Studio Art, MFA
Ceramics | Metals | Painting | Photography | Printmaking | Sculpture
Our MFA in Studio Art is a sixty-credit hour, terminal degree program which aims to prepare students for professional careers in visual arts. The variety of conceptual and stylistic approaches reflects a diverse and rigorous program. We encourage each MFA candidate to build a distinctive and relevant studio practice driven by their individual aesthetic sensibility. Within the studio concentrations, graduate students and faculty form a challenging, but intimate and collaborative community that encourages cross-disciplinary engagement.
Learning Outcomes
- Students will produce, present, and defend a body of work in their culminating one-person thesis exhibition. They will explain their choices about what should be presented as a body of work. They will explain how practice and concepts are related in the exhibition.
- Students will explain and defend thesis work by narrating the evolution of ideas and relevant practices investigated during their time in the program, explaining how this evolution has informed the body of work in the thesis exhibition.
- Students will communicate orally, and in writing aesthetic judgments using criteria that demonstrate understanding of contemporary art and its impact on visual culture.
Concentrations include
- Three-dimensional studios in Ceramics, Metals and Sculpture
- Two-dimensional studios in Painting, Photography, and Printmaking
Our program emphasizes disciplined studio work in conjunction with an intense and rigorous critical dialog. 兔子先生's strong liberal arts tradition enables each MFA candidate to locate resources critical for their development. Graduate students can pursue courses outside the department in relevant areas, as well as utilize technologies in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and University Instrumentation laboratory.
Assistantships
Most of our MFA students receive assistantships in the form of teaching or administrative duties, such as assisting in the gallery. Teaching assignments include the opportunity to teach as Instructor of Record within their area of expertise as well as in Foundation (2D or 3D) or Drawing. In addition to teaching, MFA students have unique opportunities and can compete for university grants.
- Our Graduate Assistantships include a waiver of the instructional fee and out-of-state tuition surcharge (students pay 50% of the General Fee), stipend and teaching opportunities. Assistantships are available on a competitive basis.
- International students are also eligible for assistantships.
As a result of this academic exposure, our graduates are able to compile solid teaching experience, student work portfolios and other relevant accomplishments that place them in competitive positions as they begin their professional careers. Many of our graduates are employed by universities and colleges across the nation.
Valuing space in which to create, all MFA candidates have semi-private or private studios available 24/7 within the buildings comprising the Department of Art.
Admission Process
Admission to the MFA Program in Studio Art is in two parts: online application to the graduate school and portfolio submission to the Department of Art using the SlideRoom Portal.
- An online application to the Graduate School. This will include:
- A non-refundable application fee
- The Graduate School application form, which includes a section to apply for a Graduate Award (if applying for an assistantship)
- Your academic transcript(s) in PDF format for each college or university attended. Unofficial transcripts can be used as long as your name and institution are clearly indicated. If you are admitted, you will be required to submit an official transcript for each degree earned.
- Three letters of recommendation.
- A one-page statement of intent for your area of study. Please tell us about your educational background and your ideas and influences for your creative work.
- Resume including relevant work or professional experience.
- A portfolio of your artwork with 20 digital examples of your creative work indicating depth in the area of proposed study, and some breadth of experimentation. This portfolio is submitted through (GRADUATE MFA: Department of Art)
- Include title, date, medium, and dimension in the description.
- Email any questions to Dana Saulnier.
Information for international applicants
Assistantship Awards
A limited number of graduate assistantships are available in studio art. The application for graduate appointment or award is included in the application for admission forms.
- Our Graduate Assistantships include a waiver of the instructional fee and out-of-state tuition surcharge (students pay reduced university fees ), a stipend, and teaching opportunities. Assistantships are available on a competitive basis. Assistants perform duties normally occupying 20 hours per week, each of the two regular semesters.
- Assistantships are in the form of teaching or other administrative duties, such as assisting in the gallery. Teaching assignments include opportunity to teach in graduate student’s area of expertise, as well as in foundations or drawing.
- Recommendations for appointments are based on academic records as well as on proven ability and future promise within the area of specialization.