MFA IN ART & DESIGN

A&D+ is the School of Art & Design's three-year M.F.A. program. It is a leader in curriculum innovation and in student support. Students receive full tuition funding for this unique three-year program. They exhibit, curate, teach, perform, network, explore, present, research, and collaborate – activities to prepare them to be cultural leaders in our increasingly interconnected and interdisciplinary world. Students conduct their creative work in spacious, fully equipped studios and are each provided software-loaded laptops and peripherals to support them in their creative production, research, and communications. This all takes place at an outstanding university and in a community offering a culturally rich environment.

The pioneering A&D+ M.F.A. curriculum integrates creative production with rigorous academic studies, international study with regional community engagement, and theoretical grounding with skills development. It is structured to expand the intellectual reach of creative work and utilize a comprehensive process for bringing creative work into the world. The “plus” component of this unique program requires all graduate students to reach beyond the cultures of art and design to develop robust engagements with one or more fields of knowledge and inquiry at the University of Michigan. Students are expected to carry out creative work informed by and interacting with the additional field of inquiry.

Viability in today's culture requires that one's creative work engage a broad intellectual and social context. In an effort to address this context, the School of Art & Design graduate program requires all students to develop an intense engagement with one or more fields of knowledge beyond the traditional purview of art and design. Graduates of this program will be prepared to thrive in a variety of public and private roles and become cultural leaders in a rapidly changing global culture.