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Graduate School Applications Friday, December 10, 2004 | 5:19PM

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I’m officially back in the process of applying for graduate schools. If you’ll remember, I was doing the very same thing a year ago, but I only applied to two schools, both of which were difficult to get into, but for very different reasons. I applied to RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) as a long shot, actually knowing very little about the program. It’s ranked as one of the top MFA Photography programs in the nation… actually, it’s tied for 1st place, according to US News and World Reports. When I was rejected from RISD, I wasn’t surprised or upset. It’s difficult to get into because it’s a good school.

The other school I applied to was The University of Texas at Austin. UT is difficult to get into because, although they have one of the largest student bodies in the country, they only accept 1 student per year into the graduate photography program. And it’s a 3 year degree, so there are only 3 students at any one time. And on top of that, there are only 3 faculty members. So essentially it’s a pretty self-limiting program. They claim it’s because they want to provide as much to their few students as possible. Well, I think that’s bogus.

So this year I’m applying to more schools. I should’ve done that in the first place, but living this year in Austin has been a good thing. I would’ve never worked for the House of Representatives Photography Department, and I wouldn’t have met some of the people that I have. So far I’ve begun the process of applying to the following schools:

• The University of New Mexico - Also tied for that first place ranking.
• Columbia College Chicago - I really loved this place when I visited it in November.
• Arizona State University - I was told this was the better of the two Arizona schools, but I’ll have to visit to really have a better idea. Ranked 5th, I believe.
• University of Colorado at Boulder - Beautiful campus, beautiful part of the country. When we visited this school during spring break of 2003, the facilities reminded me of what we used to have at Texas State before we got the new building. And I liked that.
• The University of Arizona - Ranked 9th in the country.

You’ll note that 4 of the 5 schools are public. Unfortunately, I don’t live in any of those states, so tuition is pretty much similar at all of them. However, some schools will either waive or assist in the cost difference. Total costs are $35,000-$45,000 on average, with the University of Colorado coming in at an astounding $66,000, based on my estimates. And this is astounding mainly because the cost for a Colorado resident would be a mere $14,000 for the same education.

I’m actually considering applying to a few other schools. They’re all outrageously expensive:

• The School of Visual Arts, New York, NY - another top school
• Yale University, New Haven, CT - also ranked highly
• School of the Museum of Fine Art, Boston, MA
• MassArt, Boston, MA
• University Illinois Urbana-Champaign - I heard this school really takes care of its graduate students
• …and a few random others

Originally I thought I’d love to live in Chicago. Actually, that’s still true, but I’m a little more open to living in some other places. I mean, living in Boulder or Denver would be incredible. And while I don’t know a whole lot about the actual climates of Arizona and New Mexico — I don’t want to be guilty of stereotyping them like Northerners do with Texas by assuming we all ride horses everywhere and have an abundance of cactus and tumbleweeds on our vast desert landscape that covers the entire state — they don’t seem like they’d be quite the extreme that Chicago is. And even if it is ridiculously hot, we’re not exactly strangers to heat here in Austin.

So these graduate applications. They suck. Of course it wouldn’t be so bad if there were just one. What am I saying? Yes it would. You have to get multiple letters of recommendation — an unbelievable FOUR for the University of Colorado — 1-2 transcripts, slides, a resume, the actual application, a statement of intent. And then there’s the application fee. The single biggest ripoff in the whole process. Those application fees must single handedly fund the graduate school offices at these schools. Because the cheapest fee I’ve seen is $40, and they usually top out around $75, but I’ve seen them as high as $100. If 100 students apply to that graduate school, they’ve just made $10,000.

But I can’t knock the system I want to work for too much. It’s just that those fees, plus the cost of transcripts from Texas State (at $5 each) totals $280 right now. It will be more if I apply to any of those other schools I’m considering. And there’s also the whole issue of choosing people to write letters of recommendation. I’ve only had 2 photography professors, one of which I only had for a single semester (but was awesome). And luckily I work as a photographer, so I have colleagues that can probably write them for me if I ask, and if they’re willing. But if I were to apply to more schools, then I would have to send more forms to those people I’ve already given material to.

But despite all this, I’m almost enjoying the process. And the only reason is the hope and excitement associated with moving to a new place and getting into school to focus on photography.

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Comments

amanda | Friday, December 10, 2004 | 9:11PM

Casey | Saturday, December 11, 2004 | 11:26AM

matthieu | Friday, December 17, 2004 | 7:21PM

The Dookies | Friday, December 24, 2004 | 8:09AM

The Cheesy One | Friday, December 24, 2004 | 11:51AM

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