Philip C. Lowe has been involved with woodworking since 1968 and is the author of many articles in “Fine Woodworking Magazine”. He is featured in the “Time Life” series on woodworking and in videos with The Taunton Press on “Carve a Ball and Claw Foot,”  “Making a Sheraton Bed,” “Measuring Furniture for Reproduction” and most recently, numerous webcasts on taunton.com. His teaching experience includes ten years (1975 -1985) as an instructor at Boston’s North Bennett Street School and as the department head for the latter five. Phil has been a visiting instructor, seminar speaker and demonstrator at various trade schools, private schools and woodworking organizations throughout the United States and Canada. He also holds a teaching certificate in two areas of vocational education in the state of Massachusetts. Since 1985 he has operated a furniture making and restoration shop in Beverly MA, producing work for the private sector and museums throughout North America.  In 2005 Phil received the Cartouche Award, the highest honor bestowed by the Society of American Period Furniture Makers.

FACILITY:

Located in Beverly, Massachusetts, just steps from the harbor, the shop consists of 3500 sq. ft. of machine room, bench room, and drafting room. It is fully equipped with professional and industrial type machines to give the student a wide range of machine experience. The bench room facilitates students with their own benches to encourage individual progress. The drafting room houses layout boards for drafting as well as a reference library consisting of antique tools, books, magazines, videos and DVD's . Individual wood storage areas are provided in the machine room. 

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

Students must be 18 years of age and have a high school diploma or GED, and demonstrate some ability to successfully accomplish woodworking tasks. All students must have proof of being tested for TB.

APPLICATION PROCESS:

This is a three-step process. 1. Interview- Every applicant must visit the school before enrollment. 2. Application- The applicant should fill out the form and return it only when all of the questions have been answered. If possible include any photos or slides of your work. 3. Transcripts- High School and the most recent Post Secondary School marks are to be submitted. The applicant is responsible for requesting these transcripts and are to have them mailed to the school. When a complete application has been received it will be processed.

ACCEPTANCE:

Applications will be reviewed semi annually and positions filled as they become available, Applications will remain active for a period of two years, at which time the applicant must reapply if they wish to remain in the application pool. Acceptance will be judged heavily on the interview and ability, demonstrated through slides and photos.

ENROLLMENT:

Upon acceptance for a specific starting date the applicant will be sent a "Enrollment Agreement" that includes all costs, and the payment plan and other terms of enrollment. This Agreement must be signed and returned within two weeks.

REGISTRATION FEE:

The "Enrollment Agreement" should be signed and returned with a $100.00 Registration Fee. This fee is non-refundable after 5 days and is not part of the tuition.

TUITION:

Upon signing the Enrollment Agreement and paying the Registration Fee, the tuition is set at that rate for the schools calendar year. The conditions of payment are clarified in the Enrollment Agreement. Presently the cost of instruction during 2010 - 2011 is $21,000 per year. Two payments of $10,500.00 per school calendar year. First semester payment due August 1. Second semester payment due January 1.

TOOLS:

Students are responsible for providing their own hand tools in accordance with a list that will be provided after signing the enrollment agreement. Their cost is estimated at $1500 - $2000.

MATERIALS:

The cost of wood, hardware, finishing materials and any special materials associated with the chosen project are the responsibility of the student. The estimated cost is $2500 to $3000 per year.

INSTRUCTION:

Instructor will be available from 8:00 AM until 2:30PM Monday through Friday with a one hour daily lunch break. These hours are in accordance with the school calendar which is September through June. The course length is two years (80 weeks or 2000 hours).

SHOP HOURS:

The shop will be available to the students under the supervision of a shop instructor after regular school hours from 2:30 PM till 5:00 PM Monday through Friday. Shop will closed on weekends. This extra shop time is included in the tuition.

MACHINE TOOLING:

Material for special machine tooling that is to be made for a project will be provided to the student. The tool will remain the property of the school or the student can purchase his or her own material and retain possession of the finished tool.

HOUSING:

The school does not provide any housing but will assist when ever possible to arrange for student accommodation. If you have any further questions please contact the school at: 978-922-0615