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Graduate Student works on large-scale painting

Studio Art - M.A.

The Master of Arts degree in Studio Art serves students with art or design undergraduate experience wishing to continue building skills within a specific studio discipline (textiles, sculpture, printmaking, painting, jewelry/metals/enameling, glass, drawing or ceramics). Students may use the degree to produce a portfolio of work as a pathway to an M.F.A. degree, as an avenue to promotion or advancement in an existing career, or to hone technical skills in a specific studio disciplines for use in industry.

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College of the Arts
School of Art
www.kent.edu/art

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Recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of America’s top graduate programs in the visual arts, the School of Art at Kent State University provides abundant opportunities for graduate students to advance their skills in all areas of studio art.

Highlights of our program include:

  • Working with a range of graduate faculty

  • Renowned visiting artist program

  • Kent Blossom Art Intensives - two-week summer studio intensives with visiting artists

  • Access to state-of-the-art facilities, equipment and tools

  • Travel study opportunities every semester to New York City, plus other domestic and international trips offered 

  • Access to world-class museums and research libraries 

  • School-wide digital fabrication lab (ARTech Studio)

Program Information

Admissions

For more information about graduate admissions, visit the graduate admission website. For more information on international admissions, visit the international admission website.

Admission Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
  • Minimum 2.750 undergraduate GPA on a 4.000 point scale
  • Official transcript(s)
  • Curriculum vitae
  • Goal statement
  • Artist statement (250-500 words)
  • Portfolio
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • English language proficiency - all international students must provide proof of English language proficiency (unless they meet specific exceptions) by earning one of the following:
    • Minimum 550 TOEFL PBT score (paper-based version)
    • Minimum 79 TOEFL IBT score (Internet-based version)
    • Minimum 77 MELAB score
    • Minimum 6.5 IELTS score
    • Minimum 58 PTE score
    • Minimum 110 Duolingo test score

For more information about graduate admissions, please visit the Graduate Studies admission website. For more information on international admission, visit the Office of Global Education’s admission website.

Application Deadlines

  • Fall Semester
    • Application deadline: February 1

Applications submitted by this deadline will receive the strongest consideration for admission.

Learning Outcomes

Program Learning Outcomes

Graduates of the program will be able to:

  1. Enhance student communication and presentation skills through participation in graduate seminars, critiques and engagement with professional standards.
  2. Develop deeper awareness of historical and cultural contexts of art and craft production leading to advanced skills of aesthetic judgement and assessment.
  3. Develop capacities of independent inquiry research strategies, problem solving and self-reflexivity with regard to creation of a body of work.
  4. Build a strong portfolio to enhance opportunities for further education and/or career and entrepreneurial options.
Coursework

Program Requirements

Major Requirements

Major Requirements
Major Electives 120
Art History (ARTH) Electives6
ART 67199M.A.THESIS I 26
Minimum Total Credit Hours:32
1

After completing 16 credit hours of coursework, students present a body of current art work to a committee of three to five faculty members for review and discussion. Students may take major electives through cross-discipline,seminar-style courses, graduate studio, travel study and/or independent study . Maximum 6 credit hours of travel study courses, and maximum 20 credit hours of graduate studio courses may be applied toward the M.A. degree.

2

Students' thesis may comprise an installation or a series of collective works, in addition to a written thesis. The written thesis must document and substantiate the visual works through historical context, process or other theoretical premises. Students must present an oral defense of the works to a committee of three to five faculty members, in addition to mounting the installation and preparing the written thesis.

Program Delivery
  • Delivery:
    • In person
  • Location:
    • Kent Campus
Accreditation

National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD)

Examples of Possible Careers and Salaries

Artists and related workers, all other

-0.2%

little or no change

13,100

number of jobs

$65,800

potential earnings

Fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators

1.0%

slower than the average

28,300

number of jobs

$52,340

potential earnings

Notice: Career Information Source
* Source of occupation titles and labor data comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook. Data comprises projected percent change in employment over the next 10 years; nation-wide employment numbers; and the yearly median wage at which half of the workers in the occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less.
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