MFA 2023 Freak Out Forum

[Miso]

41 minutes ago, SocialKonstruct said:

Indeed. I am going to post things which are specific to my own experiences :). My goal primarily is to enter into the cutting-edge contemporary art world.

That is dope, love that you're betting on yourself! I know you will accomplish that goal if you put in the work  I think it is totally worth applying to MFA programs in prime locations. You never know if you will receive a full ride due to an excellent portfolio. 

But for future students that may be reading this forum years from now: 

If you aren't lucky enough to get a full ride to Yale, Columbia, SAIC, etc...then you will be taking on 80k-100k in debt when you account for tuition and living expenses. Now maybe you enter the art world and make millions and pay that debt off instantly. But that is rare, that's like a kid making the NBA. So think long and hard about the risk you're taking, if you don't make it big in the art world you'll realistically be like the thousands of other MFA graduates making 50k and paying off loans their entire lives. Best advice I can give any artists is know your worth....don't feel rushed to settle for a bad situation, either receive a good scholarship or go to a fully funded program. Please don't get scammed by these schools...I beg you. (okay my lil rant is over lol) 

[SocialKonstruct]

10 hours ago, Gaara said:

That is dope, love that you're betting on yourself! I know you will accomplish that goal if you put in the work  I think it is totally worth applying to MFA programs in prime locations. You never know if you will receive a full ride due to an excellent portfolio. 

But for future students that may be reading this forum years from now: 

If you aren't lucky enough to get a full ride to Yale, Columbia, SAIC, etc...then you will be taking on 80k-100k in debt when you account for tuition and living expenses. Now maybe you enter the art world and make millions and pay that debt off instantly. But that is rare, that's like a kid making the NBA. So think long and hard about the risk you're taking, if you don't make it big in the art world you'll realistically be like the thousands of other MFA graduates making 50k and paying off loans their entire lives. Best advice I can give any artists is know your worth....don't feel rushed to settle for a bad situation, either receive a good scholarship or go to a fully funded program. Please don't get scammed by these schools...I beg you. (okay my lil rant is over lol) 

I am going to hedge my bet and go for the scholarship route

[SocialKonstruct]

Just turned in my SAIC photography MFA application this morning and now working on my SAIC painting/drawing application tonight and tomorrow.

[Miso]

22 hours ago, SocialKonstruct said:

Just turned in my SAIC photography MFA application this morning and now working on my SAIC painting/drawing application tonight and tomorrow.

@SocialKonstruct Congrats on completing your second app! Is there a reason you're submitting applications so early? I would think you would use these last months to completely polish written statements and add more strong pieces to your portfolio. 

 

@everyone: 

okay so I don’t think safe schools exists for fully funded MFA programs, they basically pay you to attend so the 5% acceptance rates make sense. (even tho if you don’t have parents helping you with rent…a 12k-30k stipend won’t be much and you’ll have to get a job while attending grad school) But even with all this said, does anyone know a fully funded program with larger class sizes? Every school I look at has a current class size of between 5-10 students at most. I am thinking if I can find one with a class size of 20-25 then that school must have higher acceptance rates.

[gayfhaylay]

On 9/4/2022 at 8:21 PM, Gaara said:

Thanks for adding this, I'm sure this will help a lot of people. I've seen this article before and overall I think it depends on the person because everyone's goals are different. If you aspire to be a full time artists and sell your artwork to rich art collectors at auctions....then being near New York or LA would be ideal. So places like Yale or UCLA would be perfect. But if someone has the goal of becoming a fully tenured art professor, going to Yale would be a financially bad decision. (unless you're the lucky 1 applicant that gets a full ride)

But for future art professors, you can go to a random fully funded program like Ohio, the prestige and location of a school is less significant for people with these goals. So the idea this article gives about an MFA program only being worth it if you attend a top program...I only think this is true for a certain group of people. 

 

 

this^^, I do want to add / chime in on this list of top 500 artists and being a successful artist - outside of being a professor. There is no top 500 outside of classism. Not saying the artists are classists. But the players absolutely, historically, have been.

I mean, if you get into yale- lol - go to yale! But if you don't or it's not your thing, be confident in the fact that there is so much culture, art and life thriving outside of these major cities and major schools. Outside of the top lists. You can make money and a life for yourself besides the fact.

I live in a 'lesser' city (700,000 population). And I've been out of school working in the arts &/or as an artist for 10 years. I know plenty of successful artists who are exhibiting, getting grants, creating public art, community work and of course selling work, ect - all that goes into being an artist full time. Some don't have mfa s and those that do did not go to top schools. Some did, but it seems a bit random.

While it's important and practical to think in terms of "how do I become a successful artist?", I think we all would do better to first and mostly think about - "how do I create successful art?" Sometimes that's going to the top list schools. And sometimes it is not. 

 

(This isn't to anyone directly. This is just something I would have appreciated knowing / reading 8-10 years ago right after undergrad. People always say it's impossible unless you're the top 2%. Everything in life is difficult. So we all minus well have a difficult time doing something we love and impulsively need. Also being a professor is an excellent way to give back to the arts community so no shade there either)

[Miso]

6 hours ago, gayfhaylay said:

this^^, I do want to add / chime in on this list of top 500 artists and being a successful artist - outside of being a professor. There is no top 500 outside of classism. Not saying the artists are classists. But the players absolutely, historically, have been.

I mean, if you get into yale- lol - go to yale! But if you don't or it's not your thing, be confident in the fact that there is so much culture, art and life thriving outside of these major cities and major schools. Outside of the top lists. You can make money and a life for yourself besides the fact.

I live in a 'lesser' city (700,000 population). And I've been out of school working in the arts &/or as an artist for 10 years. I know plenty of successful artists who are exhibiting, getting grants, creating public art, community work and of course selling work, ect - all that goes into being an artist full time. Some don't have mfa s and those that do did not go to top schools. Some did, but it seems a bit random.

While it's important and practical to think in terms of "how do I become a successful artist?", I think we all would do better to first and mostly think about - "how do I create successful art?" Sometimes that's going to the top list schools. And sometimes it is not. 

 

(This isn't to anyone directly. This is just something I would have appreciated knowing / reading 8-10 years ago right after undergrad. People always say it's impossible unless you're the top 2%. Everything in life is difficult. So we all minus well have a difficult time doing something we love and impulsively need. Also being a professor is an excellent way to give back to the arts community so no shade there either)

exactly, if your artwork is good enough the "artworld" will find you and it won't be because of your mfa program. I think we give these schools a lil too much credit sometimes, so many successful artists didn't even get a masters.   

Side Note: You've had 10 years out of undergrad, I imagine your portfolio is so polished and your CV list must be like 2-3 pages long! Are you afraid professors reviewing your application may think you're overqualified? I've heard rumors and think it's totally unfair, every program should make room for more experienced applicants in their 30's. 

[SteviaZaddy]

19 hours ago, Gaara said:

exactly, if your artwork is good enough the "artworld" will find you and it won't be because of your mfa program. I think we give these schools a lil too much credit sometimes, so many successful artists didn't even get a masters.   

Side Note: You've had 10 years out of undergrad, I imagine your portfolio is so polished and your CV list must be like 2-3 pages long! Are you afraid professors reviewing your application may think you're overqualified? I've heard rumors and think it's totally unfair, every program should make room for more experienced applicants in their 30's. 

Too old yes, lol- overqualified? Nah. That's probably an excuse also probably depends on the program. And Hopefully I'm more fresh than polished. Cvs not that long and too localized so ?.

I would have liked to apply 2-3 years ago but life things popped up and then Covid. I'd only apply this year. After this year life or 'being an artist' (ideally) will busy me so this is my last chance to hyperspeed & challenge my growth as far as creating. I'll still grow but an environment of feedback and criticism would be instrumental. And fun:) - So if I can have 2 years to create better art before being an 'artist' then I'd absolutely take it. 

But! If the program thinks I'm too old and I won't fit in then that's absolutely valid. 

Curious if there'll be other 30ish applicants on here~

[BlackSheepCollective]

Currently an MFA student at Otis. Graduating in the Spring. I looked at this forum when applying. For anyone thinking of Otis. Can't speak highly enough of the faculty itself. A lot of experience between them all where they've done or are still doing the gallery scene, biennials, etc. The faculty keeps it real if you want to navigate the art world especially the LA scene. That's what their Professional Practices class teaches you and just speaking with them during studio visits. What I didn't know beforehand but has been great is knowing that at Otis you get studio visits with faculty every week and from visiting artists based in LA who will talk with you about your work and current projects. What I didn't realize but talking with faculty is that a lot of MFA programs, the faculty barely will meet with them during the semester. I've heard some programs they'll only visit once or twice a semester with you. If studio visits is something you value, Otis is a great program for that. The program doesn't split up into disciplines so, if you're in the program your crit is with everyone in the MFA program no matter what their specialization is. But I will say the majority are painters, so if you are a painter which I am not, then this is probably a program you can look into. Also, they started taking less in their cohort. Probably around 10 these days, but in crit sessions and other classes first and second years are together. 

[Miso]

6 hours ago, BlackSheepCollective said:

Currently an MFA student at Otis. Graduating in the Spring. I looked at this forum when applying. For anyone thinking of Otis. Can't speak highly enough of the faculty itself. A lot of experience between them all where they've done or are still doing the gallery scene, biennials, etc. The faculty keeps it real if you want to navigate the art world especially the LA scene. That's what their Professional Practices class teaches you and just speaking with them during studio visits. What I didn't know beforehand but has been great is knowing that at Otis you get studio visits with faculty every week and from visiting artists based in LA who will talk with you about your work and current projects. What I didn't realize but talking with faculty is that a lot of MFA programs, the faculty barely will meet with them during the semester. I've heard some programs they'll only visit once or twice a semester with you. If studio visits is something you value, Otis is a great program for that. The program doesn't split up into disciplines so, if you're in the program your crit is with everyone in the MFA program no matter what their specialization is. But I will say the majority are painters, so if you are a painter which I am not, then this is probably a program you can look into. Also, they started taking less in their cohort. Probably around 10 these days, but in crit sessions and other classes first and second years are together. 

Thank you for coming back here to give us this insight! 

Personally, I have only considered fully funded programs. Recently, I've been thinking of adding another school (that isn't fully funded) to my current list and just hope they decide to give me a full ride because you never know. How much funding did you receive from Otis? I know Otis is nearly 50k a year, unless someone is a trust fund baby idk why they would choose to take on more debt. Even if they gave a 50% tuition waiver you would still be graduating in 2 years with 50k in debt. 

Also, what's your opinion on the ArtCenter vs. Otis debate? From the outside looking in, I've read a lot and it seems like people favor ArtCenter.  

[impliedpaste]

On 9/7/2022 at 11:54 AM, gayfhaylay said:

 

this^^, I do want to add / chime in on this list of top 500 artists and being a successful artist - outside of being a professor. There is no top 500 outside of classism. Not saying the artists are classists. But the players absolutely, historically, have been.

I mean, if you get into yale- lol - go to yale! But if you don't or it's not your thing, be confident in the fact that there is so much culture, art and life thriving outside of these major cities and major schools. Outside of the top lists. You can make money and a life for yourself besides the fact.

I live in a 'lesser' city (700,000 population). And I've been out of school working in the arts &/or as an artist for 10 years. I know plenty of successful artists who are exhibiting, getting grants, creating public art, community work and of course selling work, ect - all that goes into being an artist full time. Some don't have mfa s and those that do did not go to top schools. Some did, but it seems a bit random.

While it's important and practical to think in terms of "how do I become a successful artist?", I think we all would do better to first and mostly think about - "how do I create successful art?" Sometimes that's going to the top list schools. And sometimes it is not. 

 

(This isn't to anyone directly. This is just something I would have appreciated knowing / reading 8-10 years ago right after undergrad. People always say it's impossible unless you're the top 2%. Everything in life is difficult. So we all minus well have a difficult time doing something we love and impulsively need. Also being a professor is an excellent way to give back to the arts community so no shade there either)

Excellent comment! The main goal as an artist is to have the time, space, motivation and freedom to continue making your work, right? The question of making successful art IS the question. A lot of career stuff is up to chance, luck, connections - things outside of our control - but our ability to do the work is within our control. I think it is really helpful in such a fickle world to maintain that internal motivation. 

I've been out of undergrad for awhile too and also in a similar sized city. There is plenty of space for a lot of people to make their lives as artists. 

[BlackSheepCollective]

9 hours ago, Gaara said:

Thank you for coming back here to give us this insight! 

Personally, I have only considered fully funded programs. Recently, I've been thinking of adding another school (that isn't fully funded) to my current list and just hope they decide to give me a full ride because you never know. How much funding did you receive from Otis? I know Otis is nearly 50k a year, unless someone is a trust fund baby idk why they would choose to take on more debt. Even if they gave a 50% tuition waiver you would still be graduating in 2 years with 50k in debt. 

Also, what's your opinion on the ArtCenter vs. Otis debate? From the outside looking in, I've read a lot and it seems like people favor ArtCenter.  

Yes at Otis they'll give you an institutional scholarship which covers 50 percent of costs and some smaller scholarships that will cover a little bit more. However, as an outlier it must be said that Otis made headlines in the art world because during our commencement for those graduating in 2022, Evan Spiegel the CEO of Snapchat gifted all the graduates by paying off all their student debt for their time here whether you were an undergrad or graduate student. Spiegel never went to Otis, he went to Stanford, but took courses here before doing his thing. Obviously you can't expect some benefactor or donor to bestow these things every school year, but it did set a precedent. Who knows how that will go moving forward. It's understandable if people want low cost programs. If you want to be in the LA area, I'd look at UC Irvine which has a rich history in art and from talking to faculty, Long Beach was a very good program as well and those are lower cost programs. Otis for the representation they have in galleries or museums in LA whether it's alumni or faculty, Otis itself doesn't fund raise mainly off of Fine Arts. They're the only LA art school with a fashion design program and really the only program in the country that has Toy Design and they really promote and fundraise off of those programs. 

Art Center vs Otis is just a matter of taste and what you want. I have a really good friend that's an Art Center alum. The faculty from all these programs are graduates of all the other programs. At Otis, our faculty went to school at UCLA, Cal Arts, Art Center, some went to Otis, UC Irvine, SAIC, RISD. The important thing and it's something you don't fully understand until you're in an MFA program, is you should really look at the faculty because they are the ones that are working with you for those 2 years. And if their work inspires or moves you, it can only help you get better. Not all great artists are great mentors or teachers so that needs to said as well. I know our MFA program, you get a lot of time spent covering your work at crit. We're talking 3-4 hours of analyzing your work and it's thoughtful, not outlandish attacks. One of the other very useful things they teach you is being able to talk about your own work. So many programs including Otis have some sort of Visiting Artist Lecture Series where artists come to talk about their practice. Otis stresses the ability to replicate that because for an artist that's one of their sources of income is talking at other schools about their practice. I just want to also say that age is no factor at least at Otis. I'm in my thirties, half my cohort is in their thirties. One of the new first years is in their fifties. The thing that really matters when applying is being able to explain what your art practice is that isn't essentially just about making pretty objects. Undergrad is for technique, graduate school assumes you know what you're doing and professionalizes your practice. 

[Miso]

7 hours ago, BlackSheepCollective said:

Yes at Otis they'll give you an institutional scholarship which covers 50 percent of costs and some smaller scholarships that will cover a little bit more. However, as an outlier it must be said that Otis made headlines in the art world because during our commencement for those graduating in 2022, Evan Spiegel the CEO of Snapchat gifted all the graduates by paying off all their student debt for their time here whether you were an undergrad or graduate student. Spiegel never went to Otis, he went to Stanford, but took courses here before doing his thing. Obviously you can't expect some benefactor or donor to bestow these things every school year, but it did set a precedent. Who knows how that will go moving forward. It's understandable if people want low cost programs. If you want to be in the LA area, I'd look at UC Irvine which has a rich history in art and from talking to faculty, Long Beach was a very good program as well and those are lower cost programs. Otis for the representation they have in galleries or museums in LA whether it's alumni or faculty, Otis itself doesn't fund raise mainly off of Fine Arts. They're the only LA art school with a fashion design program and really the only program in the country that has Toy Design and they really promote and fundraise off of those programs. 

Art Center vs Otis is just a matter of taste and what you want. I have a really good friend that's an Art Center alum. The faculty from all these programs are graduates of all the other programs. At Otis, our faculty went to school at UCLA, Cal Arts, Art Center, some went to Otis, UC Irvine, SAIC, RISD. The important thing and it's something you don't fully understand until you're in an MFA program, is you should really look at the faculty because they are the ones that are working with you for those 2 years. And if their work inspires or moves you, it can only help you get better. Not all great artists are great mentors or teachers so that needs to said as well. I know our MFA program, you get a lot of time spent covering your work at crit. We're talking 3-4 hours of analyzing your work and it's thoughtful, not outlandish attacks. One of the other very useful things they teach you is being able to talk about your own work. So many programs including Otis have some sort of Visiting Artist Lecture Series where artists come to talk about their practice. Otis stresses the ability to replicate that because for an artist that's one of their sources of income is talking at other schools about their practice. I just want to also say that age is no factor at least at Otis. I'm in my thirties, half my cohort is in their thirties. One of the new first years is in their fifties. The thing that really matters when applying is being able to explain what your art practice is that isn't essentially just about making pretty objects. Undergrad is for technique, graduate school assumes you know what you're doing and professionalizes your practice. 

I've heard UC Irvine has a great fully funded program + stipend. Only reason I'm not applying there is because the average cost of rent is around 3k a month in Irvine. I'm sure someone could find a roommate and pay 1.5k instead, but I really don't want a roommate. Plus, UC Irvine's program is 3 years...3k a month for 3 years...sheesh...my wallet is having a heart attack just thinking about it lol. But i'll have to look into Long Beach, haven't seen anything about them. 

Does Otis give stipend for TA-ing or teaching an undergraduate course? or do they have ya'll do these things for free? Sounds like maybe you guys don't do this at all and the program is more focused on critique, getting work in galleries, and understanding how to talk about your art. 

[BlackSheepCollective]

21 hours ago, Gaara said:

I've heard UC Irvine has a great fully funded program + stipend. Only reason I'm not applying there is because the average cost of rent is around 3k a month in Irvine. I'm sure someone could find a roommate and pay 1.5k instead, but I really don't want a roommate. Plus, UC Irvine's program is 3 years...3k a month for 3 years...sheesh...my wallet is having a heart attack just thinking about it lol. But i'll have to look into Long Beach, haven't seen anything about them. 

Does Otis give stipend for TA-ing or teaching an undergraduate course? or do they have ya'll do these things for free? Sounds like maybe you guys don't do this at all and the program is more focused on critique, getting work in galleries, and understanding how to talk about your art. 

Otis definitely has TAing available. I'm doing 3 this semester. There's no limit to how many you can do. You can be the TA in a class that you're in. There are TA opportunities at the graduate level, upper level undergrad level, and other various positions at the school like being able to run the social media or running the gallery.

[Miso]

1 hour ago, BlackSheepCollective said:

Otis definitely has TAing available. I'm doing 3 this semester. There's no limit to how many you can do. You can be the TA in a class that you're in. There are TA opportunities at the graduate level, upper level undergrad level, and other various positions at the school like being able to run the social media or running the gallery.

Are you being paid for the 3 TA positions you currently hold? If so, how much?

I personally don't plan on applying to Otis, I just think this information could help people reading this forum. Thanks 

[SocialKonstruct]

All of the CalArts MFA program applications opened up today so 3 more applications to do. I still am awaiting a pro photo of one of my sculptures so I can wrap up my SAIC sculpture application.

 

[SocialKonstruct]

On 9/6/2022 at 8:46 PM, Gaara said:

@SocialKonstruct Congrats on completing your second app! Is there a reason you're submitting applications so early? I would think you would use these last months to completely polish written statements and add more strong pieces to your portfolio. 

 

@everyone: 

okay so I don’t think safe schools exists for fully funded MFA programs, they basically pay you to attend so the 5% acceptance rates make sense. (even tho if you don’t have parents helping you with rent…a 12k-30k stipend won’t be much and you’ll have to get a job while attending grad school) But even with all this said, does anyone know a fully funded program with larger class sizes? Every school I look at has a current class size of between 5-10 students at most. I am thinking if I can find one with a class size of 20-25 then that school must have higher acceptance rates.

Doing my MFA applications early because it's so so hard to get letters of recommendations completed :(.

On the other hand I am busy helping to run a gallery I started with a colleague 2 years ago and busy doing classes and an art fair for the gallery (not my art) so gotta plan ahead

[SocialKonstruct]

Three applications out of 11 are completed including the letters of recommendation!

[Garamond]

Hello everyone! I figure I would reintroduce myself from last year's thread (I am actually applying this year and not just lurking).

I'm a graphic designer 12 years removed from graduating with a BA in Graphic Design. I'm in my mid-30s now and have worked in a variety of industries. I've always wanted to get my MFA in Graphic Design and am looking into programs that are fully funded, offer extensive teaching experience, offer a certificate in a related major (Museum Studies, Art History, Book Arts, Visual Studies, etc.) and offer opportunities for travel abroad. Here are the schools I am applying to at the end of the year:

1 - Georgia State

2 - Michigan State

3 - Arizona

4 - Wisconsin

5 - Indiana

6 - Ohio University (Athens, Ohio)

7 - Missouri

8 - Iowa

9 - Florida State

10 - Florida

11 - Oklahoma

12 - Illinois (Urbana-Champaign)

13 - Southern Illinois (Carbondale, Illinois)

I will have visited most of these universities by the end of this year (except for Oklahoma), and can answer any questions about visiting campus. Or feel free to ask me to look at your portfolio or read your artist statements/letters of intent. I also have an MFA in Creative Writing so I am used to critiquing other people's essays.

Also my personal website if anyone is interested:

https://www.alexquintanilla.com/

Best of luck to everyone!

[slickjaketheruler]

Current Temple/Tyler School of Art MFA student here. I'm happy to answer any questions about my experience with Tyler so far and can give some insight into the nitty gritty about funding, their interdisciplinary approach, facilities, cool faculty, etc. 

[k8lyn]

Hi everyone! This will be my second year applying for MFA Photo and multidisciplinary programs. Last year I only applied to a couple schools and got waitlisted but ultimately not accepted. 

I'm planning to apply to UConn, U of Georgia, VCU, maybe Tyler and maybe Yale. Considering some CA schools too. Still finalizing my list!

Something I wish I had done last year was reach out to more faculty members during the application process. Does anyone have advice on doing so? Is it acceptable to just email them? Any other advice?

Thanks and good luck to all :)

[Miso]

8 hours ago, k8lyn said:

Hi everyone! This will be my second year applying for MFA Photo and multidisciplinary programs. Last year I only applied to a couple schools and got waitlisted but ultimately not accepted. 

I'm planning to apply to UConn, U of Georgia, VCU, maybe Tyler and maybe Yale. Considering some CA schools too. Still finalizing my list!

Something I wish I had done last year was reach out to more faculty members during the application process. Does anyone have advice on doing so? Is it acceptable to just email them? Any other advice?

Thanks and good luck to all

I have emailed faculty a few times, but only when the website left out information. Then I'd email the programs graduate advisor. For example, some programs may not give a specific word count for written responses....instead of guessing and over writing, it is a good idea to reach out and ask. 

But I would avoid reaching out to professors hoping that will give you a better chance of being accepted. I think it's a common myth that reaching out gives you any type of advantage over students that don't. The typical "My name is [ ], and I am very interested in your guys program....blah blah blah"....can be risky, people that do this show a lack of confidence in themselves.

So unless you have a specific question that wasn't answered on their website, I would avoid looking thirsty and sending a 'pick me' email. 

So basically to answer your question, I think it's only acceptable to email a graduate advisor with a specific question that wasn't answered through the website OR perhaps email a professor to ask them about their own work. Depending on how you email a professor about their own work, they will either be flattered and think you're genuinely interested in the program and perhaps maybe remember your name when reviewing applications, or they will be too busy around this time w/ critiques and grading finals so don't be shocked if they just don't reply, and it is also a possibility you word the email poorly and they are tired of pick me emails because it is the 30th one they've received this month. (Risky game to play) 

Lemme know if you need advice with anything else, glad to help

[h3249r]

Hi Y'all! 

I'm a longtime lurker who is finally applying this year & figured I'd come on and introduce myself! I'm a printmaker/collage artist/bookmaker/etc and I'm hoping to pursue my MFA in printmaking or Interdisciplinary Studio Art (somewhere with a good print shop!). I'm about 3 years out from undergrad and have always known I wanted to go back so I can eventually teach and now feels like the right time for me. Definitely looking for something fully funded & pretty stubborn about that, so location isn't a big factor in my decision.

Here's a list of schools I intend on applying to as of now:

1. U Iowa

2. UT Knoxville

3. UW Madison

4. U Oregon

5. UM Twin Cities

2-3 more, maybe Rutgers, UGA Lamar Dodd, or UI Bloomington Eskenazi 

My day job is in admissions for an art school, so I've been overthinking this whole application process and making myself extra nervous thinking about all the ways the reviewers will judge my application based on my own experience... lmao. Hopefully coming here to talk to y'all will help me through this!

Good luck this year everyone! We've got this!

[Miso]

22 hours ago, h3ather said:

Hi Y'all! 

I'm a longtime lurker who is finally applying this year & figured I'd come on and introduce myself! I'm a printmaker/collage artist/bookmaker/etc and I'm hoping to pursue my MFA in printmaking or Interdisciplinary Studio Art (somewhere with a good print shop!). I'm about 3 years out from undergrad and have always known I wanted to go back so I can eventually teach and now feels like the right time for me. Definitely looking for something fully funded & pretty stubborn about that, so location isn't a big factor in my decision.

Here's a list of schools I intend on applying to as of now:

1. U Iowa

2. UT Knoxville

3. UW Madison

4. U Oregon

5. UM Twin Cities

2-3 more, maybe Rutgers, UGA Lamar Dodd, or UI Bloomington Eskenazi 

My day job is in admissions for an art school, so I've been overthinking this whole application process and making myself extra nervous thinking about all the ways the reviewers will judge my application based on my own experience... lmao. Hopefully coming here to talk to y'all will help me through this!

Good luck this year everyone! We've got this!

Hiii welcome to the squad! lol 

Great list of schools! No need to be nervous and stress yourself out...I am also stubborn about going somewhere fully funded and I've noticed basically all fully funded programs have an extremely low acceptance rate. (100-200 applicants w/ class sizes of mostly 10 or less)...pretty sure they receive more than 10 great applicants and have very tough decisions to make so it really just comes down to getting lucky. We all shouldn't be nervous about things that are out of our control. 

But since you work in admissions for an art school, what have you seen reviewers judge or say about applications? Curious to know about your behind the scenes experience in the admissions office.  

[dawndothat]

Hello everyone, I haven't decided on the MFA programs I want to apply to yet, but I'm looking at Yale(painting/printmaking), RISD(painting), Columbia(visual arts), and SAIC(Painting.&Drawing). 
I made videos, installations, and oil paintings during my undergrad. But I'm thinking about including only oil paintings with several series of my works in a portfolio(because my undergraduate thesis exhibition was of all oil paintings. And I've done oil paintings last six months).

Here is the thing I'm afraid that is putting only oil paintings into the portfolio might not be a good idea. Should I put a few videos or installation pieces together with oil paintings or focus on the media(oil paints) that I deal with best in the portfolio?

[Miso]

2 hours ago, dawndothat said:

Hello everyone, I haven't decided on the MFA programs I want to apply to yet, but I'm looking at Yale(painting/printmaking), RISD(painting), Columbia(visual arts), and SAIC(Painting.&Drawing). 
I made videos, installations, and oil paintings during my undergrad. But I'm thinking about including only oil paintings with several series of my works in a portfolio(because my undergraduate thesis exhibition was of all oil paintings. And I've done oil paintings last six months).

Here is the thing I'm afraid that is putting only oil paintings into the portfolio might not be a good idea. Should I put a few videos or installation pieces together with oil paintings or focus on the media(oil paints) that I deal with best in the portfolio?

Hellooo, 

I feel like most schools prefer focused portfolios, gives them a sense of what direction you will go at their program. (but some may like variety) Maybe wouldn't hurt to email each school to find out...because most schools websites give very vague information about what's expected in the portfolio. 

To me it would seem completely understandable to include a few videos or installation pieces because applications always make you choose a first and second choice major. Like if my first choice was painting/drawing and my second was photography....how would I be considered for my second choice if I didn't include a few photographs. Seeing that most portfolios are 20 pieces....I would either do all 20 in my speciality/first choice major OR do 17 in my first choice and 3 in my second for a little sneak peek. 

But to play it safe, you should probably ask the schools you're applying to....be prepared for a vague answer tho lol. 

 

ps: I am also applying for painting+drawing, all my work is in graphite, charcoal, etc. I don't want to have to settle for a second choice major so I'm going all in on my first choice...I could include videos and photography I have but I'd rather not.