MFA 2013 All Art ADMISSIONS freak-out forum!!!!!!!!

[michaelwebster]

Is SFAI better for performance? It seems that way but I'm not sure.

Following up on dimensionsvariable, SAIC has the only performance art department in the country and from everything I have seen I would also say its a much better school all around.  And I am not saying this just because I went there, I will point out the school's flaws as soon as anyone, but SAIC wins hands down in performance.

Edited March 10, 2013 by michaelwebster

[saadie]

Has anyone heard from NYU Steinhardt or USC Roski? I'm assuming that, since I haven't heard anything for almost two months, they'll be rejections... but if anyone knows anything about either of these schools, I'd be interested in assuaging my anxiety, somehow.

[ArsenicYellow]

Following up on dimensionsvariable, SAIC has the only performance art department in the country and from everything I have seen I would also say its a much better school all around. And I am not saying this just because I went there, I will point out the school's flaws as soon as anyone, but SAIC wins hands down in performance.

Actually, smfa in Boston has an mfa performance art department, and from what I saw yesterday during my interview there, it was pretty decent. It may not be SAIC level, but there are other schools out there.

I also think there is another school on the west coast, but I can't think of it at the moment.

[Blaneyphoto]

Has anyone heard from NYU Steinhardt or USC Roski? I'm assuming that, since I haven't heard anything for almost two months, they'll be rejections... but if anyone knows anything about either of these schools, I'd be interested in assuaging my anxiety, somehow.

Steinhardt told me by email to expect to get a decision by the middle of March.... so, it should be soon!

[ArsenicYellow]

Had my interview yesterday at SMFA. Was an interesting experience, eveyone was super nice but I didn't feel as if I really fit in with a lot of the faculty/students. Another person interviewing actually recognized me from this site and a exchanged email/phone numbers with a few potential smfa students. It was a nice experience but again, I didn't really feel like I matched well with the school, which is probably an issue with me rather than smfa.

I've been trying to compare massart to smfa, does anyone have any insight about the schools? The faculty at smfa said their program was less structured, but massart seemed to offer a lot of freedom as well. Thu also said massart was more technique driven while smfa is conceptually driven, but I'm not so sure that is entirely true, it seems like massart facilities are just better than smfa's.

Also, I had an incredibly awkward interview. My interviewer seemed completely uninterested in my work. I felt like i was wasting her time after she told me she liked only one of my pieces (a maya/3d printer piece) and that the rest of my work was too literal. What a bummer...

Edited March 10, 2013 by ArsenicYellow

[hwrios]

"too literal".   haha  

she sounds like a not nice person, and liking something based on it being "literal" sounds a bit immature if you ask me.  Glad I'm not going there. 

[kaleidoska]

I don't think its necessarily immature to dislike something for finding it too literal. Though I wouldn't apply that criticism to your work, Arsenic.

 

SMFA is certainly not focused on technique at an undergrad level, and I imagine this is even more the case in the grad program. One or two teachers who are technique-focused can suffice - Tufts offers some pretty interesting academic courses, as well. 

 

I've met really dedicated, talented, supportive artists at both schools. Your interviewer's remarks are not representative of how faculty respond to student work (its odd that she said she 'didn't like' those pieces). Much of the Boston art scene is connected with SMFA, the performance scene especially so, though not to the extent that a Massart student would be at a disadvantage. 

 

Another point to consider is that lots of SMFA grads leave Boston a year or two after graduating. If you plan to stay in the city, you may have more peers who remain in the area long term if you attend a state school. If facilities are important to you, and you have great funding (!), I'd opt for Massart between the two, unless there are faculty at SMFA you really want to work with. 

 

Hope this helps!

[ArsenicYellow]

She didnt actually say she "disliked" the other pieces. If I remember correctly, she said she really enjoyed one of the pieces because, unlike the rest, that one wasn't as literal. I guess in my mind I took it as she disliked the others. 

 

I'm leaning towards Massart, but SMFA seemed to really emphasize the fact that they give a lot of opportunities to their grad alumni. One of the admission tour guides said he didnt apply to Massart because they basically spit out their students once you have graduated, not really creating a lasting relationship with them. Of course, his opinion is probably super biased. 

 

Facilities have never been a big issue to me, I've primarily worked at home on my own, but I am interested in Massart's pouring and weaving facilities. Do you feel as if Massart's program is well rounded between technique and contemporary art theory/criticism? 

 

Both schools seem wonderful, but it was a little hard to take SMFA seriously. Their entire interview day felt like a wine and dine experience, it was impossible to figure out how much of it was genuine. Thank you for such an informative post

Edited March 11, 2013 by ArsenicYellow

[ten-of-swords]

Had my interview yesterday at SMFA. Was an interesting experience, eveyone was super nice but I didn't feel as if I really fit in with a lot of the faculty/students. Another person interviewing actually recognized me from this site and a exchanged email/phone numbers with a few potential smfa students. It was a nice experience but again, I didn't really feel like I matched well with the school, which is probably an issue with me rather than smfa.

I've been trying to compare massart to smfa, does anyone have any insight about the schools? The faculty at smfa said their program was less structured, but massart seemed to offer a lot of freedom as well. Thu also said massart was more technique driven while smfa is conceptually driven, but I'm not so sure that is entirely true, it seems like massart facilities are just better than smfa's.

Also, I had an incredibly awkward interview. My interviewer seemed completely uninterested in my work. I felt like i was wasting her time after she told me she liked only one of my pieces (a maya/3d printer piece) and that the rest of my work was too literal. What a bummer...

 

Arsenic, I was interviewed and accepted to SMFA last year and felt pretty similarly to you about the school. I didn't really click with anyone there and it just didn't feel very "me." I was interviewed by a professor who didn't do studio arts at all so that made it a bit awkward for me. 

[kwonberry]

Has anyone heard from NYU Steinhardt or USC Roski? I'm assuming that, since I haven't heard anything for almost two months, they'll be rejections... but if anyone knows anything about either of these schools, I'd be interested in assuaging my anxiety, somehow.

 

Had a brief chat with the Grad advisor (I'm undergrad atm) she did say mid March is when everything interview or rejection related goes out.

 

Holding my breath is getting hard with UCLA. waiting on their grad division to stamp me and send me a snail mail, or reject me brutally after some amping up from the actual mfa profs.

[bengston]

Had a brief chat with the Grad advisor (I'm undergrad atm) she did say mid March is when everything interview or rejection related goes out.

 

Holding my breath is getting hard with UCLA. waiting on their grad division to stamp me and send me a snail mail, or reject me brutally after some amping up from the actual mfa profs.

 

Are you referring to USC or NYU?

[kwonberry]

Are you referring to USC or NYU?

Nyu

[ArsenicYellow]

Arsenic, I was interviewed and accepted to SMFA last year and felt pretty similarly to you about the school. I didn't really click with anyone there and it just didn't feel very "me." I was interviewed by a professor who didn't do studio arts at all so that made it a bit awkward for me.

do you mind me asking if you were accepted? I seemed to click with unite a few people who were interviewing, but I think it was just my interviewer that was the problem.

Everyone was super nice and friendly, I just felt so out of it that day, maybe I was just mentally unprepared.

[Erpnope]

Kwonberry - check the spam of the email you applied with, i got an admissions dept email thursday morning to check the decision site (which is separate from the app site)

[GraphicDesigner]

RISD MFA Graphic Design results this week! Good luck to everyone who applied/interviewed!

[Erpnope]

Ucla decision site: https://www.gradadmissions.ucla.edu/newapp/Login.asp?topage=AdmissionStatus.asp

[ten-of-swords]

do you mind me asking if you were accepted? I seemed to click with unite a few people who were interviewing, but I think it was just my interviewer that was the problem.

Everyone was super nice and friendly, I just felt so out of it that day, maybe I was just mentally unprepared.

 

Yeah, I actually said I was interviewed and accepted. For me the size of the program and then the small amount of financial aid they gave me were the main reasons that I turned them down. I was just bugged in the interview (it was a professor and a grad student) how the grad student seemed to focus on how fun it was, how the critiques weren't super hard, etc, etc. For me that just isn't what I want to hear. 

[sculptress]

Interview at Cranbrook! Woot!

[capers]

Congrats to everyone on all the great news I've been seeing!

 

Columbia New Genres and Sculpture folks, I just spoke with Madelyn about the interview format:  No projector, just a large computer.  I asked if I could bring excerpts of the video I submitted and she said yes.

 

I was curious about the format since the application asked for 20 images and to send DVDs of full length video as well - half of my images were video stills.

 

 

Good luck with your interviews everyone!

[relentlesslemons]

Interview at Cranbrook! Woot!

Hey how did you find out?

[GraphicDesigner]

Just got accepted into Boston University's MFA GD programme! With partial scholarship + TA!

[Kyle Blalock]

So excited! Accepted by phone to RIT for sculpture via phone with $15,000 scholarship and the first teaching assistantship they have offered. I was rejected by Alfred by phone. Rejected from UNM by mail. Wait list for university at Albany and interviewed for UNCG but no word yet.

[Lucia Werd]

I finally heard from Concordia.  I'm #2 on their waiting list!  More waiting.... 

[Sseu]

So I got ahold of UCLA by phone. Caron Cronin said hopefully all the decisions should be going out by the end of this week. 

[Kelly Anna Yllek]

I have some waitlist questions maybe someone can help with? I already emailed the department head and the person that interviewed me that I was still very much interested, asked what I could improve upon or what I was missing for not being accepted but almost there in waiting limbo. Received the message back of nothing was wrong, just other people were better fit but I shouldn't count myself out yet. No real word on when abouts I will know and I'm not sure how to ask 'how long?!' I do know its a very short wait list and very few people accepted. How often should I send reminder messages to be like 'hey I'm still here! I want you!'? I know its a lot of waiting for an answer but I don't want to be silently waiting, that seems like it'd be detrimental to my hopeful acceptance.