MFA or MA programs that give full rides?

Graduate School
1

<p>So here is my situation. I still have about three years until I graduate and get my BFA and BA (I’m triple majoring in photography, new media art, and art history), and I am completely certain that I want to get a masters. </p>

<p>However, I have a really unusual immigration status and I have a very difficult time receiving financial aid, which is why I’ve started looking at schools this early. Had I the choice, I would’ve wanted to have gone to a really great school in the north (I’m currently in Texas), and gotten my bachelors in a large metropolitan area. Part of the reason that I would really like a masters is to escape the droll of the south. Also, fine artists typically need masters to succeed and I really want to teach. </p>

<p>Currently, I’ve looked at Yale, Columbia, RISD, and CalArts for an MFA in photo and/or video, but none of those schools seem to offer the kind of full tuition scholarships that I thought they would offer. Does anybody know if I’m mistaken in this? I feel like at least one of them would offer some kind of grant or fellowship to promising MFA candidates. Or, some kind of financial aid based on merit, and not on need.
Granted, I will be in need, but most need is determined by the FAFSA application, which I’m ineligible for.
Of course, I’ve looked at outside grants as well, but for the sake of keeping things easier for myself, I want to find a university that could potentially offer full rides. </p>

<p>I’ve had a little bit more luck looking at MA for art history, with the Yale website saying they offer full tuition plus a stipend (awesome!). I’ve also heard that Columbia and NYU give very little. Can anybody verify this?</p>

2

<p>If you still have 3 years before you graduate, then you can’t really be completely certain that you want to get a master’s. You may get a really good job offer or find out about a great post-baccalaureate opportunity, and honestly if you want to make your fortune in photography, experience will do you a lot better than a master’s degree. Nevertheless, it doesn’t hurt to start looking early.</p>

<p>But here’s the thing - on the graduate level, almost everyone in master’s-level programs pays for it themselves through loans. There are very few academic scholarships based on merit for grad school - it’s not like undergrad. They typically don’t package you or give you grants. Some programs only give one or two scholarships to their entire class; and very few schools give enough nonrepayable aid to cover the entire program (best you may get is half-tuition) - especially the very top schools you are mentioning, where there are plenty of affluent kids more than willing to fork over the $40K+ per year in tuition.</p>

<p>Now I’m not sure about MFA programs so much because they are the terminal program in the field, and many times terminal programs will offer tuition remission and a stipend.</p>

<p>From this thread: [MFA</a> for FREE: TA, Stipend, Scholarship, etc. - The GradCafe Forums](<a href=“MFA for FREE: TA, Stipend, Scholarship, etc. - Arts - The GradCafe Forums”>MFA for FREE: TA, Stipend, Scholarship, etc. - Arts - The GradCafe Forums)</p>

<p>It seems like Arizona State, Univ. New Mexico, Univ. Delaware, UIUC, and Penn State offer at least some funding.</p>