, taking your money and providing you with a poor education and lack of resources is hard. But please know that it might very well be symptomatic of the field itself and you are in good company with your complaints.