Graduate School Applications

(For an MFA or MA): 

During the process of researching, applying, writing letters of intent, or statements of purpose and organizing your portfolio, it’s likely that you will have some hesitation. For me This happened a couple of times during the 6 month period in which the graduate applications took place. There was one faculty member who (thankfully) was assisting me throughout the process, and as we met near the start of the academic year I asked him if I was ready to go to grad school. He told me that only I can decide when I’m ready. 

First steps:

For me, I initially researched the degrees offered by different schools across the country ( or the world depending where you’re looking). Since I’m a photographer who works primarily in the field (currently) geography and terrain are important to me and fed the places where I applied to. Faculty was also important to me. While I wasn’t able to visit any of the places I applied to before the applications were due, I did schedule as many meetings, with admissions, or department chairs as I was able to. These meetings were invaluable.

SPE has a directory for programs in the United States and Canada if you’re a member.

Another good rule to go by, is that if you can find an email on the schools website to contact someone, then you should contact them.  

I found that most of the places I looked at were saying similar things about the structure of the program on their websites. Requesting more information, I got into the specifics about the program, funding, class structures, responsibilities of the graduates, etc. 

I organized myself first by browsing the very general information page online, and if the program seemed like a good fit for what I wanted, then I would request more information. 

Funding: 

I was told by nearly everyone I spoke to that I should not pay for a masters. Not every program I applied to offered full funding. Again, only you know your financial situation and can make this call. If you need a fully funded program then be clear and communicate this to the school. Most grad programs at the very least have scholarships to ease the students' burden. If you really want to attend a specific program and their website does not say if they do or don’t offer funding, don’t dismiss them, ask and be sure.

If you’re someone who needs specific equipment or a sizable studio space, darkroom or whatever, then consider visiting the schools you’re interested in before applying. Figure out what you need to succeed at the least, and go from there. I would recommend not settling for less. 

Once you’ve done the initial research, and decided that you’re going to apply there's a few housekeeping things to take care of. The first, and potentially most important, is to organize your research into a master document. You should also make a spreadsheet which has the name of the school, the application deadline, the cost of the application, # of images or works for the portfolio, character or page limit of the letter of intent, length of the program, the financial aid they offer, and the number of recommenders needed. 

Next you will likely need some letters of recommendation. Don’t leave this until the last minute, in fact I would ask a few months in advance to give whoever will be writing these letters more time to do so. I had my department chair, the faculty member who I worked most closely with, and a former employer write my letters. My two former instructors were given the spreadsheet with all of the listed information, and another document which had some brief points of program specifics which I was mentioning in my letter of intent, and my portfolio. 

If you haven’t kept in touch with the folks who will write these letters, reach out and consider having a coffee or dinner with them to catch up. All of the people who wrote my letters I was interacting with almost daily. 

If there are any informational events hosted from the grad programs, you should sign up and attend them, even if you have all of the information about the programs you’ve decided to apply to. Sometimes these sessions included a code for an application waiver. 

Another useful perspective would be that of the student. If you reach out to admissions and they put you in touch with a department chair, or a faculty member, ask that person if you could meet with some current grads. If you visit the school before the applications are due, request to meet with students in person.