MFA 2016 All Art ADMISSIONS freak-out forum!!!!!!!!

[xanderesse]

Hi everyone,

Joining the conversation. I've never applied to grad school and I have no idea what I'm doing! 

I have a B.Arch and worked as an architect for 3 years. I quit the profession to focus on sculpture and prepare a portfolio!  Scary...

Here's my list: 

Yale

Columbia

Rutgers

Bard

SAIC

MICA

Temple

SVA

Rutgers

Should I trim? Add a safety school? Cry?

I love this forum.

 

[yayaaaaa]

Hi everyone,

Joining the conversation. I've never applied to grad school and I have no idea what I'm doing! 

I have a B.Arch and worked as an architect for 3 years. I quit the profession to focus on sculpture and prepare a portfolio!  Scary...

Here's my list: 

Yale

Columbia

Rutgers

Bard

SAIC

MICA

Temple

SVA

Rutgers

Should I trim? Add a safety school? Cry?

I love this forum.

 

i go to temple and I am in LOVE. 

[xanderesse]

i go to temple and I am in LOVE. 

In the sculpture program? I went to the open house last week and toured the studios with Jude Tallichet. I'm definitely going to apply! 

[MrBixler]

Hello all!

i hope everyone is feel good about their applications.

Thought/question:

When applications ask of the applicant to disclose the other institutions that she/he is applying to, I find myself feeling uneasy and apprehensive. 

Can anyone offer their thoughts on this topic? Must one be strictly honest when answering this question? If not, what strategies are recommended regarding selective disclosure?

thank you all!

[KBS1]

think this year's grad admittance at the top few painting schools will be affected/effected ? or have they already moved away from this ? i feel like i still saw a bunch of blankets sewn to tarps last year. 

https://news.artnet.com/market/zombie-formalism-market-cooling-337170

[smartstrategy]

Hello all!

i hope everyone is feel good about their applications.

Thought/question:

When applications ask of the applicant to disclose the other institutions that she/he is applying to, I find myself feeling uneasy and apprehensive. 

Can anyone offer their thoughts on this topic? Must one be strictly honest when answering this question? If not, what strategies are recommended regarding selective disclosure?

thank you all!

Just leave it blank. They are fishing for information. None of their business:)

If the school ultimately wants you they aren't going to reject you because you didn't answer that question. Decision will be based first and foremost on your portfolio.

When/IF you get multiple offers from different schools, then you might tell them IF they ask as a negotiating tool.

 

Edited October 14, 2015 by smartstrategy

[Relm]

 

Hello all!

i hope everyone is feel good about their applications.

Thought/question:

When applications ask of the applicant to disclose the other institutions that she/he is applying to, I find myself feeling uneasy and apprehensive. 

Can anyone offer their thoughts on this topic? Must one be strictly honest when answering this question? If not, what strategies are recommended regarding selective disclosure?

thank you all!

I dealt with this when I applied to professional school some years back. I think the question is fairly benign. Schools simply want to know how they stack up against other schools and who their competition is, which is especially true for MFA programs given how utterly stupid the U.S. News MFA ranking methodology is. (Even if you're not a stats person -- which I'm not -- read it sometime and just laugh at how ridiculous it is.)

When you decline a school's offer of admission down the road, most are going to ask you where you're going instead, and why that school over them. Same thinking there. 

Highly skeptical, though, that your answers are going to factor into a school's admissions decision in any meaningful way. In other words, I wouldn't sweat it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[MrBixler]

Just leave it blank. They are fishing for information. None of their business:)

If the school ultimately wants you they aren't going to reject you because you didn't answer that question. Decision will be based first and foremost on your portfolio.

When/IF you get multiple offers from different schools, then you might tell them IF they ask as a negotiating tool.

 

Thank you!

[MrBixler]

I dealt with this when I applied to professional school some years back. I think the question is fairly benign. Schools simply want to know how they stack up against other schools and who their competition is, which is especially true for MFA programs given how utterly stupid the U.S. News MFA ranking methodology is. (Even if you're not a stats person -- which I'm not -- read it sometime and just laugh at how ridiculous it is.)

When you decline a school's offer of admission down the road, most are going to ask you where you're going instead, and why that school over them. Same thinking there. 

Highly skeptical, though, that your answers are going to factor into a school's admissions decision in any meaningful way. In other words, I wouldn't sweat it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Thank you! Yes, I have read the U.S. news MFA rankings and agree with your assessment.

[soysauce1030]

Hey Everyone! 

I am applying for MFA Graphic Design 2016 (Calarts, Otis, RISD, Yale, SDSU...) 

Is there anyone applying MFA GD programs with different background (non BFA degree students or non career experience in GD)

I feel like I am alone on this..

I also kept thinking about student debt too. How much do you think I will be paying monthly after graduate? (with total debt of around 134,000$)

 soooo nervous!!!

 

[le.xenia]

Hey Everyone! 

I am applying for MFA Graphic Design 2016 (Calarts, Otis, RISD, Yale, SDSU...) 

Is there anyone applying MFA GD programs with different background (non BFA degree students or non career experience in GD)

I feel like I am alone on this..

I also kept thinking about student debt too. How much do you think I will be paying monthly after graduate? (with total debt of around 134,000$)

 soooo nervous!!!

 

hey, you're not the only one! I have non-artistic undergrad degree. Even worse, I'm an international student  Applying for MFA in GD as well.

So seems like we are in the same boat.

[Relm]

Hey Everyone! 

I am applying for MFA Graphic Design 2016 (Calarts, Otis, RISD, Yale, SDSU...) 

Is there anyone applying MFA GD programs with different background (non BFA degree students or non career experience in GD)

I feel like I am alone on this..

I also kept thinking about student debt too. How much do you think I will be paying monthly after graduate? (with total debt of around 134,000$)

 soooo nervous!!!

 

Debts make me nervous too. I'm glad you're giving it some forethought. There are loan payment calculators on the internet you can play around with -- just google it and pick realistic interest rates and repayment times so that you have a fairly accurate figure and can set an upper limit for how much debt you can go into.

I took out around $150k for a different degree. My minimum monthly payments at the beginning were around $1800 on a ten-year repayment schedule. Keep in mind that most [federal] loans charge an "origination fee" (which is 3% automatically down the drain that you don't see), and interest accrues while you are in school -- and then, at some point after you graduate, the accrued and unpaid interest is added to the principal ("capitalized interest" in loan servicer parlance), meaning that all of a sudden you are paying interest on a bigger amount than you actually took out. And keep in mind that the interest rates are insane -- at least when I took out those loans, the annual federal Stafford interest rates were 6.8% (for the first $20,500 per year), and GradPLUS (the remainder of what I took out each year, which varied due to contributions from work and savings) weighed in at 8.5%! Some servicers will give you a break once you've paid x payments on time (they'll take off a percent or so when you hit that milestone), but by and large, you are paying a pretty penny. It's rough.

That's not to say it's impossible. There are some programs that exist to make life with federal loans more bearable -- such as graduated payments that start off smaller and get larger on the theory that you earn more as you grow older, and "pay as you earn" or "income-based repayment" schemes. Right now, loan forgiveness is an option too; I haven't looked into it, but my recollection is that if you make minimum payments for twenty or twenty-five years, the government will cancel the rest of the debt. A couple things to keep in mind about that, though: one, there's absolutely no guarantee that the government will continue this program for the next couple of decades, and two, cancellation of debt is considered income, which means once your debt is forgiven, you need to pay income taxes on that forgiven amount! And this doesn't take private loans' terms into account. (I have absolutely no experience with those. If that is what you'd have to do, do your research.) A few other things to keep in mind -- student loans are not dischargeable in bankruptcy, and if you don't pay them, the government will garnish tax refunds, social security, etc. to get their money back any way they can. (If it's any comfort, though, your student loans die when you do.)

All this is to say that I would be very, very cautious about taking out significant loans to go to graduate school in a creative field. A graphic design degree might be more monetizable than fine arts, but chances are agencies aren't going to be lining up around the block to offer you six-figure jobs right out of school.

[llyMx]

Hello all!

I'm applying for MFA in painting fairly soon and my BFA is in Studio Art as well.

I'm moving to New York City next summer and this is the list of schools I've been looking at and doing some research on..

1. Hunter
2. Columbia
3. NYU
4. Pratt
5. Parsons
6. SVA
7. NYAA 

That's in no particular order. It is however, just about every school I can possibly apply to in the area. If anyone has any advice or insight on these schools feel free to fill me in. I'm a first time applicant and the closer it gets, the more my nerves are creeping up! 

Any other painters applying to NYC schools for next fall?

 

[manohman]

HELLO!

so i'm applying for an MFA in visual arts and since i'm an international student,i'm looking for a very solid funding other than fullbright, is anyone aware of any such school that offers a full ride in US. i am also planning to apply at CSM and Chelsea since they both offer one fully funded scholarship.Would really appreciate any help and later i will also be posting my artist statement *when i and if i finally get to penning it down*.

Looking forward to hear from you guys and good luck to those applying.

[icw]

Hey guys,

Nervousness kicking in yet? Narrowing down my list. 

So far I have:

University of South Carolina

Winthrop

UNC Greensboro

NSULA (low residency MA)

UNCG is great. UNC-CH is also a great art school! I had a friend graduate from Winthrop MFA sculpture program too.

[icw]

I am going to try my luck this fall.  We will see how it goes! I am not banking on anything.

My website: www.ianchristopherwilson.com 

Let me know what you think. Older work

Here is my list I am trying for  

Illinois State University 

Portland State University 

Maybes... 

Northwestern University 

University of Illinois-Chicago 

University of Oregon

[icw]

HELLO!

so i'm applying for an MFA in visual arts and since i'm an international student,i'm looking for a very solid funding other than fullbright, is anyone aware of any such school that offers a full ride in US. i am also planning to apply at CSM and Chelsea since they both offer one fully funded scholarship.Would really appreciate any help and later i will also be posting my artist statement *when i and if i finally get to penning it down*.

Looking forward to hear from you guys and good luck to those applying.

Maybe try university of minnesota. They have excellent funding.

 

[ElizaMFA]

Hello all!

I'm applying for MFA in painting fairly soon and my BFA is in Studio Art as well.

I'm moving to New York City next summer and this is the list of schools I've been looking at and doing some research on..

1. Hunter
2. Columbia
3. NYU
4. Pratt
5. Parsons
6. SVA
7. NYAA 

That's in no particular order. It is however, just about every school I can possibly apply to in the area. If anyone has any advice or insight on these schools feel free to fill me in. I'm a first time applicant and the closer it gets, the more my nerves are creeping up! 

Any other painters applying to NYC schools for next fall?

 

You might look into SUNY Purchase, esp if you care about funding and limiting your debt.  Half the grads live in the city.

[gtakaoka]

Hi All,

Thought I'd introduce myself since I'm applying for the MFA Fall 2016 season as well. I've lurked on this forum for a couple of years now and application time is finally here!

I'm currently based in Southern California, wrapping up my final semester of my BFA in Drawing and Painting. In terms of where I'm applying, I'm looking toward the East Coast, and a couple of Midwestern areas. My focus is on programs that are fairly interdisciplinary, as I work in drawing, painting, and installation and I tend to delve into whatever medium will best convey my concept. Funding is a big deal for me; my dream would be to emerge from both undergrad and grad school with zero student debt (or as little as possible!). I'm also sticking mostly to research institutions, rather than art institute/academy-type schools, partially due to improved funding opportunities and also because my work has become fairly cross-disciplinary and I want to be able to consult faculty outside of art+design if need be. Lastly, I want to be in an urban/semi-urban area, although I'd prefer a place that's cheaper than the OC/LA area.

My list is not final/set in stone, but here's what I'm thinking so far (in no particular order):

-University of Minnesota- Twin Cities

-University of Maryland- College Park

-Northwestern

-Temple

Some "Maybe" Schools:

-UT Austin

-University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

I am still looking into some other schools in areas I might not have previously checked. Honestly, my knowledge of the Midwest/East Coast is so limited that it's been a bit of a handicap, so if anyone has suggestions for other schools I would appreciate it tremendously.

There are a couple of schools whose funding information I'm unsure about. Does anyone know offhand about University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's funding? Their website is kind of unclear...

 

Also, I took some trips this summer and checked out UChicago, Northwestern, University of Maryland, UPenn, and University of Delaware while I was on that side of the country. I'd be happy to share any info/experiences about my trip if anyone has questions. Also, I can give some info about the Southern California area if anyone is curious, since I live here and all :}.

Best of luck to everyone who is applying right now. I am sure I will be around a lot more since it's getting to be crunch time.

 

 

 

 

[Relm]

So, who's going to the portfolio day at SAIC this weekend?

I'm actually flying in from SF for it -- couldn't go to the SF one last weekend due to Open Studios here (which thankfully was a hit for me!). I went to the portfolio day last year with a very different body of work for information-gathering purposes, and the experience was really interesting. But now that I have my real portfolio that's pretty much done, I'm honestly a bit scared -- it's not like I'm going to be able to change very much of anything if it's a huge swing and a miss! I suppose if nothing else it'll be a good chance to ask about the logistics of the admissions committees looking at work (like, how many images do they look at at once, do they have your statement when they first look at your work, and so forth), figure out if any places I was interested in seem like a total mismatch, etc.

Anyhow. Looking forward to that, if with a bit of trepidation, since now the stakes are kinda high. (:

Edited November 3, 2015 by Relm

[sylviecerise]

5 minutes ago, Relm said:

So, who's going to the portfolio day at SAIC this weekend?

I'm actually flying in from SF for it -- couldn't go to the SF one last weekend due to Open Studios here (which thankfully was a hit for me!). I went to the portfolio day last year with a very different body of work for information-gathering purposes, and the experience was really interesting. But now that I have my real portfolio that's pretty much done, I'm honestly a bit scared -- it's not like I'm going to be able to change very much of anything if it's a huge swing and a miss! I suppose if nothing else it'll be a good chance to ask about the logistics of the admissions committees looking at work (like, how many images do they look at at once, do they have your statement when they first look at your work, and so forth), figure out if any places I was interested in seem like a total mismatch, etc.

Anyhow. Looking forward to that, if with a bit of trepidation, since now the stakes are kinda high. (:

I'm going! Not applying this year, but figured that it would be good to get a bit of feedback on the work I've been making in the past year and so I have a better understanding of what to include when I apply for programs next year. Do you have any advice for how to present your work? Did you show CVs/statements or anything? 

[Relm]

1 hour ago, sylviecerise said:

I'm going! Not applying this year, but figured that it would be good to get a bit of feedback on the work I've been making in the past year and so I have a better understanding of what to include when I apply for programs next year. Do you have any advice for how to present your work? Did you show CVs/statements or anything? 

That's exactly why I went last time (: I had brought some smaller physical works and showed stuff on my computer, but this year I'm just bringing my computer. May as well simulate what they'll see in a few months. You essentially sit down and talk through your concept and background as opposed to handing them written material. Just be able to talk about yourself and your work articulately; maybe have a few copies of your CV or statement if you want, but I'd be surprised if anyone wants it.

The one thing I'll say, with utmost emphasis, is to make sure your photographs are GOOD and that your presentation doesn't take away from the art. Learned that the hard way. Last year I was two months into a post-bacc/serious studio practice and hadn't finished too much work, and also knew my work would likely change significantly in a year. So, to save money, I photographed the work myself (and I'm not the best photographer); I had also included some studio and WIP shots. Some people were really distracted by my shots not being exactly what they'd see in an admissions committee context and as a result spent valuable time talking about that. If your work's not professionally photographed, do your best to make your presentation as comparable as possible: proper lighting, white balance, color correction, etc. That was a little bit frustrating for me and a little preparation will go a long way. Just FYI!

Edited November 3, 2015 by Relm

[sylviecerise]

8 minutes ago, Relm said:

That's exactly why I went last time (: I had brought some smaller physical works and showed stuff on my computer, but this year I'm just bringing my computer. May as well simulate what they'll see in a few months. You essentially sit down and talk through your concept and background as opposed to handing them written material. Just be able to talk about yourself and your work articulately; maybe have a few copies of your CV or statement if you want, but I'd be surprised if anyone wants it.

The one thing I'll say, with utmost emphasis, is to make sure your photographs are GOOD and that your presentation doesn't take away from the art. Learned that the hard way. Last year I was two months into a post-bacc/serious studio practice and hadn't finished too much work, and also knew my work would likely change significantly in a year. So, to save money, I photographed the work myself (and I'm not the best photographer); I had also included some studio and WIP shots. Some people were really distracted by my shots not being exactly what they'd see in an admissions committee context and as a result spent valuable time talking about something nonsubstantive that I also felt was irrelevant given my situation. If your work's not professionally photographed, do your best to make your presentation as comparable as possible: proper lighting, white balance, color correction, etc. That was a little bit frustrating for me and a little preparation will go a long way. Just FYI!

Thank you for the advice! I've been struggling with documenting my work as I don't have access to a nice, flat white wall, but I think most of photographs I've taken myself have been acceptable. It'll be good to hear a little feedback on that but definitely wouldn't want it to overtake the conversation. 

[looingk]

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for interdisciplinary programs that focus on theory and are well funded. I don't care which state. I've already done a lot of research, but I'm looking to see if anyone knows of ones that aren't necessarily very well known. 

 

[tdevo412]

So for those who are interested in SVA's MFA program, if you are looking for funding there is ZERO available. I was dazzled by the program was assured there was some funding available and then I received an email from Mark (the chair of the MFA department) telling me to look at state schools for funding in my situation. Yes, it is true state schools have some great funding, but I was strung along only to get a rude 2 line email. Also the studios are very tiny.

I am really shooting for NYU, again.