tooold4artschool Posted December 23, 2025 Posted December 23, 2025 is it me, or is this forum insanely quiet this year? LittleBlueHouse 1
arthurrussell Posted December 23, 2025 Posted December 23, 2025 12 hours ago, tooold4artschool said: is it me, or is this forum insanely quiet this year? IDK but I’m guessing maybe less people r applying this year (like internationals vs. trump stuff), or maybe it’s gonna get more active towards the interview/notifs stage? Idk but u r right, it’s been very quiet here 😭
SocialKonstruct Posted December 28, 2025 Posted December 28, 2025 On 12/23/2025 at 11:52 AM, arthurrussell said: IDK but I’m guessing maybe less people r applying this year (like internationals vs. trump stuff), or maybe it’s gonna get more active towards the interview/notifs stage? Idk but u r right, it’s been very quiet here 😭 It's pretty quiet this round based on kicking around the LA area. With the huge defunding of the arts and the collapse of the NEA and other organizations, I notice that fewer people are applying this year to visual arts MFA programs it seems. As a person who just graduated from ArtCenter, I literally applied to over 75 jobs in the contemporary art world and only got 1 interview but failed to get the final job. I just have given up becoming a visual artist and right now I'm retooling myself to try to get a Ph.D. in creative writing now.
Sasha_Fierce Posted December 30, 2025 Posted December 30, 2025 On 11/5/2025 at 1:06 PM, LittleBlueHouse said: Hi! Any suggestions for sculpture programs to look at that are set up similarly to Yale, in terms of the blend of visiting artists / studio time / critique / good studios / no TA responsibilities? Have you looked at Cranbrook in Michigan? They have a similar model, studio based.
paintstress Posted December 30, 2025 Posted December 30, 2025 On 12/28/2025 at 12:14 PM, SocialKonstruct said: It's pretty quiet this round based on kicking around the LA area. With the huge defunding of the arts and the collapse of the NEA and other organizations, I notice that fewer people are applying this year to visual arts MFA programs it seems. As a person who just graduated from ArtCenter, I literally applied to over 75 jobs in the contemporary art world and only got 1 interview but failed to get the final job. I just have given up becoming a visual artist and right now I'm retooling myself to try to get a Ph.D. in creative writing now. I was at five different zoom info sessions and in three of them the hosts remarked that there were more participants in the zoom this year than previous years and one of them was so surprised by the increase that they mentioned it like three times! International student numbers might fall but seems like a lot of people are trying to hide from the job market right now. I know my friends are. SocialKonstruct 1
arthurrussell Posted December 30, 2025 Posted December 30, 2025 6 hours ago, paintstress said: I was at five different zoom info sessions and in three of them the hosts remarked that there were more participants in the zoom this year than previous years and one of them was so surprised by the increase that they mentioned it like three times! International student numbers might fall but seems like a lot of people are trying to hide from the job market right now. I know my friends are. May I know which programs these are?
meyocallo Posted December 31, 2025 Posted December 31, 2025 I'm a second year at Montana State University's MFA program for painting. While it is not a very known school, the funding is decent (full tuition waiver, stipend, only have to pay the school fees every semester around 1.5k) and you get teaching experience through the GTA appointment. That being said, state schools might be good options if anyone is looking for funding, but the academic rigor of the program might be a bit lacking. tooold4artschool 1
crash1996 Posted January 3 Posted January 3 happy new year! and good luck to everyone (and especially anyone who's finishing up their apps 😮💨). i just finished my last one--ended up only applying to 3 this year focusing on illustration/comics programs. if i don't get in (/secure the needed funding) this round i'll probably continue to hone my portfolio and apply a bit broader for round 2, but we'll see how it goes this time... also just noting for anyone in the future--i applied to WashU for free (was free before december 15th), SAIC for 50% (you can pay the application fee before the application's done, so i did that while they were offering it at half price ($45 vs $90)), and BU for free (requested a fee waiver and it was suuuper easy, didn't have to prove my income or anything). honored to freak out with you all this cycle 🫡 eatsomeveggies and tooold4artschool 2
arthurrussell Posted January 4 Posted January 4 I just received an interview request for OSU Art+Tech! Do you guys have any experiences on what they might ask? tooold4artschool 1
crash1996 Posted January 5 Posted January 5 On 1/4/2026 at 4:30 PM, arthurrussell said: I just received an interview request for OSU Art+Tech! Do you guys have any experiences on what they might ask? congrats!! not sure about OSU specifically, but here's a frankenstein'ed list i found and copied from one of the previous forum years...the main questions i feel like come up again and again are "why grad school now?", "why this particular program?" (would be good to mention specific faculty/facilities if they connect with your practice), and then questions related to your artistic practice (like "what are you reading now?", "how do you want your work to develop?", "can you explain [piece in your portfolio]?"). they definitely can't ask *all* of these questions though, haha (but, kinda fun to think about the hypothetical answers--also, haven't done any interviews for schools myself, so take these with a grain of salt) 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? tooold4artschool 1
Foehn Posted January 8 Posted January 8 Hi everyone! This is my second time applying to sculpture/ceramics/fiber/interdisciplinary MFA programs. Learned a lot from the first time and I’m feeling a lot better about this round! Wishing everyone luck. I’m an LA local with friends who have graduated from or are currently attending different UCs, so I’m happy to answer any UC specific questions! I’m applying to: UC Irvine UC Davis UC San Diego UC Riverside University of Washington Virginia Commonwealth Last year I applied to: UCLA (rejected) Davis (rejected) San Diego (rejected) SAIC (accepted, declined due to cost)
Foehn Posted January 8 Posted January 8 On 11/3/2025 at 10:14 PM, paintstress said: hey all, im a painter and this will be my second year applying to grad school. Last cycle, i applied to a total of i think six or seven, got interview requests for two schools and was ultimately offered admission into both of them. unfortunately, I had to turn them both down as one school did not offer any funding at all and the other one only offered i think 15 or 30 percent. Last cycle was my first and I got really ahead of myself, applying to a ton of super prestigious and competitive programs as well as programs i couldnt have afforded to attend even if i got in, and this cycle i am trying to learn from my past mistakes. Still, I cant help but aim really really high (even though i did indeed flop last year). I am currently looking at like twelve schools, which i know seems very very excessive, especially considering how expensive it is just to apply. If anyone has any insight on the list i would really appreciate it! over all, i am prioritizing funding A WELL AS location. I have always lived in big cities and struggle to see myself living outside of one to be honest. 1. Yale 2. Northwestern 3. stanford 4. ucla 5. uchicago 6. carnegie melon 7. nyu 8.uc berkley 9. ucsd 10. risd I am especially curious about the UC schools and how competitive are they to get in. im also thinking about adding uw madison to the list, does anyone know how competitive is it to get in? All the UCs are very competitive, UCLA in particular. Many of them are fully funded programs and UCLA in particular is embedded in the LA art scene. I would consider adding UC Irvine to your list (app is due Jan 15th). It’s relatively close to LA, has good funding, not as well known but still a good program. Just a thought! SocialKonstruct and paintstress 1 1
sloan Posted January 8 Posted January 8 On 12/23/2025 at 1:54 AM, tooold4artschool said: is it me, or is this forum insanely quiet this year? I mean... I imagine that the more application deadlines we pass, the more people will flock here. 100% speaking from personal experience on that guess. I've only just discovered the forum cause I've submitted applications for 3/6 of the programs I'm applying to (this is my first time applying), and am immediately panicking. my brain seems to think that if I do more research about when interview notifications are sent out, I'll somehow magically time-travel to February and fill my inbox with status updates loll
goodboycerberus Posted January 9 Posted January 9 Got an offer (full funding + stipend) from UMass Amherst before XMas. Interviews happened mid December. Received interview request from UW Madison today - interviews on Jan 23. crash1996 1
SocialKonstruct Posted January 9 Posted January 9 7 hours ago, Foehn said: Hi everyone! This is my second time applying to sculpture/ceramics/fiber/interdisciplinary MFA programs. Learned a lot from the first time and I’m feeling a lot better about this round! Wishing everyone luck. I’m an LA local with friends who have graduated from or are currently attending different UCs, so I’m happy to answer any UC specific questions! I’m applying to: UC Irvine UC Davis UC San Diego UC Riverside University of Washington Virginia Commonwealth Last year I applied to: UCLA (rejected) Davis (rejected) San Diego (rejected) SAIC (accepted, declined due to cost) Interestingly enough, I also live in Los Angeles too. Curious whether you applied to ArtCenter too? it's close by
paintstress Posted January 9 Posted January 9 4 hours ago, goodboycerberus said: Got an offer (full funding + stipend) from UMass Amherst before XMas. Interviews happened mid December. Received interview request from UW Madison today - interviews on Jan 23. did you send in your UW Madison application early? I have yet to hear back 😭
goodboycerberus Posted January 9 Posted January 9 6 hours ago, paintstress said: did you send in your UW Madison application early? I have yet to hear back 😭 Yes, I submitted my applications in December. From the Doodle poll I received for booking interview time slots, there were quite a few already taken - so I’m not sure what that means.
paintstress Posted January 9 Posted January 9 50 minutes ago, goodboycerberus said: Yes, I submitted my applications in December. From the Doodle poll I received for booking interview time slots, there were quite a few already taken - so I’m not sure what that means. I see, I submitted mine right on the deadline a few days ago so hopefully they just havent looked at mine yet. Out of curiosity, do they have zoom and in person options for the interviews or only zoom?
goodboycerberus Posted January 9 Posted January 9 1 hour ago, paintstress said: I see, I submitted mine right on the deadline a few days ago so hopefully they just havent looked at mine yet. Out of curiosity, do they have zoom and in person options for the interviews or only zoom? Just online! Also, I just counted the offered interview slots, and it was 13 total. Though, it may be limited to the “area” I’m in (3D + 4D). So hopefully you’ll hear back from the 2D folks soon? paintstress 1
paintstress Posted January 9 Posted January 9 6 minutes ago, goodboycerberus said: Just online! Also, I just counted the offered interview slots, and it was 13 total. Though, it may be limited to the “area” I’m in (3D + 4D). So hopefully you’ll hear back from the 2D folks soon? gotcha, thanks! : )
Foehn Posted January 9 Posted January 9 15 hours ago, SocialKonstruct said: Interestingly enough, I also live in Los Angeles too. Curious whether you applied to ArtCenter too? it's close by I did not. I went to Pasadena City College for community college and had a lot of professors who taught at both places. They didn't do much to sell me on it. SocialKonstruct 1
Yoasianguy Posted January 10 Posted January 10 Hi everyone. Second time apply, (after 3 years since first time; WashU in St. Louis accepted but I declined due to family reason). I'm applying to UT Austin, UC Davis, SUNY Buffalo, and UConn. Happy to be here with us art folks! crash1996 1
gm3 Posted January 10 Posted January 10 I have flocked here since I just finished my MFA in Creative Writing (fiction) applications...
goodboycerberus Posted January 10 Posted January 10 15 minutes ago, gm3 said: I have flocked here since I just finished my MFA in Creative Writing (fiction) applications... are you applying to studio art MFAs as well? Creating two different kinds of portfolios, that must be quite a task!
gm3 Posted January 10 Posted January 10 No, it wasn't listed as that. It just said MFA freak out forum. I only applied to writing
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