The problem is access.
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2015/11/04/doctors-hospitals-wont-accept-obamacare-marketplace-plans
On the flip side, I had a few different marketplace plans over a few years and I have very complicated health conditions and never had ANY problem with access.
My kid has been in a marketplace plan over 3 years in 2 states. No issues with doctors or access. But that is probably a digression from the thread. Suffice to say that the OP should look carefully at the limitations of any plan before enrolling (including accepting employment). Employer plans aren’t always the best, either. But we shouldn’t detour from the OP’s main issues.
Yeah, does one *really *need a degree in art to work as an artist?
Can’t you just show a portfolio?
I don’t know what skills you have and if your health issues would preclude you from this, but could you get an administrative job (a staff job, not a student job) at a university that has an art program. Work full time and earn a paycheck and benefits, and perhaps take a free class each semester.
I’m back in school pursuing my BA in studio art. I’m 46, and my kids are 16 & 17.
I should graduate next spring debt free because I chose a very affordable university to attend (not an art school, but a small local in-state university with a dedicated art department). I’ve been very pleasantly surprised that many of the teachers are as good as the high caliber art school I first attended back in 1988 (Carnegie Mellon University).
I went back last fall because I could afford it, my kids are driving themselves to HS and are fairly independent, and I have the support of my husband. I don’t think I could have been successful at it if I’d gone back without my ducks being fairly lined up.
So, I’d focus on your ducks right now. The art will be there for you when you’re ready. Trust me.
As for art being a “therapeutic outlet” as some other people suggested, most artists I know (including myself) are driven to create. It’s not really a choice to do it ‘therapeutically’ or ‘professionally’, you just have to be a maker. If you’re not making, you’re not happy. The secret is to be able to funnel that into something that can tolerate timelines and prerequisites from clients if you do commissioned artwork. School helps a lot with that discipline.
Also, regarding the migraines-have you ever had an MRI to rule out a Chiari I malformation?
I was briefly an art rep after I worked at a large advertising agency where I was responsible for hiring illustrators and graphic artists. Illustration is not what it used to be. Magazines are dying every day and even the ones that are still around seldom if ever hire illustrators. I know more than one art director who has flat out told me that they are forbidden to use illustration. I’m surprised at your perception that after a couple more years in art school that illustration will be a viable way to make a good enough living to pay off your already sizable debt. I know about passion and drive in the arts. I understand how frustrating it is to pursue work in a narrow market. I have a D who chased her passion over to Europe because the market for her art (opera) has narrowed greatly here in the US.
Sure doing art is therapeutic . I paint weekly. But neither art school nor struggling in the current marker for illustrators is not going to “cure” you.
You really truly need to do two things first. 1.Get your depression under control. 2.Find out what a realistic path is based on the realities of the current market and your current debt burden.
Sorry about not understanding - I thought you got the $100K debt from MassArt, so I thought the school must have been private! And, yes, I wasn’t sure about posting that link because I do think his story is atypical rather than an example of what anybody can do.
You are selling yourself short when you say the “only” thing you accomplished was getting out of an abusive household. Seeing abuse for what it is, getting away, and recovering from trauma are all very difficult things. You should be proud of yourself for your progress.
Keep exploring and evaluating your options and do what you can to work towards your dreams. You’ve gotten a lot of different thoughts here to sort through and I don’t really have much to add other than good luck and don’t give up!
I just want to tell you I’m very impressed with you. You have several years of college, great gpa, hold down a job, live independently, are following up on your health concerns and attending counseling and have pulled yourself out of an abusive family. I agree with everyone who says don’t go further into debt but I also want to encourage you not to be so hard on yourself. You are on the right path. Keep taking care of yourself and keep doing your art.
You went to RISD, you are an adult now and you don’t make a lot of money. Have you considered applying yo a meet full-need college or a college that gives generous talent scholarships? Thinking Oberlin, maybe some of the women’s colleges. Don’t some have programs for women past traditional age? Is OP too young?
OP, I graduated in 1980 with a BFA in illustration. I’ve had a really decent career in art for 35 years (started in illustration, but most of my career has been graphic design). Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t make a good living with a BFA.
However, even now (I’m near retirement) I long to go back to school to get an MFA. The longing for education doesn’t necessarily go away when you earn your degree, the bar just rises. Finishing your BFA might not resolve your yearning.
If you have a good job that pays $18.50 an hour and has benefits, hold on to it - I thought you had a minimum wage job.
When you’re an artist, art is constantly trying to “burst out”. Your brain thinks through art. Your “day job” pays the bill, and at 27 you’ve become an expert at keeping your art “in” when you work. Let it out once your job is over. Take a class at a time.
Since you’re in nursing, what about medical illustration? I know publishing houses don’t have enough artists with sufficient scientific skills to do that. See if you could do a few pages and send them to publishing houses?
2collegewego, we were thinking along the same lines: I posted a couple of women’s colleges (Smith and Wellesley) that have programs for nontraditional students, including on housing. And some nontraditional schools as well (somewhere up thread). I do wonder, with talent sufficient to get into RISD, and a great academic record, if the original poster could consider an Ivy or other school that meets full need. The existing debt would be considered in financial aid calculations.
@MYOS1634 has given you great advice. More debt=less only for you to live on. I don’t see how you can take on even more debt. Do a class at a time. It doesn’t make that much difference if yiu get a dare now or in ten years, but being further in debt is actually going to alter your life plans. Children, houses and bills are expensive. You should alos seek counseling. Good luck to you.
Compmom, glad to know I’m not the only one. RISD is a hard admit; this student is undoubtedly talented.
I know Cooper Union no longer gives full tuition scholarships to all students, but I think they have some need-based aid on top of the automatic half tuition scholarship. Idk, I think this student might be able to target some deep pocket schools with that kind of talent. I would also look at liberal arts colleges that have excellent art departments: Vassar, Skidmore.
OP, what I’m thinking is that you should look at meet full need, no loan schools. There are only a few. They will ask for information about parents’ income but you need to explain the abusive background and be ready to provide proof.
Side note but important: Flovent can CAUSE GERD symptoms. Do NOT take it for GERD.
^ i agree.
But first the OP needs to get on her feet. She already knows her peioeities: Job, and just one class + therapy.
And during the year, think about not just an art major but other careers where art is needed + compile her portfolio to apply to top universities - yes, seven sisters, Vassar, Skidmore… - with deep pockets and/or entrance to non traditional students. If she’s fine and has the portfolio by January 30, she could even apply for Fall 2017. But if it takes longer, it’s not the end of the world. Job, art class, therapy remain the priorities till she feels better and ready to handle the application process.
@compmom No, existing student debt is not usually considered when granting financial aid. You would think it would, but it is not part of any standard formula. The OP could ask for professional judgment to have it be considered, but no guarantees that the review would lead to any more aid.
It is on the CSS Profile but perhaps that doesn’t mean it is considered. Still, I remember the question…
Just checked my daughter’s profile - it asked how much parents pay per year towards student loans, but did not ask about student debt at all or about the total amount of debt for either student or parents. However, the Profile has a lot of optional, school specific questions, so it may have been on yours.