Brooklyn College

M.F.A. degree program in art
HEGIS code 1002
NYS SED program code 02016

The M.F.A. studio program offers concentrations in drawing and painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, and digital art. Students usually focus on one of these but take courses in other areas and in art history. Periodically, their work is formally reviewed by the full faculty who also individually visit their studios for informal critiques. Graduating students participate in a large M.F.A. thesis exhibition, usually at a Manhattan gallery. The department has a fine arts rather than a commercial orientation and seeks a balance between the traditional and the new in its mix of students, faculty, and course content. The faculty includes internationally recognized artists whose work is found in such prestigious museums as the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art and Museum of Modern Art, and who have garnered numerous prizes, awards, grants, fellowships, and other honors. Many are represented by galleries here and abroad. Being in the heart of the art world, the department draws on New York's vast community of distinguished artists for our faculty and for the many visiting artists, art historians, critics, and curators who regularly lecture and give individual critiques of student work as part of a program that supplements the formal curriculum. In addition, our students have easy access to New York City's great museums and countless galleries.

A large percentage of our graduates are successful artists, many of whom sell their work in commercial galleries. Many also teach at leading art schools and universities. Others have become commercial artists, illustrators, computer graphics designers, architects, art directors, cartoonists, art restorers, and fashion designers-bringing their fine-arts sensibilities to these related fields. A number have won such major honors as the Guggenheim, Fulbright, Pollock-Krasner, and the Prix de Rome.

M.F.A. degree program in art - full information and requirements

Program Heads

Name	Title	Phone	Location	Email	Office Hours
Adams, Derrick	Assistant Professor	718.951.5000 x3521	5144 Boylan Hall	derrick.adams brooklyn.cuny.edu	Email for appointments
Otitigbe, Eto	Graduate Deputy	305.815.3149	102 Whitehead Hall	eto.otitigbe brooklyn.cuny.edu	Email for appointments

Admission Requirements

Department	Art
Fall Application Deadline	March 1st - Priority Deadline
Spring Application Deadline	The program does not accept applications for Spring
Supporting Documents for Matriculation: Submit the following documents to the Office of Graduate Admissions: 1. Transcripts from all colleges and universities attended. Transcripts must reflect at least 36 credits in studio art and art history courses. Applicants transcripts must reflect at least 36 credits in studio art and art history courses including a well-balanced distribution of credits in studio art that may include 2D, 3D, Digital Art, time-based media or performance acceptable to the Art Department.(applicants who earned a bachelor's degree outside the United States need to submit a 'Course by Course International Transcript Evaluation.' http://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/web/admissions/graduate/apply/documents.php) 2. Two letters of recommendation. 3. Personal statement 4. Portfolio - Include up to 20 still and/or moving images that best reflect your studio practice. We welcome a broad spectrum of working styles and media. Present your work chronologically with the newest work first and the oldest work last. Please include any additional information to help us understand the image. Please note - this application portal has a file size limitation of 5MB. Files larger than this cannot be uploaded. If you prefer to submit large files please upload a single PDF file with a link to an external website where we can view your work. This may be a personal website, google drive, dropbox, vimeo, or some other cloud based folder. Please do not have any viewing restrictions or special permissions so we can view your work easily. Please do not submit any links that will expire after a fixed amount of time. The URL must point to a webpage or folder that contains ONLY the artwork related to your application. We will not review outside of those you submit. If you have any questions do not hesitate to email Prof. Eto Otitigbe. 5. To complete the online form applicants must select one area of study that is either aligned with their current practice OR best reflects the intended focus if accepted into the MFA program. (300 Digital Art, 301 Drawing and Painting, 302 Printmaking, 303 Sculpture, 304 Photography). Admitted students may take courses in other areas or even change their area of focus during the program. REQUIRED TESTS: I. F-1 or J-1 international students must submit English Proficiency Exam. TOEFL- 79, IELTS- 6.5, PTE- 58-63, Duolingo 105-160. Refer to instructions at http://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/web/admissions/graduate/apply.php . Complete supplemental application and submit portfolio online at http://artmfa.brooklyn.cuny.edu.
TOEFL (paper, computer, internet)	N/A, N/A, N/A
Examinations

These requirements will become effective as of Fall 2022 semester.
Click here to view the current requirements

Students take courses across areas of concentration in studio art and in art history. Periodically, their work is formally reviewed by the full studio faculty, who also visit their studios individually for informal critiques.

Matriculation requirements

Applicants must offer at least 36 credits in studio art and art history courses including a well-balanced distribution of credits in two-dimensional and three-dimensional art, installation, performance art, and/or time-based media acceptable to the Art Department.

Applicants must submit directly to the Art Department a selection of work before February 1 for Fall admission. The work should be submitted through the program's Web site, http://artmfa.brooklyn.cuny.edu, following the instructions on the Web site.

Applicants must also submit a completed application to the Brooklyn College Division of Graduate Studies. General matriculation and admission requirements of the Division of Graduate Studies are in the section "Admission" of the Graduate Bulletin.

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Degree requirements
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Forty-eight credits are required for the degree.

Students must complete Art 7210X, 7910X, 7920X, 7940G, 7950G, and 7951G. Art 7940G, 7950G, and 7951G must be taken in sequence, usually beginning in the first semester of matriculation.

Students must also complete 21 additional credits in studio art courses, internships, independent study electives, or other electives outside the Art Department.

Students must also complete nine additional credits in art history courses. Art 7198G may be repeated for credit.

Independent creative work developed in Art 7940G, 7950G, and 7951G must culminate in a final exhibition with an accompanying artist's statement about the work.

Courses in the Art Department offered toward the degree must be 7000-level courses.

The program of study must be approved by the deputy chairperson for graduate studio art.

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Charles G. Shaw Awards
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For distinction in painting, the Art Department grants awards each term to a number of graduate students matriculated in the M.F.A. program.