MFA 2017 All Art ADMISSIONS freak-out forum!!!!!!!!

[riverrun]

Anyone hear from UNC, UCSB, University Colorado Boulder, or University of Oregon ?

 

[chikapea]

2 minutes ago, riverrun said:

Anyone hear from UNC, UCSB, University Colorado Boulder, or University of Oregon ?

 

I had an interview with University of Oregon but haven't heard anything. They said I would hear back from them by the end of march so that doesn't sound good.  Probably a rejection if it's that late.

[riverrun]

First year applying for MFA. Just wondering if it's time to abandon hope if I haven't been contacted yet...How late do these notifications go out? 

[chikapea]

5 minutes ago, riverrun said:

Anyone hear from UNC, UCSB, University Colorado Boulder, or University of Oregon ?

 

Oh and I forgot to add I have an interview with UCSB. 

[riverrun]

Hey @chikapea . I see you've interviewed at UCSB already. I was never contacted by them so looks like I can scratch them off the list. 

 

[AKinLA]

Has anyone heard from Cal State Long Beach Painting in either abstract or figurative tract? 

Good luck with the UCSB interview! 

 

[gigigigi]

VCU rejection letter by mail  

[Impartial]

Hi Everyone – more congratulations to everyone who's received interviews and acceptance notices!!! Break a leg for upcoming interviews this week.

Anyone interviewing for Rutgers, I've heard that all faculty will be present on March 3rd which is great. The actual interview panel is kept secret, however. I forgot to ask how many students will be interviewing and the total number of placements available. Look forward to meeting some of you!

Cheers

[riverrun]

Also. I got into my top pick U Wisconsin Madison, which I thought was a fully funded program but I ended up getting nothing. Even though my EFC was actually 0 since I'm poor as shit. Is there any other route to get funding for tuition, or should I just cross them off the list? 

[Vespertine]

1 hour ago, riverrun said:

First year applying for MFA. Just wondering if it's time to abandon hope if I haven't been contacted yet...How late do these notifications go out? 

 

27 minutes ago, riverrun said:

Also. I got into my top pick U Wisconsin Madison, which I thought was a fully funded program but I ended up getting nothing. Even though my EFC was actually 0 since I'm poor as shit. Is there any other route to get funding for tuition, or should I just cross them off the list? 

It really depends on the school -- I just got an interview request as recently as Friday, so it's not necessarily over. If no one has posted about your schools in this thread, you could try emailing to ask if your application is still under review. 

That really sucks about the funding, sorry  Unfortunately all an EFC of 0 really ensures is that you can get (possibly subsidized) federal loans. They're not the worst option, but obviously taking out a lot in loans isn't great either way. As for outside funding, there are lots of small things you could apply to, but I don't think there are many that would cover the cost of grad school besides stuff on the scale of a Fulbright etc. 

Funding is truly the worst part of all of this. 

[sunflowerpower]

On 2/26/2017 at 3:08 AM, Chrisel said:

Hi! Firstly, congratulations on the interview!  From my experience the interview was very friendly.  They want to know about what inspires you and why graduate studies (and spesifically graduate studies at Pratt) is right for you at this stage of your life.  You get the opportunity to ask questions, and they are very open and honest when answering.  You shouldn't stress about it, they are very nice and just want to get to know you better. I am sure that you will do great.

Thank you for the advice! It definitely gave me confidence in preparing a sense of what I wanted to say during the interview today. The gentlemen who interviewed me were extremely nice. I think it went quite well. They said to expect an answer from them in the next week or so. Very happy with how the experience went! Thanks ?

Edited February 27, 2017 by sunflowerpower

[riverrun]

Thanks vespertine, it's just disheartening because their website says " Currently, nearly 80% of graduate students in the Art Department receive full funding in the form of fellowships, teaching or project assistant positions. The remaining students generally receive partial funding in the form of scholarships. Fellowships and assistantships include full tuition remission, a monthly stipend, and generous benefits, including health coverage.   "   . And then nothing.....Ugh.  I figured I would be at least one of the "remaining students to get partial funding", but nope, and with a tuition of 32,000$ there's just no way. 

[Chrisel]

13 minutes ago, sunflowerpower said:

Thank you for the advice! It definitely gave me confidence in preparing a sense of what I wanted to say during the interview today. The gentlemen who interviewed me were extremely nice. I think it went quite well. They said to expect an answer from them in the next week or so. Very happy with how the experience went! Thanks ?

That's great news! I'm glad that it went well.  Let me know when you've heard back from them! 

[downtomars]

1 hour ago, riverrun said:

Thanks vespertine, it's just disheartening because their website says " Currently, nearly 80% of graduate students in the Art Department receive full funding in the form of fellowships, teaching or project assistant positions. The remaining students generally receive partial funding in the form of scholarships. Fellowships and assistantships include full tuition remission, a monthly stipend, and generous benefits, including health coverage.   "   . And then nothing.....Ugh.  I figured I would be at least one of the "remaining students to get partial funding", but nope, and with a tuition of 32,000$ there's just no way. 

Maybe you could email their financial aid office or something to appeal for assistance? That is pretty misleading... :/

[kkkkk]

Interviewed at Yale today, the interview was casual and everyone was nice. It was a great experience no matter what the final result going to be. Finally, time to get drunk!

Edited February 27, 2017 by kkkkk

[dmirko]

2 hours ago, riverrun said:

Also. I got into my top pick U Wisconsin Madison, which I thought was a fully funded program but I ended up getting nothing. Even though my EFC was actually 0 since I'm poor as shit. Is there any other route to get funding for tuition, or should I just cross them off the list? 

Don't give up, there are usually ways to get "considered" for in-state tuition, there are tuition reduction scholarships, school and state grants. Email them.

Efc 0 means you can get up to 20k in loans per year for a 120k stafford loan limit of graduate school (limit is half that for undergrad students). There are other kinds of loans for students with more need, and parentPLUS loans for parents.

ALSO, if 20k and whatever help you might get from the school by appealing and emailing their financial office until you get something is not enough they may also offer you federal work-study which is a job+aid. But make sure to email, there's usually a bureaucratic way to get your way. Be very polite, but persistent.

[dmirko]

1 minute ago, kkkkk said:

Interviewed at Yale today, the interview was casual and everyone was nice. It was a great experience no matter what the final result going to be. Finally, time to get drunk!

Congratulations! GOOD LUCK!!!!!!

[kkkkk]

4 minutes ago, dmirko said:

Congratulations! GOOD LUCK!!!!!!

Thank you!!

[felixo]

2 hours ago, riverrun said:

Thanks vespertine, it's just disheartening because their website says " Currently, nearly 80% of graduate students in the Art Department receive full funding in the form of fellowships, teaching or project assistant positions. The remaining students generally receive partial funding in the form of scholarships. Fellowships and assistantships include full tuition remission, a monthly stipend, and generous benefits, including health coverage.   "   . And then nothing.....Ugh.  I figured I would be at least one of the "remaining students to get partial funding", but nope, and with a tuition of 32,000$ there's just no way. 

If they didn't give you a frank or clear explanation, I would investigate. Be polite the whole way through, but people understand that funding can be make or break, and there's no harm in asking what's going on and why your admission doesn't correspond to the information given on the website. Sometimes, you'd be surprised what some proactive measures can accomplish. 

[Vespertine]

1 hour ago, leekrasner said:

Maybe you could email their financial aid office or something to appeal for assistance? That is pretty misleading... :/

Yeah, that's super misleading! Sheesh. 

You should definitely email them so they at least know it's a major factor for you. If another admitted student turns down their offer, maybe they could redirect some of that funding.

Also great point from @dmirko. Even if you can't get in-state tuition for your first year, you should be able to qualify for it in your second year as a new full-time resident. Could help soften the blow. 

17 minutes ago, kkkkk said:

Interviewed at Yale today, the interview was casual and everyone was nice. It was a great experience no matter what the final result going to be. Finally, time to get drunk!

Congrats and good luck! Glad you had a good experience, some people make it sound like the interviews are super intense...

Edited February 27, 2017 by Vespertine

[felixo]

1 minute ago, Vespertine said:

Even if you can't get in-state tuition for your first year, you should be able to qualify for it in your second year as a new full-time resident. Could help soften the blow. 

 

I'm wary of this comment - lots of state school systems require you to prove residency in a way that exceeds what a student can often prove. Voting registration, driver's license, tax forms proving said state is your permanent home for over a year. Basically, you need to prove that you moved there to work or live, and not to go to school. Maybe certain departments will help you out - but generally the burden of proof is on the student and just being there in school doesn't generally fly. Otherwise, every out of state sophomore/2nd year grad student at a state school would be trying this for the duration of their degree. 

[riverrun]

Hey all. I emailed and basically I was told that all the awards had been made already, and that I wasn't eligible for any funding. Also, I asked about in state tuition and even if I paid for the first year I would never be eligible for in state tuition even if I went to school there for a year. The only way is to live there for a year, and re-apply. I've inquired about work study and am waiting for a reply. But yeah, advertising on the site that generally all students get some form of aid, and then expecting someone to pay $33,000 a year in tuition is a bit.....yeah....Not happy. But thankfully I got another offer and am moving on. 

[kkkkk]

11 minutes ago, Vespertine said:

Yeah, that's super misleading! Sheesh. 

You should definitely email them so they at least know it's a major factor for you. If another admitted student turns down their offer, maybe they could redirect some of that funding.

Also great point from @dmirko. Even if you can't get in-state tuition for your first year, you should be able to qualify for it in your second year as a new full-time resident. Could help soften the blow. 

Congrats and good luck! Glad you had a good experience, some people make it sound like the interviews are super intense...

 

Thank you! Perhaps other departments are more intense, but photo's interview was a fun one.

[Kamari]

Anyone else get an interview with Columbia Sound Arts MFA? I just had mine this morning and there was a time mix-up (they said 3PM but meant east coast time and I'm in California) so it moved to a phone interview but the actual conversation went SUPER well so I'm trying not to stress too much. Already got into two programs at Calarts for my MFA so I might double major but Columbia is my number one.

 

Congrats to everyone and if there are any other Sound Artist here I'd love to know where you applied. Best of luck to everyone else too.

[Vespertine]

29 minutes ago, felixo said:

I'm wary of this comment - lots of state school systems require you to prove residency in a way that exceeds what a student can often prove. Voting registration, driver's license, tax forms proving said state is your permanent home for over a year. Basically, you need to prove that you moved there to work or live, and not to go to school. Maybe certain departments will help you out - but generally the burden of proof is on the student and just being there in school doesn't generally fly. Otherwise, every out of state sophomore/2nd year grad student at a state school would be trying this for the duration of their degree. 

Hm, I know a lot of people who did that as undergrads, but it probably just depends on the state and the school. It's definitely not something you can assume, but it works out for some people if they look into it.