MFA Program | Academic Requirements | MFA/MA Academic Requirements | Courses | Advising and Review Process |
Thesis and Exhibition

M.F.A. Advising and Review Process

Advising
Students are assigned an individual faculty sponsor/advisor upon admission to the program. After their first semester, students are free to select a sponsor from the M.F.A. faculty (with the new sponsor’s consent). Formal meetings as well as end-of-semester faculty reviews serve as advising tools.

Review Process
Reviews for M.F.A. students take place at the midpoint and end of each semester. In addition, a comprehensive review is conducted at the end of the first year of the program. At the culmination of the program, the final review takes place during the thesis exhibition.

The faculty sponsor conducts the mid-semester review. The end-of-semester review includes a group of three to five faculty members, with representation from all concentrations, along with the student’s faculty sponsor. In advance of the end-of-semester review dates, sign-up sheets are posted on the M.F.A. information board in the faculty mailroom. Students must sign up for a time slot on the day their sponsor is present. Each faculty review group meets with the student for 45 minutes to discuss the semester’s work. Recommendations are given and each student is assigned a grade. The format is designed to encourage intellectual, artistic, and theoretical exchange.

Each student’s progress determines his or her continuation in the program. Probation can be recommended at the conclusion of the first semester only. Invitations to continue in the M.F.A. program are extended at the conclusion of the first year. Failure to demonstrate adequate professional growth during the first year will lead to dismissal at the end of that year.

M.F.A. students should also refer to the general academic and professional standards that govern all students in the School of the Arts.

Updated July 29, 2008