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Posted
31 minutes ago, Gaara said:

so i received no email from Rutgers but decided to check my portal and there was a very short message saying "Your application has been reviewed, and the committee has denied admission." Lmaooo 😂 Not saying the longer copy and pasted rejection letters are any better, but this was a first...very blunt and cold lol 

I got the same message.  Honestly appreciate compared to some other schools that just leave you hanging.

 

I'm waiting to hear from my last 3 schools.  Has anyone heard from SUNY Purchase, Hunter, or New Mexico?  Going through past years Purchase and Hunter seem to be around this time so still holding out hope.  With NM I'm just assuming people who got interviews don't frequent this board.  Going through past years they seem to reach out early and am doubting they would be this delayed.

Posted
1 hour ago, cinnamoroll8 said:

have yall had any luck asking the interviewers via email before what questions they might ask? 

cant tell if it would be annoying to ask them that and they may just not say anything... for the most part it seems like they dont respond to inquiries about the interview before

There's some oddballs, but most places ask approximately the same questions. I just did a mock interview with one of my recommenders and we discussed it at length. Here's what I would recommend preparing for:

Elevator pitch, Sum up your practice in one sentence.

What do you hope to get out of grad school/why are you going to grad school?

Why this school specifically? What can you get from our school that you cant do/find on your own?

What are some of your influences/contemporary artists you draw inspiration from?

What are you reading/a little about the theoretical basis of your work?

Tell us about a piece from your portfolio that you feel is particularly successful?

Not every school will ask you all these questions, but it's good to have answers prepared because you'll probably encounter some of them at each school. Keep it brief and professional, but honest and true to yourself. They're looking for someone they can get along with. These reviewers are gonna be working closely with you for a long time, so they want to know that you're thinking deeply about this decision and that you're someone they can get along with.

Posted
1 hour ago, kjsdhl212 said:

I got the same message.  Honestly appreciate compared to some other schools that just leave you hanging.

 

There's no excuse for schools not to reach out to applicants personally, especially considering the effort and passion applicants pour into their submissions. It's disheartening to see how impersonal and inhumane the MFA application process can be. Applicants deserve more than just a blunt rejection letter, a generic response written by ChatGPT, or never hearing back.

Receiving a short, blunt message like the one from Rutgers can be quite jarring. While it may be better than being left hanging indefinitely, it still lacks the genuine feedback and constructive criticism that applicants need to improve and grow. It's frustrating, especially considering the significant financial investment applicants make in the application process. People deserve acknowledgment of their efforts and thoughtful feedback that helps them become better applicants in the future.

It's moments like these that highlight the flaws in the system and emphasize the need for reform. This isn't just a Rutgers problem, I think all schools need to take a look at themselves and change.

Posted

Anyone with a Rutgers interview thinking of going to the in person interview day? (I’m thinking I will but also just asked admissions if Rutgers covers any of the traveling expenses)

Posted

I didn't get an interview for Rutgers through email and logged into my portal expecting to find the mentioned rejection notification but my application just says "under review" and to check back for a decision. Maybe I am not looking in the right place or do y'all think that maybe there will be another round of interview invites? 

Posted
7 minutes ago, Goody2choos said:

I didn't get an interview for Rutgers through email and logged into my portal expecting to find the mentioned rejection notification but my application just says "under review" and to check back for a decision. Maybe I am not looking in the right place or do y'all think that maybe there will be another round of interview invites? 

Did you apply to MFA Visual Arts or MFA Design?

Posted
7 minutes ago, Goody2choos said:

I applied to Visual Arts

Ok, I applied to both. Got the Denied message people were discussing for Visual Arts but no message for Design. Here's to hoping we're still in the running for these programs, good luck!

Posted
17 minutes ago, yosemite119 said:

Ok, I applied to both. Got the Denied message people were discussing for Visual Arts but no message for Design. Here's to hoping we're still in the running for these programs, good luck!

Also no message for the design program for me! I’m still waiting to hear back from Rutgers and Stamps… still shocked to not hear anything from Stamps considering the app was due like Jan 5??

Posted
5 hours ago, bunnie99 said:

There's some oddballs, but most places ask approximately the same questions. I just did a mock interview with one of my recommenders and we discussed it at length. Here's what I would recommend preparing for:

Elevator pitch, Sum up your practice in one sentence.

What do you hope to get out of grad school/why are you going to grad school?

Why this school specifically? What can you get from our school that you cant do/find on your own?

What are some of your influences/contemporary artists you draw inspiration from?

What are you reading/a little about the theoretical basis of your work?

Tell us about a piece from your portfolio that you feel is particularly successful?

Not every school will ask you all these questions, but it's good to have answers prepared because you'll probably encounter some of them at each school. Keep it brief and professional, but honest and true to yourself. They're looking for someone they can get along with. These reviewers are gonna be working closely with you for a long time, so they want to know that you're thinking deeply about this decision and that you're someone they can get along with.

Also, prepare for a philosopher who inspired your work. Goodluck everyone

Posted
5 hours ago, ohoh said:

Anyone with a Rutgers interview thinking of going to the in person interview day? (I’m thinking I will but also just asked admissions if Rutgers covers any of the traveling expenses)

I was also wondering this because the email was basically like you better come in person.....

Posted (edited)
On 2/7/2024 at 4:05 PM, ohoh said:

Hi, wanted to ask about writing thank you notes following interviews. (Just interviewed with RISD sculpture.) Are people looking up the emails of the faculty members who interviewed them and writing a thank you email to that group? 

I was told by my rec letters ( Who are people who decide who gets into a really high ranked school's mfa program)  that thank you emails are a really good idea:)

Edited by hihihi123
Posted
On 2/10/2024 at 8:25 PM, RadicalDreamers said:

Saw my Yale photo rejection this morning (it was sent out late last night). I wasn't surprised, but disappointment lingered through my AM nonetheless. Hope others here who also received denials are holding up well, and congratulations to those who landed interviews!

first time applying?

Posted
6 minutes ago, witchzbru said:

also rejected from Rutgers today which surprised me because I was waitlisted last year there with what I thought was a much weaker application. I interviewed with RISD sculpture last week and UCLA today for clay. Interviewing with Yale next week for sculpture. Godspeed. 

what do you make work about? and what have you gain from both interviews? 

Posted
12 hours ago, Goody2choos said:

I didn't get an interview for Rutgers through email and logged into my portal expecting to find the mentioned rejection notification but my application just says "under review" and to check back for a decision. Maybe I am not looking in the right place or do y'all think that maybe there will be another round of interview invites? 

I'm in the same boat as you. Maybe we are waitlisted? or in application purgatory. But I imagine the rejected finalists make up the waitlist so this doesn't make any sense really.

Posted

hey all thought id share this with everyone. not sure if yall unearthed it earlier but my advisor found this from a 2017 mfa forum lol and I feel like it seems really helpful these look like all possible questions that could be asked. hope it helps for interview prep!

 

Common Questions Visual Arts Applicants are Asked During an Interview

How does your work fit in with the contemporary art world/scene?

Why do you want to go to XXXXX?

Why do you want to go to grad school? Why now?

What resources of this program will be the biggest benefit to your development as an artist?

What is your work about?

What are your influences?

What for you constitutes a good work of art?

What draws you to a piece of work?

What motivates your work?

Who are your main influences?

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

How does your work fit in with the contemporary art world/scene?

What do you think is a good critique of your work/bad critique?

Why/how did you choose the people who wrote letters for you?

How will you contribute to this program?

What do you do for fun?

 

What artists do you like? (you can have a list prepared)

What artists who are no longer living influence you?

What book are you reading right now? What do you think about it?

What are you working on right now?

Please explain this work (xxxx03.jpg)

What is your favorite piece of art? Why? (Title, artist,year)

Can you describe yourself, such as personal habit, etc.

Do you get along well with others ?

What would you bring to a group dynamic ?

 

What can you offer this program? Any special skills?

What do you think is a good way of creating ? a bad way?

What other aspects of culture influence your work besides art/art history?

How do you see yourself taking advantage of this school’s environment/program?

What exhibition have you been to in the last year?

What have you done since you’ve graduated?

What contemporary artists are you into, and why?

Tell us about the conceptual underpinnings of your work?

Talk about your process.

What do you think about *this essay*? (related to your work)

How is your work related to *this movement*?

Do you have any questions for us?

What do you think about (artist, movement, subject/topic)

What can't you stand? Why?

What do you think about your own work?

How do you want your work to develop?

Why are you making the work you're making, and why do you want to keep doing it?

Meaning behind your subject matter?

What are your influences?

so you've written a good amount about your practice in your statement...can you expand a little more

what was the last show you saw that had a profound effect on you?

 

 

Ideas for Questions to Ask During Your Interview

what's the degree of permeability between the department's different studio areas?

what do the teaching assistantship duties generally consist of?

Will I be assisting a professor, or will I be teaching my own class?

Have recent alumni stayed in the area or ventured elsewhere? 

What is the grad student to faculty ratio? 

Ask for more information about particular courses in the curriculum.

 

 

Other Tips

Be able to speak about the professors work and why you are influenced by it. 

Write a follow up Thank you email within 48 hours after your interview.

Posted (edited)
9 hours ago, Benz555 said:

first time applying?

I last applied in 2019, I would be down to talk more about the process in a private message if you'd like. Did you apply this year? I'm also very interested in hearing more about your work.

If my memory serves me correctly, I saw you received an invite from Columbia photo in previous posts (and maybe even RISD too?). If so, I hope they go swimmingly!

Edited by RadicalDreamers
Posted
1 hour ago, RadicalDreamers said:

I last applied in 2019, I would be down to talk more about the process in a private message if you'd like. Did you apply this year? I'm also very interested in hearing more about your work.

If my memory serves me correctly, I saw you received an invite from Columbia photo in previous posts (and maybe even RISD too?). If so, I hope they go swimmingly!

yes, I will direct message you, and yes, I got Columbia photo and Yale sculpture. 

Posted

Just had my first interview for WashU. Was definitely nervous but I think it went well overall. Does anyone have any insight on how many rounds of interviews they do? They said I should hear back soon but that doesn't give me much of an idea lmao 

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