<p>I was wondering that since jobs as proffessors are generally considered competetive, is the same true for art proffessors? I dont really plan on getting a bfa then immediately an MFA so I can teach (it has some negative pyramid scheme implications) but I still would like to leave that possibility open one day if I ever decide to. For some reason I thought things might be different (dunno why art is competetive regardless) as an art teacher. Can someone learned in this subject tell me how things work for art teachers?</p>
<p>Securing a position as a college-level instructor/professor on a tenure track is tough to find in any academic field. I can’t think of any reason this would be different for art. Might be more so. In the sciences, you generally take a pay cut to teach vs work in industry (at a PhD level). And I don’t believe you need an MFA to teach as a full-time or adjunct college-level art instructor. I may be wrong, but I remember looking at the educational credentials of RISD’s Illustration instructors and not all (maybe half?) had MFAs and as I recall the same was true at MICA.</p>
<p>But what is your real question?</p>
<p>Im not sure I understand. Did I frame my question in vague terminology? I basically wanted to know if academic art related jobs were competetive or not. I suppose that implies that I have some interest at the thought of one day being an art professor, which I do. I didnt really have any initial questions other than that, however, after doing some thinking I began to wonder about a few things.</p>
<p>I only entertained the idea of being an art teacher after I had possibly gotton some real experience so that I might be able to contribute to the subject. However, by then I could probably be somewhere near retirement age and part time work would probably be more viable. I also did some research and found that post secondary schools are in a trend that seems to be phasing out the tenure system and increasing employing adjunct proffessors.
I was just wondering that after I got my degree and became a designer, (my most direct long term goal) would it be viable to begin to work freelance and as an adjunct proffessor somewhere in midlife? Does this sound like a good plan? (lol I know it’s crazy for someone this young to be thinking THAT far ahead).</p>
<p>OP…you are thinking clearly and it is likely that if you have strong professional experience as a designer you would be able to find an adjunct teaching position down the road. Keep in mind that throughout your education you will be forging relationships with your teachers and your peers. Later it will be your colleagues and possible business partners. You will move through your career together with these people and they will be the ones to recommend you for positions when they come up. So be a mensch!
It might also help if you are an expert in some arena of design…web, interactive, way finding, typography etc… Other things to consider are becoming a member of the AIGA. (students get a discount). Volunteer at conferences. There you will hear and meet speakers in the field. They are usually the ones who are also teaching design. They are the ones who care about the evolution and health of their industry and want to promote it. These are the people you want to be around, who will help you grow. Another thing to do is start blogging about design. Hone your critical thinking and writing skills. A designer who can also communicate about design is likely to end up a professor of design.</p>
<p>Good Luck!</p>
<p>here is Stephen Heller’s blog for example:
[Steven</a> Heller ? Imprint-The Online Community for Graphic Designers](<a href=“http://imprint.printmag.com/daily-heller/]Steven”>http://imprint.printmag.com/daily-heller/)
you might want to bookmark it…it’s a treasure.</p>
<p>Tim - I thought your OP was clear. Getting your ducks in a row and always having a Plan B is a good thing!</p>
<p>Drae - Excellent response and am sending that Steven Heller link to my D.</p>
<p>I think such positions are very competitive. At the schools I am familiar with anyway. People snatch them up and, if they do a good job/want to keep working there, they keep their positions a long time. So you have to be a bit lucky even to get a shot at these jobs, particularly at selective schools.</p>
<p>But it is possible. I would recommend getting involved/staying involved at whatever school(s) you are interested in. Many schools look for volunteer professionals to speak or present at student events, to help with critiques, etc. If they know who you are, it helps open doors when employment opportunities come up.</p>
<p>I know you are just posting on an online forum, but it’s a good habit to check your spelling. I’ve eliminated many job candidates due to bad spelling on resumes, letters, etc. So if you do decide to create a blog, check your spelling carefully.</p>
<p>mamabear drae dear
so I badmouthed about the poster made by a wife of this nice man who posted Dürer’s logo (is that a right word?) which I love love love
shows what I know. my tail in between legs and retreat…</p>
<p>OP
worry but not so much ahead of time. you are still about going to transfer into 4 year school, yes?
once you get to know hi mighty profs you’d find them either
- aloof
- nuts
- under some influence of some substance, that is the only explanation
- so the “art school confidential” movie was true to the facts
- dinosaur should have been extinct decades ago
and don’t wanna be one of them.</p>
<p>ohnoooo you may be right!
H worked for #3
makes for good stories though</p>
<p>Are jobs as college art teachers competitive?
YES
and you need an MFA
unless you’re really really famous or get very very lucky</p>
<p>I’m not really getting where responders are coming from here. Maybe people are referring to teachers of the fine arts? The OP is planning on becoming a designer. The advice I gave comes from working in the field and knowing at least 5 people who followed the path I outlined and ended up teaching at the college level. Maybe they are just lucky but from my vantage point they simply are dedicated, focused, hard working and friendly.</p>
<p>and talented.</p>
<p>I was gonna say something of that^ sort, for knowing at least one such teacher with “I love what I do and will share with you everything I got” written all over his face(and back, even on the sole of his shoes) whom now I happened to know did not finish schooling.</p>
<p>it is contradicting, I know… art school confidential kid was a painter. so there?</p>
<p>Most likely I think there is a distinction between teaching at a stand alone art school and getting a tenured position at a LAC or university. At the art schools more openings come up because there actually is a good amount of turnover. Most teachers are also working professionals and can’t always keep up doing both or need to take a leave of absence here and there.</p>
<p>that explains, thanks
I met some LAC profs who mentioned how nice to have tenure, I forget details but the school gave them leave of absence to recharge with all benefit intact in certain intervals guaranteed.
and that explains why Wesleyan’s scary painting queen would never budge…
suppose higher the caliber of said school, more secure job would get and less often turnover-ed.
I remember reading about MICA’s MFA painting founder/queen was there till she literally died.
and what happened to poor raininguru after all the year of service to his/her love for SCAD.</p>
<p>I am not really helping here, am I?
I guess it all depends?
good luck OP
you seems sincere hard working well mannered modest person.
I actually don’t know if the last few traits will do you favor if you are in ‘wrong’ kind of environment.
far as I know people reward someone who can act one’s worth. if you can’t put your foot in the door first, you have no chance of showing what your true worth is.
by going to any school to study your chosen field, let’s say you are putting your foot already. then all you need to do is what drae suggested, and stay connected. they’d pick you before put up wanted ad on public when the spot opens up.</p>
<p>But the question was is it competitive not is it do-able and yes, it is very competitive whether you’re talking fine art or design, university or private art school. It’s likely the private schools pay less which would account also for the turnover. In the design field, yes, they are more likely to be working in the field if the school is in a large city. But while it is do-able, it is competitive.</p>
<p>artsmarts, exactly what I thought with my post - is it competitive - Yes. Now what else do you want to know?</p>
<p>OP’s second post actually asks the debatable questions (I knew there was more to it!): “ I was just wondering that after I got my degree and became a designer…would it be viable to begin to work freelance and as an adjunct professor somewhere in midlife? Does this sound like a good plan?”</p>
<p>Be a mensch (I had to look that up.) Don’t worry so much into the future. Get an MFA.</p>
<p>Good advice parents!</p>
<p>While this may sound discouraging it isn’t meant to be . . . remember this . . . there are no guarantees. No matter what school you attend or what your long-term plans are . . . there are no guarantees. So just get going, roll with it, work really really hard, take the doors that open and see where they lead, if no doors are opening keep on pounding until they do or you’re worn out and then turn around and look for another door. That’s my advice.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the responses. They were helpful both directly and even indirectly. </p>
<p>You know I started looking things up about the MFA and it seems that most people who got a BFA and then an MFA changed their focus for graduate school. For example if they majored in sculpture they’d go for print making later on or if they went for illustration they might go for industrial design. I thought about it and I wondered if you could do that for something like architecture. I know the degree is called March but Im unsure if that matters since architecture is aso taught at standalone art schools. Does it matter that the degree be called MFA? For example , since alot of creative writing degrees are MFAs does that mean that if I got a degree in this field i’d still be able to teach art? (I dont really plan to it’s just an example.) What if instead, I got an MA in creative writing, would that bar me from becoming an art professor? Logically I wouldnt think it would matter since people consider architecture to be applied art and design and since art historians consider it a form of art. Is the acroynm MFA as important or is it fine just as long as it’s recongnized as a legitimate art form.</p>
<p>Thanks in advance. I know it’s a blurry question that doesnt seem like it would produce an easy “yes or no” answer.</p>
<p>A MFA is a Master of fine Arts, and MA is a Master of Arts. Both are graduate degrees. My GUESS (and I know someone will correct me if I’m wrong) is the difference is similar to a BA in Art vs a BFA in Art. The BFA has 70% art/30% everything else, and the BA is the other way around. Architecture is a whole other ball of wax. The following is from Wikipedia, so take it with a grain of salt.</p>
<p>"Many schools offer several possible tracks of architectural education. Including study at the bachelor’s and master’s level, these tracks range up to 7.5 years in duration.</p>
<pre><code>One possible route is what is commonly referred to as the “4+2” course. This path entails completing a four-year, accredited, pre-professional bachelor of arts in architecture or a bachelor of science in architecture. This degree is not enough to qualify the student to sit for the architectural record exam, so the next step is to complete a 2 year (or sometimes 3 year, depending on the nature and quality of your undergraduate study performance, and the evaluation of your master’s degree program school of your undergraduate study) Master of Architecture program. This route offers several advantages: your first four years are a bit more loose, allowing the inclusion of some liberal arts study; you can attend two different institutions for your undergraduate and graduate study, which is helpful in that it allows you to have a more varied architectural education, and you can pick the best place for you to complete your thesis (because chances are, you might not pick the program that has the exact focus that you will want when it becomes time for your thesis study); and you will finish the 4+2 course of study with a master’s degree that will provide you the career option of teaching architecture at the collegiate level.
The second route to obtaining an accredited master’s degree begins in graduate school, with a 3 or 3.5 year Master’s degree (commonly called an “M.Arch I”). The advantage to this route is that the student can study something else he or she is interested in his/her undergraduate study (anything else). Because students come from different undergraduate backgrounds, the breadth of knowledge and experience in the student body of an M.Arch I program is often considered an advantage. One possible disadvantage is that the total time in school is longer (7 or 7.5 years with an undergraduate degree). Another disadvantage is that the student has a very short time to cover the extremely broad scope of subject areas of which architects are expected to have a working knowledge. Because a significant portion of every architect’s education occurs in professional work apart from formal schooling, however, this is not always considered a problem.
</code></pre>
<p>It is worth noting that there is another route to becoming an architect: the continuous 5 year professional degree program. In such a program, after five years of study, students are awarded with a professional degree in architecture. Depending on the school and course of study, this could be either a B.Arch or an M.Arch. In the U.S., it is typically a 5-year B.Arch. Either degree qualifies those who complete it to sit for the ARE (the Architectural Registration Exam, the architecture equivalent of the bar exam), which leads to an architect’s license in the U.S… One disadvantage of the B.Arch. degree is that it is rarely considered as sufficient qualification for teaching architecture at the university/college level in the U.S. (though there are many exceptions). Many architects who wish to teach and have only received a B.Arch. choose to pursue a 3-semester master’s degree (not an M.Arch.) to obtain further academic qualification. "</p>
<p>Not sure if this helps, but worth thinking about.</p>