Snail Scott on sun 17 oct 04
At 11:56 AM 10/17/2004 -0600, you wrote:
>This is a long message, but I have a lot ot say about this subject. Grad
school was a life-changing experience for me - it was the best choice I
have ever made. I started grad school when I was 37.
Well, I'm doing it now - started grad school this September
at age 38. Applied ten years ago, but didn't get enough
aid to do it without loans, and I couldn't face the debt.
I wanted a studio career, not a teaching position, and I
couldn't be certain of even paying the rent, much less
paying off $20K in student loans. So, it was probably the
right decision at the time.
Since then, I've discovered I actually like teaching at the
college level, and that I'm actually more productive with
my studio time when I have an outside commitment to keep
me both grounded and stimulated. So, I applied again. It's
not free, but I got enough aid to make it workable, and
I'm very fortunate to have a spouse who's able to cover
the bills while I'm making no income.
I've no illusions about the ease of finding a teaching
position after school - I've seen some searches up close,
and it's tough - so many good people coming SO close,
time after time... I'll just take what I can get, if
anything, but if I end up just working in my studio at
first, well, that's no worse than before, and I truly
hope I'll be making better work by then, too.
So... an actual question!
There's still a semester and a half to run before summer,
but I want to start planning now: I'd like to find
something to do this summer to improve my experience base
and give me leg up either in improving my work or my
resume, or maybe both. I'm open to a wide range of
options - residencies, tech jobs, teaching jobs,
assistantships, paid or unpaid, just about anywhere, for
any length of time that doesn't overlap the school term.
Does anyone have a lead? I'd love to hear about anything
you know of.
Thanks!
-Snail Scott
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