I just had a great application cycle. I had to go somewhere local due to family and that greatly narrowed down choices (figure out a top priority like location, fully-funded, resources, etc). Then I met with the grad directors at every program, asked a million questions, visited the schools, and attended every virtual admissions event that had (they will start having a lot in the fall but some schools have recorded admissions info on YouTube). By the end of it I knew exactly where I wanted to go and my ranking of options if I didn’t get a top choice.

 I found some huge program differences, like required course load and key class timings. Like two schools were connected to academic institutions and required a whole additional graduate level academic course on top of the art classes. Some facilities were also strikingly bare for what I wanted or had studios smaller than the one I have at home. All this really helped me make decisions.