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Should I Stay or Should I Go? Factors Impacting the Career Transitions of Artists and Arts Graduates beyond the Creative Fields. Branching Out Series: Artists and Arts Graduates beyond the Creative Fields. Special Report. Part One

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Title: Should I Stay or Should I Go? Factors Impacting the Career Transitions of Artists and Arts Graduates beyond the Creative Fields. Branching Out Series: Artists and Arts Graduates beyond the Creative Fields. Special Report. Part One
Language: English
Authors: Aisha Motlani, Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative (IWERC), Arts Alliance Illinois, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, College of Fine and Applied Arts (FAA), University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts
Source: Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative, Discovery Partners Institute. 2025.
Availability: Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, State of Illinois for Discovery Partners Institute. 200 South Wacker Drive, 20th Floor, Chicago, IL 60304. Tel: 217-766-6779; e-mail: IWERC@mx.uillinois.edu; Web site: https://dpi.uillinois.edu/applied-research/iwerc/
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 40
Publication Date: 2025
Document Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
Descriptors: Career Choice, Employment Opportunities, Artists, College Graduates, Art Education, Occupational Aspiration, Job Skills, Career Change, Career Development, Decision Making, Barriers, Vocational Interests, Diversity, COVID-19, Pandemics, Urban Areas
Geographic Terms: Illinois, Illinois (Chicago)
Abstract: Illinois has one of the biggest creative economies in the nation and is home to one of the largest populations of workers employed in the arts and culture sector, according to analysis conducted by the Arts and Cultural Production Satellite Account (ACPSA). Illinois is also one of only 9 states that import more graduates than they produce, with a net gain of more than 20% (Conzelmann et al., 2024). These factors, combined with recent historic government investments in the arts, have likely contributed to Illinois ranking sixth in SMU DataArts' newly released Arts Vibrancy Index, placing ahead of states like California and Washington (SMU DataArts, 2024a). If artists are such a big part of the state's economy, why do so many of them end up seeking employment outside the arts? (BFAMFAPhD, 2014; Motlani, 2024; Wasser and Alper, 2018). How are artists entering and adapting to these fields? How does their creative training prepare them for these diverse occupations or industries? Finding answers to these questions is important for understanding how to better support employment outcomes and improve working conditions for Illinois artists and arts graduates. It is also important for workforce and industry stakeholders as well as policymakers to learn about the experiences, skills, and opportunities this segment of the workforce contributes to the state. "Branching Out: Artists and Arts Graduates Beyond the Creative Fields" is a series of reports that address these questions. Using in-depth interviews and surveys, it examines the pathways and experiences of Illinois artists and arts graduates who are working in fields outside the arts. Each report will focus on a different aspect of their experiences transitioning into non-arts careers, including the factors prompting them to make this transition, the opportunities or barriers they faced along the way, the transferrable skills they bring to diverse industries, and the support they need to maintain careers in the arts and beyond. The present report explores why artists and creatives transition to careers outside the arts. It examines the "pull" factors that have made these careers appealing to them and the "push" factors that have prompted artists and creatives to relinquish or postpone their plans to pursue fulltime careers in the arts. [This research is funded by the Illinois Creative Workforce Partnership, a collaboration between Discovery Partners Institute, Arts Alliance Illinois, the College of Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts at the University of Illinois Chicago.]
Abstractor: ERIC
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: ED679316
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Aisha+Motlani%22">Aisha Motlani</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Illinois+Workforce+and+Education+Research+Collaborative+%28IWERC%29%22">Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative (IWERC)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Arts+Alliance+Illinois%22">Arts Alliance Illinois</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22University+of+Illinois+at+Urbana-Champaign%2C+College+of+Fine+and+Applied+Arts+%28FAA%29%22">University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, College of Fine and Applied Arts (FAA)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22University+of+Illinois+Chicago+%28UIC%29%2C+College+of+Architecture%2C+Design%2C+and+the+Arts%22">University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Illinois+Workforce+and+Education+Research+Collaborative%2C+Discovery+Partners+Institute%22"><i>Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative, Discovery Partners Institute</i></searchLink>. 2025.
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  Data: Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, State of Illinois for Discovery Partners Institute. 200 South Wacker Drive, 20th Floor, Chicago, IL 60304. Tel: 217-766-6779; e-mail: IWERC@mx.uillinois.edu; Web site: https://dpi.uillinois.edu/applied-research/iwerc/
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  Data: Illinois has one of the biggest creative economies in the nation and is home to one of the largest populations of workers employed in the arts and culture sector, according to analysis conducted by the Arts and Cultural Production Satellite Account (ACPSA). Illinois is also one of only 9 states that import more graduates than they produce, with a net gain of more than 20% (Conzelmann et al., 2024). These factors, combined with recent historic government investments in the arts, have likely contributed to Illinois ranking sixth in SMU DataArts' newly released Arts Vibrancy Index, placing ahead of states like California and Washington (SMU DataArts, 2024a). If artists are such a big part of the state's economy, why do so many of them end up seeking employment outside the arts? (BFAMFAPhD, 2014; Motlani, 2024; Wasser and Alper, 2018). How are artists entering and adapting to these fields? How does their creative training prepare them for these diverse occupations or industries? Finding answers to these questions is important for understanding how to better support employment outcomes and improve working conditions for Illinois artists and arts graduates. It is also important for workforce and industry stakeholders as well as policymakers to learn about the experiences, skills, and opportunities this segment of the workforce contributes to the state. "Branching Out: Artists and Arts Graduates Beyond the Creative Fields" is a series of reports that address these questions. Using in-depth interviews and surveys, it examines the pathways and experiences of Illinois artists and arts graduates who are working in fields outside the arts. Each report will focus on a different aspect of their experiences transitioning into non-arts careers, including the factors prompting them to make this transition, the opportunities or barriers they faced along the way, the transferrable skills they bring to diverse industries, and the support they need to maintain careers in the arts and beyond. The present report explores why artists and creatives transition to careers outside the arts. It examines the "pull" factors that have made these careers appealing to them and the "push" factors that have prompted artists and creatives to relinquish or postpone their plans to pursue fulltime careers in the arts. [This research is funded by the Illinois Creative Workforce Partnership, a collaboration between Discovery Partners Institute, Arts Alliance Illinois, the College of Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts at the University of Illinois Chicago.]
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      – Text: English
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      – SubjectFull: Career Choice
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Employment Opportunities
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      – SubjectFull: Artists
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      – SubjectFull: College Graduates
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      – SubjectFull: Art Education
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      – SubjectFull: Occupational Aspiration
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      – SubjectFull: Decision Making
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      – SubjectFull: Barriers
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      – SubjectFull: Vocational Interests
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      – TitleFull: Should I Stay or Should I Go? Factors Impacting the Career Transitions of Artists and Arts Graduates beyond the Creative Fields. Branching Out Series: Artists and Arts Graduates beyond the Creative Fields. Special Report. Part One
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