Ask LaBricoleuse: application timeline and graduate assistantships
It's that time of year again, when i tend to get more queries about topics relating to graduate study in costuming. It's also the time when we have a glut of applicants to our program coming to visit, show their portfolios, do interviews, etc., which means it's time for me first and foremost to trot out my link-list to hopefully-helpful past posts on related subjects, in which i answer many of the most common questions (i suppose that makes this a FAQ of sorts):
This year, i've gotten a new question though, and it's a good one! Well, i guess technically, it's two. devikat inquired (in a comment to a past post) about what sort of timeline the application process ideally follows, and what the requirements of graduate assistantships might be.
Timeline
Okay, so first my usual disclaimer: I don't run a graduate program, nor do I speak in an official capacity on behalf of the one for which i teach. I make these posts from the perspective of someone who has worked in an overhire/freelance capacity for graduate program productions and for professional theatres in residence at universities with graduate programs, and as someone who has done graduate coursework at three such universities. I have a more informed perspective than the average layperson, but for wholly accurate info specific to a particular program, you should definitely contact that program's director. Just so we're all on the same page, y'know.
Anyway, if i were to apply to graduate school, here's the timeline i'd follow. Let's say i want to apply for admission in the fall of 2010 (it currently being early 2009).
First, I would begin the process of going through my portfolio, bringing it up-to-date, busting out the old resume and combing it for mistakes. I'd make myself a spreadsheet of the schools to which i wanted to apply, listing relevant info like what the applications should contain (GRE scores? personal artistic statement? interview? etc.), and when deadlines were for various things, contact names and numbers, tuition costs, etc. I would use this spring and summer to work on getting all that stuff written, proofed, tests taken, etc.
In the fall of 2009, i would contact the heads of the programs to which i wanted to apply, stating my interest in applying to the program for the following year and asking any pertinent questions (such as, "What sort of work would you like to see in a portfolio?" and, "When is a good time to come visit the program?"). I'd start talking to potential references now, and i'd ask them to be brutally honest with me--if they didn't feel they could write me a glowing recommendation, to please let me know where they felt my shortcomings were so i could improve. If I found myself with only two references, i'd make for darn sure that i got a great summer gig this year and bend over backward doing a wonderful, professional job, to acquire that 3rd reference.
I would plan to visit the program some time in the winter. I would plan that visit for more than one day--even if you are only able to schedule one day on campus visiting the classes and meeting the faculty and touring the facilities, the second day allows you time to poke around the town/city that might be your home for the next 3 years.
I would inquire about sitting in on classes, and if the program offered particular courses of interest on a rotating basis, plan accordingly. (Say, if tailoring is my primary interest and their tailoring courses are only offered in fall semesters, then i'd want to try to visit in Nov/Dec, so i could observe that class, whereas if i am particularly interested in dyeing and that's a spring class, i'd try to schedule a visit for Jan/Feb.) This is another good reason to see about a two-day visit--you can potentially sit in on both MWF and TTh classes.
Often, assistantships and scholarships have much earlier deadlines than just the normal graduate school application deadlines--ours is in March. Sometimes we have great candidates apply, but just too late for the assistantship deadline, or just under the wire. I would make certain i was not one of those folks, and get all my stuff in well in advance.
Then, i'd cross my fingers and wait, and try not to have the squirmy fantods about it. :D
Assistantships
With respect to the nature of assistantships, I can only speak for the assistantships in my own program, but at least that'll hopefully give you a basis for how to phrase informed questions about those in other prospective programs as well.
We have several types of assistantships, and they all fall under two categories: the teaching assistantship and the research assistantship.
Teaching assistantships may involve helping a senior faculty member with the workload of a large undergraduate theatre class (this usually means grading papers or exams), teaching a smaller undergraduate costume intro course, or co-teaching a lab course (like makeup) with a senior faculty member. In our program, your assistantship only applies to one class at a time, so you'd never be assisting with a full courseload of teaching AND taking a full courseload of classes.
Research assistantships in our program are tied to our collections and archives, so you might be serving as an acquisitions coordinator (related to the intake of costume/clothing donations from benefactors and issuance of tax letters related to those donations) or loan supervisor (helping outside organizations wishing to borrow from our collection), or with the documentation and taxonomy of the CoStar Vintage Clothing Archive. Research assistantships also usually entail some supervision of undergraduate work-study students who help out with the documentation, preservation, and storage-related labor.
The rule of thumb with us is that students spend an average of 10 hours per week working on their assistantship duties, though clearly this depends on the nature of the assistantship (so, someone working in the archive really would probably spend about that a week on a regular basis, whereas someone whose teaching assistantship involved grading papers for a large class might go weeks without doing anything and then have a pile of papers to grade over the course of a couple weeks' time). We generally make it known in advance what sorts of time commitments are required for which assistantships, so students have the info they need to manage their time.
One thing to inquire about, if there is a LORT theatre in residence at the program, is whether the graduate program is involved with the LORT productions, and how that interfaces with coursework and assistantships. In our program, students work on the mainstage productions as part of a Practicum course, for which they receive credit; it's not a part of their assistantships. Some places, the assistantship may consist of working on LORT shows.
If you are applying to schools for the fall, good luck! And, if you are thinking about it for a future year, hopefully this was of use.
- Preparing to Apply to an MFA Program
- MFA Programs: Design vs. Production
- Finding Work as a Crafts Artisan
- Assembling a Portfolio
- Getting into the MFA Program You Want
This year, i've gotten a new question though, and it's a good one! Well, i guess technically, it's two. devikat inquired (in a comment to a past post) about what sort of timeline the application process ideally follows, and what the requirements of graduate assistantships might be.
Timeline
Okay, so first my usual disclaimer: I don't run a graduate program, nor do I speak in an official capacity on behalf of the one for which i teach. I make these posts from the perspective of someone who has worked in an overhire/freelance capacity for graduate program productions and for professional theatres in residence at universities with graduate programs, and as someone who has done graduate coursework at three such universities. I have a more informed perspective than the average layperson, but for wholly accurate info specific to a particular program, you should definitely contact that program's director. Just so we're all on the same page, y'know.
Anyway, if i were to apply to graduate school, here's the timeline i'd follow. Let's say i want to apply for admission in the fall of 2010 (it currently being early 2009).
First, I would begin the process of going through my portfolio, bringing it up-to-date, busting out the old resume and combing it for mistakes. I'd make myself a spreadsheet of the schools to which i wanted to apply, listing relevant info like what the applications should contain (GRE scores? personal artistic statement? interview? etc.), and when deadlines were for various things, contact names and numbers, tuition costs, etc. I would use this spring and summer to work on getting all that stuff written, proofed, tests taken, etc.
In the fall of 2009, i would contact the heads of the programs to which i wanted to apply, stating my interest in applying to the program for the following year and asking any pertinent questions (such as, "What sort of work would you like to see in a portfolio?" and, "When is a good time to come visit the program?"). I'd start talking to potential references now, and i'd ask them to be brutally honest with me--if they didn't feel they could write me a glowing recommendation, to please let me know where they felt my shortcomings were so i could improve. If I found myself with only two references, i'd make for darn sure that i got a great summer gig this year and bend over backward doing a wonderful, professional job, to acquire that 3rd reference.
I would plan to visit the program some time in the winter. I would plan that visit for more than one day--even if you are only able to schedule one day on campus visiting the classes and meeting the faculty and touring the facilities, the second day allows you time to poke around the town/city that might be your home for the next 3 years.
I would inquire about sitting in on classes, and if the program offered particular courses of interest on a rotating basis, plan accordingly. (Say, if tailoring is my primary interest and their tailoring courses are only offered in fall semesters, then i'd want to try to visit in Nov/Dec, so i could observe that class, whereas if i am particularly interested in dyeing and that's a spring class, i'd try to schedule a visit for Jan/Feb.) This is another good reason to see about a two-day visit--you can potentially sit in on both MWF and TTh classes.
Often, assistantships and scholarships have much earlier deadlines than just the normal graduate school application deadlines--ours is in March. Sometimes we have great candidates apply, but just too late for the assistantship deadline, or just under the wire. I would make certain i was not one of those folks, and get all my stuff in well in advance.
Then, i'd cross my fingers and wait, and try not to have the squirmy fantods about it. :D
Assistantships
With respect to the nature of assistantships, I can only speak for the assistantships in my own program, but at least that'll hopefully give you a basis for how to phrase informed questions about those in other prospective programs as well.
We have several types of assistantships, and they all fall under two categories: the teaching assistantship and the research assistantship.
Teaching assistantships may involve helping a senior faculty member with the workload of a large undergraduate theatre class (this usually means grading papers or exams), teaching a smaller undergraduate costume intro course, or co-teaching a lab course (like makeup) with a senior faculty member. In our program, your assistantship only applies to one class at a time, so you'd never be assisting with a full courseload of teaching AND taking a full courseload of classes.
Research assistantships in our program are tied to our collections and archives, so you might be serving as an acquisitions coordinator (related to the intake of costume/clothing donations from benefactors and issuance of tax letters related to those donations) or loan supervisor (helping outside organizations wishing to borrow from our collection), or with the documentation and taxonomy of the CoStar Vintage Clothing Archive. Research assistantships also usually entail some supervision of undergraduate work-study students who help out with the documentation, preservation, and storage-related labor.
The rule of thumb with us is that students spend an average of 10 hours per week working on their assistantship duties, though clearly this depends on the nature of the assistantship (so, someone working in the archive really would probably spend about that a week on a regular basis, whereas someone whose teaching assistantship involved grading papers for a large class might go weeks without doing anything and then have a pile of papers to grade over the course of a couple weeks' time). We generally make it known in advance what sorts of time commitments are required for which assistantships, so students have the info they need to manage their time.
One thing to inquire about, if there is a LORT theatre in residence at the program, is whether the graduate program is involved with the LORT productions, and how that interfaces with coursework and assistantships. In our program, students work on the mainstage productions as part of a Practicum course, for which they receive credit; it's not a part of their assistantships. Some places, the assistantship may consist of working on LORT shows.
If you are applying to schools for the fall, good luck! And, if you are thinking about it for a future year, hopefully this was of use.