mel jacobson on sat 27 aug 05
you can pick a school, a teacher, a location.
love them all.
but if that perfect school, teacher does not pick
you...well, you are screwed.
i have had to tell that to many people.
often they get really pissed at me.
`what, not take me? look at my resume`.
then they call. `i did not get accepted.`
there is a perception out there that all you have
to do is pick the right place, the right teacher...and
all else slides along like grease.
many former students/friends have had to accept that the
fifth school on their list said ok...and that is where they went.
and when done, there were no great teaching jobs just waiting for them.
it is damn hard to get into the school of choice.
there are limited spaces, and the politics are nasty.
just a thought.
mel
so, when you make your list...remember, there are one hundred others
that have already applied to your first choice...and they are damn good too.
from mel/minnetonka.mn.usa
website: http://www.pclink.com/melpots
http://home.comcast.net/~figglywig/clayart.htm
for gail's year book.
Vince Pitelka on sat 27 aug 05
> you can pick a school, a teacher, a location.
> love them all.
> but if that perfect school, teacher does not pick
> you...well, you are screwed.
Mel's advice here is very important. When you are really ready to go to
graduate school, don't make the mistake of only applying to your first
choice schools. The disappointment of being rejected can really set you
back. Instead, find some lesser known schools that have great teachers and
good facilities, and apply to those ones too. This is one of the situations
that involves my favorite version of Murphy's Law - "The chance of a desired
outcome depends on the degree to which you accommodate all possible
alternatives." So, apply to a range of schools, and celebrate any
acceptance. Some of the lesser-known schools really want to increase their
profile and reputation, and they will take very good care of you.
- Vince
Vince Pitelka
Appalachian Center for Craft, Tennessee Technological University
Smithville TN 37166, 615/597-6801 x111
vpitelka@dtccom.net, wpitelka@tntech.edu
http://iweb.tntech.edu/wpitelka/
http://www.tntech.edu/craftcenter/
Snail Scott on mon 29 aug 05
At 06:05 PM 8/27/2005 -0500, Vince wrote:
>Mel's advice here is very important. When you are really ready to go to
>graduate school, don't make the mistake of only applying to your first
>choice schools...
It's often been noted here how difficult it is
to get a faculty position, even with an MFA and
a great portfolio. For a would-be teacher, this
is bad news. For a would-be student, it's great.
It means that even Podunk State University can
hire some terrific teaching talent, and the
students there get the benefit. A big name is no
guarantee that it's the program best suited to
you. Get off the 'US NEWS' ratings list and
investigate other programs. The criteria that
kept those schoolsout of the 'top 10' may be
completely irrelevant to you, and you'll get the
advantage: less competition for admission, a
better chance for scholarship aid, and possibly
a great education.
Ask yourself what YOU want in an MFA program,
and go looking for it. It may not be what other
people want, so why use other people's standards?
Get input from others, sure, but ask WHY they
hold that opinion. It might not be for reasons
that matter to you.
-Snail
Randall Moody on mon 29 aug 05
Another thing to note with the US News and World Report rankings is that=20
they ask schools to rate other schools. This may be why you see the same=20
schools ranked basically the same year after year. Even though I have not=
=20
entered an MFA program (yet), I would recommend visiting the schools you ar=
e=20
interested in and more importantly talking to the students.=20
On a personal note: Southern Illinois University @ Carbondale under Harris=
=20
Deller is a great program and great facilities. I recieved my BFA from ther=
e=20
and even though I didn't seem to fit well there, (I was an older and more=
=20
crotchity student not to mention being a bit of a dilettante) I came away=
=20
with much more than I thought I did.=20
On 8/29/05, Snail Scott wrote:
>=20
> At 06:05 PM 8/27/2005 -0500, Vince wrote:
> >Mel's advice here is very important. When you are really ready to go to
> >graduate school, don't make the mistake of only applying to your first
> >choice schools...
>=20
>=20
> It's often been noted here how difficult it is
> to get a faculty position, even with an MFA and
> a great portfolio. For a would-be teacher, this
> is bad news. For a would-be student, it's great.
> It means that even Podunk State University can
> hire some terrific teaching talent, and the
> students there get the benefit. A big name is no
> guarantee that it's the program best suited to
> you. Get off the 'US NEWS' ratings list and
> investigate other programs. The criteria that
> kept those schoolsout of the 'top 10' may be
> completely irrelevant to you, and you'll get the
> advantage: less competition for admission, a
> better chance for scholarship aid, and possibly
> a great education.
>=20
> Ask yourself what YOU want in an MFA program,
> and go looking for it. It may not be what other
> people want, so why use other people's standards?
> Get input from others, sure, but ask WHY they
> hold that opinion. It might not be for reasons
> that matter to you.
>=20
> -Snail
>=20
>=20
> _________________________________________________________________________=
_____
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>=20
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>=20
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at=20
> melpots@pclink.com.
>
joethepotter1948 on tue 30 aug 05
Randall, Snail, and Vince all have some great thoughts here. If you
want to go to either undergrad or grad school, by all means go visit
as many as you can of those that you might be interested in, and apply
to all that you feel good about. Just because you picked them doesn't
insure that they'll pick you. A lot of debt isn't a good idea
either. Whether I'm buying pots or selling pots, where we studied and
what that education cost don't enter into the conversation; only the
attractiveness, quality and price of the pot determine the outcome of
the sale. I'm confident some of the greatest potters come from some
of the least-ballyhooed programs, and some of the greatest programs
probably turn out a few truly pathetic potters in spite of their best
efforts.
Joe
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