Studio Art, MFA

60 credit hours

Admission Requirements

  • Fulfillment of requirements for general admission to the University.
  • Successful completion of a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art degree. Students of exceptional merit, who have earned a Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art or a Bachelor of Science in Studio Art or Design (or the equivalent), will also be considered contingent upon faculty approval. Students without either a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art or Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art who have significant studio art experience must request a special review.
  • Submission of a portfolio of the applicant’s creative work for review by the art and design faculty. The portfolio should include representative examples of works in varied media as well as a fuller selection of works in the studio area proposed for emphasis. The portfolio should consist of a minimum of twenty works presented in high resolution digital format.
  • A two-page essay indicating goals and expectations for graduate school.
  • Three letters of recommendation from professionals who can speak to the candidate’s academic prowess and serious intent.
  • Conditional admission to the graduate program in studio art, based on the evaluation of undergraduate preparation or determined at the time of the portfolio review, requires the successful completion of specified coursework prior to full admittance to the graduate program. Undergraduate credit will be awarded for courses completed during the conditional status and is not applicable toward the graduate degree.
  • Full admission to the graduate program in studio art requires the endorsement of the art and design faculty involved in the candidate’s portfolio review.
  • Candidacy is conditional until full candidacy is recommended by the art and design faculty after the mid-program review (27 credits).

Admission Deadlines

  • All application materials for fall admission must be received by the previous April 1.
  • All application materials for spring admission must be received by the previous November 1.

Degree Requirements

  • Satisfactory completion of an oral review and defense after twenty-seven credits. The oral review and defense is presented to the student's thesis committee, which must consist of three art faculty members. Each student is responsible for inviting faculty to serve on his or her committee and for inviting one of the committee members to serve as the chair.
  • Satisfactory completion of an oral review and defense of the graduate exhibit and thesis conducted by the student’s thesis committee, which must consist of the same three art and design faculty members who conducted the oral review and defense after twenty-seven credits. Exceptions may be granted by the Art and Design Department chairperson.
  • Presentation of recent work at two scheduled graduate critiques each semester the student is enrolled.
  • Completion of graduate studies with a minimum grade point average of 3.0.
  • At least fifty percent of the degree must be completed in stand-alone graduate courses.
  • Forty-eight hours of credit must be earned in regularly scheduled classes unless special arrangements are approved by the Art and Design Department chairperson.
  • No more than nine hours of approved transfer credit at the graduate level may be included in meeting the degree requirement of sixty hours.
  • All graduate students in studio art must surrender one work approved by the faculty from their thesis exhibition.

Degree Requirements

Required courses

ART 50000Research Methods in Art

3

ART 60000Directed Thesis

3

Twelve credit hours in art history or art criticism, selected from the following options:

ARTH 55400Nineteenth-Century Art

3

ARTH 55600Baroque Art

3

ARTH 55700Ancient Art

3

ARTH 55800Medieval Art

3

ARTH 56100Twentieth-Century Art/ Modern

3

ARTH 56200Twentieth-Century Art/ Contemporary

3

ARTH 56300Early Modern Gender Studies

3

ARTH 56400Non-Western Art

3

ARTH 56900History of Graphic Design

3

ARTH 58300Renaissance Art

3

ARTH 58400Classical Myth

3

ARTH 58600-58699Special Topics

3

ARTH 58900Art Theory and Criticism

3

ARTH 58901Independent Study

1-6

ARTH 58902Independent Study

1-6

ARTH 58903Independent Study

1-6

Thirty-six credit hours of studio art in area(s) of emphasis, selected from the following options:

ART 50500Painting

3

ART 51000Printmaking

3

ART 51500Studies in Graphic Design

3

ART 52000Sculpture

3

ART 52200Motion Graphics

3

ART 52500Graduate Projects in Art - 3-D

3

ART 53000Drawing

3

ART 53100Figure Drawing

3

ART 53400Fibers

3

ART 53500Graduate Projects in Art - Graphic Design

3

ART 54000Ceramics

3

ART 54600Digital Imaging

3

ART 54800Digital Illustration

3

ART 54900Print Design and Production

3

ART 55100Typography

3

ART 57000Graduate Projects in Studio Art

3

ART 57700Graphic Design Portfolio

3

ART 57800Graphic Design Studio

3

ART 58100Photography

3

ART 58600-58699Special Topics

3

ART 58901Independent Study

1-6

ART 58902Independent Study

1-6

ART 58903Independent Study

1-6

Six credit hours of studio art courses outside the area(s) of emphasis, selected from the following options:

ART 50500Painting

3

ART 51000Printmaking

3

ART 51500Studies in Graphic Design

3

ART 52000Sculpture

3

ART 52200Motion Graphics

3

ART 52500Graduate Projects in Art - 3-D

3

ART 53000Drawing

3

ART 53100Figure Drawing

3

ART 53400Fibers

3

ART 53500Graduate Projects in Art - Graphic Design

3

ART 54000Ceramics

3

ART 54600Digital Imaging

3

ART 54800Digital Illustration

3

ART 54900Print Design and Production

3

ART 55100Typography

3

ART 57000Graduate Projects in Studio Art

3

ART 57700Graphic Design Portfolio

3

ART 57800Graphic Design Studio

3

ART 58100Photography

3

ART 58600-58699Special Topics

3

ART 58901Independent Study

1-6

ART 58902Independent Study

1-6

ART 58903Independent Study

1-6