MFA in Studio Art & the Computer

The MFA in Studio Art and the Computer provides students an opportunity to inform and enhance their artistic practice using 21st Century electronic media. This emphasis on electronic media is pliable enough to encompass the many ways in which technology intersects with contemporary art and design. Students in the program are invited to combine their backgrounds in traditional art or computer-related disciplines within a conceptually driven, interdisciplinary environment. Courses provide exposure to time-based media, performance art, video art, sound works, kinetic sculpture, computer-based art, and art using the Internet in order to understand how these forms are driving 21st century artistic practice and informing our understanding of contemporary cultural identities.

Students entering this program should be interested in critical exploration of the international dialogue of contemporary art and should be intent upon developing innovative concepts within their own creative work. Full-time students who are interested in becoming practicing artists, college instructors, and industry innovators should flourish in this creative, integrative, and interdisciplinary studio environment.

Graduate fellowships as well as teaching and research assistantships are available on a competitive basis.

ADMISSIONS
For information on general UCF graduate admissions requirements that apply to all prospective students, please visit the Graduate Catalog. Applicants are encouraged to apply online via this link: www.graduate.ucf.edu/gradonlineapp.

If possible, please submit all requested application material by the established deadlines. If not possible, please submit as soon as you can before the final application deadline of April 1. Applicants to the MFA program must normally hold an earned BFA degree in Visual Art from an accredited institution normally acquired with a 3.0 or higher GPA. In addition to the online application, applicants must submit the following:

• A portfolio of original creative work on CD or DVD (to be submitted directly to the Art Department)
• A letter of research intent (to be submitted directly to the Art Department)
• An official copy of the general GRE test scores (note that being considered for fellowship awards requires a minimum score of 1000 on the combined verbal and quantitative portions of the test)
• An official copy of the TOEFL test score if the applicant is an international student (minimum score: 230)
• Official transcripts of all prior college work attempted (note that a 3.0 or higher GPA in the last 60 credits of course work is required to be considered for fellowship awards)
• Two letters of recommendation preferably from former visual art professors

Meeting minimum UCF admission criteria does not guarantee admission to the MFA program. Final admission is based on evaluation of the applicant's abilities, past performance, recommendations, match of this program and faculty expertise to the applicant's career/academic goals, and the applicant's potential for completing the degree.

Applicants should note that admittance into the MFA program is also based very strongly on review of the portfolio of original creative work and the letter of research intent. The portfolio should contain at least 20 original works created by the applicant. The letter of research intent is a page or more written by the applicant to describe, for example, his or her creative background, proposed research interests, and the relationship between this program and the applicant's future goals. Please note that "research" in the context of the MFA program primarily means: full-time creation of an original body of art work over the course of three years of residence.

Applicants who hold an earned BA, BS, or other baccalaureate degree in Visual Art or a related discipline with a 3.0 or higher GPA ranking from an accredited university may also apply.

APPLICATION DUE DATES
All students applying for fellowships must apply by the Fall Priority deadline date. At this time, the Fall Priority deadline date and the application due date for both U.S. applicants and international applicants is the same: January 15. Those who miss the priority deadline are encouraged to apply as soon as possible before the final application deadline of April 1.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS (total credits: 70 credit hours)
The program requires 70 credits to be acquired in three years (six full-time semesters excluding summer). Degree credit is obtained in theory courses, studio art courses, electives, and in supervised research. All courses must be approved by the Assistant Chair for Art. Graduate students must maintain a 3.0 or better GPA in all course work to complete the program. Continuation in the MFA program requires a positive annual evaluation by the Assistant Chair for Art and by the Graduate Committee of the Department of Art.

Typical Course Sequence

Year 1
Fall - 13 Hours
ART 5910 - Studio Concentration I - 3 Hrs. (should be taken twice for a total of 6 credit hours)
ART 5280C - Serial Content and Classic Form I - 3 Hrs.
ART 5284 - Design Theory and Methods - 3 Hrs.
ART 5941 - Graduate Practicum I - 1 Hrs.
Elective - 3 Hrs.

Spring - 13 Hours
ART 5910 - Studio Concentration I - 3 Hrs. (should be taken twice for a total of 6 credit hours)
ART 5695 - Web Art I - 3 Hrs.
ART 5696 - Art, Design, and Human Interactions - 3 Hrs.
ART 6942 - Graduate Practicum II - 1 Hrs.
ART 5694 - Crosscultural Electronic Art and Design - 3 Hrs.

Year 2
Fall - 13 Hours
ART 6911 - Studio Concentration II - 3 Hrs. (should be taken twice for a total of 6 credit hours)
ART 6697 - Web Art II - 3 Hrs.
ART 6281C - Serial Content and Classic Form II - 3 Hrs.
ART 6930 - Graduate Seminar - 1 Hrs. (taken twice)
Elective 3 Hrs.

Spring - 13 Hours
ART 6911 - Studio Concentration II - 3 Hrs. (should be taken twice for a total of 6 credit hours)
ART 6683C - Time Arts - 3 Hrs.
ART 6743C - Intermedia Sculpture - 3 Hrs.
ART 6930 - Graduate Seminar - 1 Hrs. (taken twice)
Elective - 3 Hrs.

Year 3
Fall - 9 Hours
ART 6687 - Research Concentration I - 3 Hrs.
ART 5698 - Concourse I - 3 Hrs.
ART 6971 - Thesis - 3 Hrs.

Spring - 9 Hours
ART 6689 - Research Concentration II - 3 Hrs.
ART 6699 - Concourse II - 3 Hrs.
ART 6971 - Thesis - 3 Hrs.

REQUIRED COURSES (total credits: 61 credit hours)

All non-elective courses as listed above.

ELECTIVE COURSES(total credits: 9 credit hours)
Electives can be taken from the Art Department or other discipline areas at the university, as appropriate, with approval of the Assistant Chair for Art.

THESIS
The thesis consists of a body of artistic work accompanied by electronic (Internet) documentation and a culminating exhibition. The final oral review before the supervisory thesis committee occurs at the end of the sixth semester. At the same time, the graduate student presents a thesis exhibition of selected works from the cumulative body of works produced during his/her three years of residency. In addition, the thesis requires an artist's statement and documentation. The thesis will contain research intentions, results, and the body of the creative works produced. Students are required to submit an electronic version of the thesis to UCF Graduate Studies. After approval by UCF Graduate Studies, the UCF Library will add it to its archives and make the electronic version of the thesis accessible on the web. The required thesis is the independent learning experience in the degree program.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT

Graduate students may receive financial assistance through fellowships, assistantships, tuition support, or loans. For more information, see Financing Grad School, which describes the types of financial assistance available at UCF and provides general guidance in planning your graduate finances. The Financial Information section of the Graduate Catalog is another key resource.

Key points about financial support:

• If you're interested in financial assistance, you're strongly encouraged to apply for admission early. A complete application for admission, including all supporting documents, must be received by the priority date listed for your program under "Admissions."
• You must be admitted to a graduate program before the university can consider awarding financial assistance to you.
• If you want to be considered for loans and other need-based financial assistance, review the UCF Student Financial Assistance website at http://finaid.ucf.edu and complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form, which is available online at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov. Apply early and allow up to six weeks for the FAFSA form to be processed.
• UCF Graduate Studies awards university graduate fellowships, with most decisions based on nominations from the colleges and programs. All admitted graduate students are automatically considered in this nomination process. To be eligible for a fellowship, students must be accepted as a graduate student in a degree program and be enrolled full-time. To receive need-based fellowship awards, the student must have demonstrated need as determined by FAFSA. Merit fellowship awards are not affected by FAFSA determination of need.
• Please note that select fellowships do require students to fill out a fellowship application (either a university fellowship application, an external fellowship application, or a college or school fellowship application).
• For information on assistantships (including teaching, research, and general graduate assistantships) or tuition support, contact the graduate program coordinator of your major.

MFA ALUMNI Class of 2008

» MFA Exhibition Catalog (2008)

Bonnie Ebner thesis project
Matt Dombrowski thesis project
Nicole Dong thesis project
Michael Kappers thesis project
Brian Kulbaba thesis project
Juan Lopez thesis project
Suzann Martinsen thesis project
Shaun Wightman thesis project

MFA ALUMNI Class of 2007

» MFA Exhibition Catalog (2007)

Simona Balas thesis project
Urszula Blaszak thesis project
Bert Bogdany thesis project
Victor Davila thesis project
Phil Delacruz thesis project
Betsy Walton thesis project
Roger Wolf thesis project news
Victoria Vevera

RESIDENT MFA CANDIDATES

Nargges Albekord
Thomas Bartolillo
Annie Caps
Janae Corrado
Daniella Cosovic
Jeanay Fullerton
Glen Gramling
James Hall
Danielle Jones
Caberbe Joseph
Alice Kramer
Robert Lawarre
Deborah Starr Leitch
Brittany Metz
Patricia Nuss
Jillian Perez
Ben Rupp
Brian Salisbury
Henry Schreiber
Gary Seymour
Sarah Stead
Katie Urban

SELECT RESEARCH PROJECTS BY MFA CANDIDATES AND/OR GRADUATE FACULTY

Mobicapping: Mobile Image Capture in the New Century curated by E. Brady Robinson and Scott F. Hall
Denudation and Redemption in the Digital Art of Keith Kovach
HYPO.thesis by Keith Kovach and select graduate students
Carnival Daring Do Featuring "the Floating Apparitions" by Carla Poindexter with Jay Batzer
E. Brady Robinson's Shift exhibited by UCF Women's Research Center

ADMINISTRATIVE CONTACT INFO

E. Brady Robinson, M.F.A.
Assistant Professor &
Assistant Chair for Art
Phone Number: 407-823-3108
ebrobins@mail.ucf.edu

Joshua Freeman
Program Assistant
jfreeman@mail.ucf.edu