Program Overview
UC's two-year MFA program in Art fosters contemporary art practice, research, and technical skills through exceptional facilities and guidance from a dedicated faculty. The program emphasizes developing groundbreaking studio work, innovative frameworks, and professional connections. Graduates gain the skills necessary for successful gallery exhibitions, teaching roles, and leadership in the art world.
Program Outline
Degree Overview:
The Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in the School of Art is a two-year studio program that welcomes and supports all forms of contemporary art practice and research. The program is housed in exceptional facilities that include individual workspaces for graduate students in a dedicated building. The primary goals of the MFA program include developing groundbreaking studio work for each student, building innovative research frameworks for art practices, and advancing conceptual and technical skills. Additionally, MFA students are presented with opportunities to learn how to teach effectively and are encouraged to develop lasting professional connections within the city and region.
Teaching:
The program is taught by a passionate faculty who interact with their students on a daily basis. The goal is to guide students as they grow both intellectually and professionally.
Careers:
The MFA is crucial for developing the kind of complex and mature studio practice likely to lead to successful gallery and museum exhibitions. It is also a way for you to build lifelong professional relationships with your fellow MFA students that will generate future opportunities. Many of the MFA alumni are successful exhibiting artists in the region as well as showing their work nationally and internationally. The MFA instills the professionalism that leads to roles in art, arts administration, and enterprise. These skills are further enabled by the Professional Practices and Museum Studies courses which engage students with local arts communities and institutions. The MFA is the terminal Fine Art degree in the United States and is therefore essential for teaching at the college level.
Other:
The program culminates in a written thesis that contextualizes and provides a theoretical framework for situating your practice within contemporary art. This accumulating experience over two years of intensively making, writing, and discussing contemporary art adds depth and confidence to your identity as a practicing artist. The city of Cincinnati, once called the "Queen City of the West" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, provides an excellent array of cultural resources for students who intend to pursue a degree in the visual arts. It offers the energy and assets of a larger city, along with quiet neighborhoods steeped in rich traditions. Cincinnati offers live music venues that range from top-notch symphony and opera companies to a growing pop and rock community. UC's College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP) is one of the most comprehensive colleges of its type in the country. A collection of nationally respected design and art programs is housed in a unique and educationally stimulating architectural setting. Students have opportunities to enroll in courses in a range of related disciplines and to participate in interdisciplinary studios or special projects. Other educational opportunities include study abroad and certificate programs within the college and the university. Students are encouraged to share their interests in these opportunities with their academic advisor. Complimentary graduate certificates with the MFA include:
- Museum Studies
- Public Art & Placemaking Students must:
- Successfully complete 60 semester hour credits
- Successfully pass the first-year review
- Successfully complete their master’s thesis exhibition and written thesis
