Selling Your Story: How I Got onto MA Illustration Online at Falmouth University

[@amuse_ings]

omggg!!!!! thank you soooo much for documenting the process so thoroughly. I was feeling so lost and uncertain because of my lack of art background but you literally answered all of my questions including the portfolio one. there are hardly any sources about masters portfolio. p.s. - your artworks were soooo beautiful😍

[@ottiliascribbles]

Thank you so much! I'm so in happy that my video was useful to you. Good luck on your art journey!

[@JK-xz1lt]

Wow! I just came across this degree program and was looking into. I'm an art teacher and have been wanting to get a master's in a studio art, but it has been difficult to find one that was part time or online. This was a super helpful video as I am seriously considering applying for the Spring Semester.

[@ottiliascribbles]

Hi J K, I'm so glad that you found it helpful! I'm coming to the end of my time on the MA now and, at least for me, it's been worthwhile. Good luck with your path forward!

[@JK-xz1lt]

@@ottiliascribbles Thank you! This was super insightful.

[@loverofstarz]

Thank you for sharing your experience. I have been thinking about this program. I will be completing a certificate in children’s book illustration first so that I can determine if a masters is something I want to pursue.

[@andria.k]

Very helpful information! Thank you very much for sharing your experience 🌺💛

[@ottiliascribbles]

Thank you so much! I know it's not the most interesting of videos, but glad I could help!

[@melamelon458]

thank you so much for this - you're a lifesaver! was frantically trying to google the process of applying to an MA illustration without a significant art background/unrelated bachelor's degree. this helped so much! would you possibly be open to answering some questions I have about it?

[@ottiliascribbles]

Hello, sorry for the late reply! Yes, I'm always happy to answer questions and you can find more information on the MA at Falmouth over on my blog. ottiliastephens.com/faqs-about-falmouth-universitys-ma-illustration-course-online/

[@MissDarker4]

Hi Ottilia! I'll be starting the online course in September this year, so excited :)

[@ottiliascribbles]

Hi Alice, that's wonderful news! I think you'll really enjoy it and hopefully find it very rewarding. Good luck!!

[@goawag]

I'm applying for the January course this year and I'm glad I found this review, dis you end up taking the course and how was it?

[@josephembleton-smith6460]

Thank you for taking the time to make this video, really useful insights and tips!

[@ottiliascribbles]

Thank you for watching! I'm so glad you found it interesting.

[@rlschafer5167]

[@ottiliascribbles]

Hi, I love that you found the video helpful! Thank you so much for your comment. I'm glad you could identify with the linking threads thing :) It's sometimes hard to explain who we are and why we're doing the things we do - we all have such different backgrounds and influences - but I think it can be helpful to unite those threads and get others to see us as the cool and quirky people we are!

[@limaafz3473]

Thank you for the video , very helpful , thinking of studying the same course at the same.uni. Would have preferred London college of fashion, but they do not offer part time MA. Do you think the reputation of a university affects you getting creative jobs 🤔

[@ottiliascribbles]

Hello, sorry for the very late reply. Falmouth University has a long reputation as a centre for arts and artistic culture in the UK and is very well known here. I think that the reputation of a university or art school does impact the weight of your degree to some extent, but the main thing that people will look at is your creative vision and your work, so I wouldn't worry about the name of the institution too much.

[@george8582]

Thank you for this! xx

[@ottiliascribbles]

You're very welcome! I'm glad you found it interesting 😊

[@asinmyexternalexams8490]

Nice video 😊 Thanks for the info. I'm curious to know if it was specified on your certificate that you studied online? Some schools do that and it's not nice

[@ottiliascribbles]

You know what, I can't remember! I think it might have said 'MA Illustration (Online)' as that was the name of the course and they do also have an on-campus illustration MA in Arthorial Practice, so I suppose they had to differentiate them. But it wasn't so noticeable, if that makes sense? The main focus was definatly that the MA was in Illustration, not that it was online.

[@asinmyexternalexams8490]

@@ottiliascribbles Alright that's fine, Thanks! 😃

[@ArtySubu]

Very helpful, thanks Ottilia

[@ottiliascribbles]

Thank you so much! I'm really glad you found it helpful :)

[@ArtySubu]

@@ottiliascribbles Very! Thinking of taking the course myself perhaps.

[@ottiliascribbles]

@@ArtySubu How exciting! Whatever decision you make, I hope it goes well for you and feeds your illustration practice.

[@laurat6503]

I just came across this course today while browsing as I’ve been wanting to study or have a career in illustration, but full time study just isn’t an option for me as I already have a job that takes up a lot of my time. Would you say the workload given is too much while having a full time job or is it quite flexible to work around? The info about the portfolio requirements was really helpful too, thank you! ☺️

[@ottiliascribbles]

Hi Laura, thank you for your comment! So, I did the MA over two years while having a full time job. It's a lot of work so you need to be fairly organised, but it does vary through the modules, with more work around deadlines. I have an FAQ on my website about the course where I go over my experience of the workload in a bit more detail. Feel free to have a look and good luck with whatever decision you come to regarding your illustration path from here on! Ottilia ottiliastephens.com/faqs-about-falmouth-universitys-ma-illustration-course-online/

[@laurat6503]

@@ottiliascribbles thankyou! I just read your FAQ, I feel like you answered everything I was questioning😆 I also appreciate that you mentioned there’s a lot of essay writing, research etc involved too because I did wonder how much would be illustration Vs how much would be academic. I’m looking at applying within the next year so I have some time to think, thanks for your advice and resources!

[@LisaPaston]

Hi, did you have an online interview as part of your application for this course?

[@ottiliascribbles]

Hello, no at least for me, there was no online interview. X

[@LisaPaston]

Thank you for your reply, that’s very interesting x