Improve your understanding and interpretation of contemporary art through challenging, stimulating coursework. Studio courses allow you to improve your skills in a variety of mediums. Our well-equipped art studios are open 24 hours a day, offering multiple settings to produce your best work, from private and semi-private studios to spacious common work areas.

The Studio Art faculty will work closely with you to develop and improve your graduate portfolio. Showcase your thesis work in a public setting at the University Art Museum, with a reception and printed brochure, as the culminating component of the program sequence.

You have the opportunity to complete this highly competitive 60-credit MFA program in two years. Upon acceptance, you will be offered Teaching or Graduate Assistantship funding and a 50 percent tuition waiver.

Our talented alumni have exhibited their works in some of the most prestigious museums and galleries in the world. Among our alumni are recipients of numerous grants and awards, including Guggenheim and New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowships. Some popular careers that MFA graduates have pursued include:

Artist
Professional photographer
Designer
Commercial art director
Gallery director
Critic
Curator
Museum professional
College and university faculty
K-12 educator

Creating:
Students will have working knowledge of a variety of media, with an emphasis on drawing, that will help them succeed as elementary or secondary school teachers.
Students will produce a small body of work that begins to exhibit some overlapping thematic and conceptual concerns.
Students will demonstrate their proficiency with specific materials and techniques within a defined medium.
Interpreting:
Students will become familiar with the terms and goals of oral critique.
Students will have an introductory level ability to analyze their work and the work of others.
Students will demonstrate that they are able to utilize critical thinking skills in critique, to comprehend and apply basic visual and conceptual principles and to articulate a clear verbal presentation of aesthetic ideas.
Evaluating:
Students will possess an introductory level knowledge of contemporary art and a firm foundation of familiarity with art from the past.
Students will demonstrate their ability to judge relative merits and quality of artwork particularly within the context of historical art.
Presenting:
Students will demonstrate skills in preparing and installing works of art of the purposes of presenting in group critique.
Students will understand how to show their work to best advantage in a group exhibition.

Admissions Requirements

Deadlines

Fall: January 15 (Early Acceptance)

Early acceptance will ensure that you are competing against a smaller applicant pool for a position in the MA or MFA studio art programs at UAlbany. If invited into our graduate program through early acceptance, you must accept prior to the opening of the general deadline of February 15, or you will be competing alongside the entire applicant pool.

Fall: February 15 (General Acceptance)

To be considered for early acceptance, your completed application must be in by January 15. Early acceptance will ensure that you are competing against a smaller applicant pool for a position in the MA or MFA studio art programs at UAlbany. If invited into our graduate program through early acceptance, you must accept prior to the opening of the general deadline of February 15, or you will be competing alongside the entire applicant pool.

Required Application Materials

• Transcripts from all schools attended
• Three letters of recommendation
• Statement of goals
• Portfolio (please submit slides via: https://albanyfineartsmfa.slideroom.com/#/Login)

Tuition fee-2 years$56,000