Master of Fine Arts

The Master of Fine Arts degree is for you if you possess an undergraduate degree in interior design or architecture and seek professional career enhancement that includes foundation skills in conducting evidence-based design in interior design practice and application of that knowledge to a project. These abilities are desirable to architecture and interior design firms that are increasingly conducting in-house research to help them create more effective design project solutions and justify these choices to clients. The MFA degree is also supportive for a career in teaching interior design at those college and university institutions that do not require a Ph.D.

The Master of Fine Arts program consists of a minimum of sixty (60) semester credit hours including a minimum of six (6) hours of thesis. In order to maintain close faculty supervision, only a limited number of candidates are accepted into the MFA program and final determination is made by the faculty Graduate Program Committee. The MFA degree is considered a terminal degree credential by many academic institutions. The program of studies provides many options for elective courses. You can apply these to FSU certificate programs in higher education teaching, project management, museum studies, entrepreneurship or other areas. Optional internships are highly recommended. You exit the program with a portfolio of work suitable for career interviews and a foundation skillset in conducting original research for applied practice.

The Florida State University College of Fine Arts is a place where learning and creativity are nurtured through instruction, research, and practice. The College is a close-knit community of faculty, students, and professionals that functions as an arts conservatory within a major university. It is home to a unique combination of visual and performing arts studios, classrooms, performance spaces, and museums. Our students are some of tomorrow’s most promising artists, researchers and professionals in their fields.

The College offers degree programs in Art, Art Education, Art History, Dance, Interior Architecture and Design, and Theatre. The College also houses several non-academic units including the Museum of Fine Arts, the Facility for Arts Research and the Maggie Allesee National Center for Choreography (MANCC). Many of our programs rank among the most respected in the nation. We are proud to feature specialized programs that leverage relationships between departments and museums to enrich the degree-based curriculum.

The College of Fine Arts has undergone an extensive self-assessment and strategic planning process. As a result, the College has developed a clear mission and related objectives that are encapsulated in the following statements. These statements fortify our resolve to offer the finest arts instruction and training in the nation.

We seek to create, teach, learn, and serve with passion and intellectual rigor. The College is guided by a set of values that demonstrates a commitment to students, faculty, the University, the community at large, and the organizations that will employ future graduates.

Values

• Put students at the forefront of all efforts and prepare them for successful academic and professional careers.
• Emphasize care and attention to the needs of each student by maintaining manageable class sizes and providing individual guidance.
• Respect the full range of the arts and scholarship, from old to new and from mainstream to highly innovative.
• Serve as an educational, professional, and cultural resource in the arts, theatre and dance for the entire campus community, state, and nation.
• Stress innovative guest series that invite prominent artists and scholars who involve students and faculty with current issues in the arts and expose them to a wide range of practices and research.

The College endeavors to be the top-ranked program for visual arts, theatre and dance in the country. It will always be a place where students can study under outstanding faculty and acclaimed professionals-in-residence. The emphasis on visiting professors ensures a constant flow of fresh ideas that stimulates an energetic and vibrant learning culture. New faculty positions and growing support from our alumni and donors allow us to engage the world’s finest scholars, artists, and museum professionals on a continuing basis. The powerful combination of academic and professional preparation will draw the most talented students from across the country to our programs.