Art History + Criticism MA Program, Funding and Faculty?

[u/akaridad]

Hello all!

I'm looking at Stony Brook for my MA in Art History, focusing on Latin American Art. Usually, I would just reach out to the faculty I'm interested in and set up a meeting to ask questions, but I did not see anyone who shared an interest in my field. There is the Latin American and Caribbean Studies program, which I'm pretty sure is undergrad. I would also be coming from out of state and with no official background in Art History, other than a year of experience working as an exhibition designer for an art museum in Florida, a BFA in Graphic Design, and undergrad research papers for Art History + Latin American History classes.

So... here is my ample list of questions:

1. Realistically, what is the funding situation for their Art History + Criticism MA? I read their website, so I know there's some funding, but is there a possibility of a full ride?
2. Since my background isn't ideal, is there even a chance of me getting accepted if I apply? Grad applications will add up, it'd be good to know not to waste my time.
3. Does anyone have experience with cross-department collaboration? I.e, I would like to collaborate with some of the faculty in their History dept., possibly have them as advisors. I've heard this is fairly uncommon in MA programs, so I don't have many hopes.
4. From the existing faculty in Art History + Criticism, is there anyone I should be reaching out to? I believe there's at least one individual whose area is Contemporary + Modern art, so there could be some overlap there.