Department website: http://artanddesign.wvu.edu/
Degrees Offered
- Master of Arts
- Master of Fine Arts
Graduate Certificate Offered
- Therapeutic Art
The graduate programs in the School of Art and Design lead to a master of arts (M.A.) with emphasis in art education, game design, or studio art (two years and a minimum of thirty credit hours; thirty-six is recommended) or to a master of fine arts (M.F.A.) with emphasis in a studio art (three years and sixty credit hours). These programs are highly selective and closely integrated. All applicants are expected to have academic competence, artistic maturity, and the motivation to achieve excellence in their areas of concentration.
The master of fine arts (M.F.A.) is a professionally-oriented terminal degree in the studio arts, with concentration in ceramics, graphic design, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, or time-based art. Applicants typically hold a baccalaureate degree in art or its equivalent for admission. Recommended preparation includes twelve hours of art history, seventy hours of studio art or equivalent experience, and thirty-six hours of general education.
The School also offers a Graduate Certificate in Therapeutic Art to provide additional training in the use of a variety of advanced art methods and therapeutic art approaches for art educators, fine artists, and students in helping professions on how engagement in art-making can facilitate self-reflection, promote healing, and improve overall mental health and awareness. This field offers new professional opportunities to art educators who are trained, knowledgeable, and versed in therapeutic art concepts and technical skills within their teaching practice in the PreK-21 classroom.
Accreditation
WVU is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD) and the School of Art & Design's degree programs are regularly evaluated to assure they are meeting these national standards. Applicants for graduate studies must comply with the standards for admission set by West Virginia University, the College of Creative Arts, and the School of Art and Design.
Reviews
All students enter the graduate programs in art as preliminary candidates. Students in the M.F.A. program are reviewed for advancement to degree candidacy at the end of their third semester of study or upon the completion of a minimum of twenty-seven credit hours. Candidacy status is obtained upon review by the full faculty of the School and must be approved by the student's graduate committee. Students in the M.A. program are reviewed for advancement to degree candidacy at the end of their first semester of study or upon the completion of a minimum of twelve credit hours.
The School of Art and Design has high expectations for its graduate students. Because of this, certain standards of achievement exceed the minimum standards set by the university for all graduate students. The School of Art and Design reserves the right to impose stricter limitations on all art graduate students. Credit hours in courses with an earned grade of C do not automatically count toward graduate degree requirements. The graduate committee and the school director have the right to declare such credit hours unacceptable.
Program Transfer
A preliminary candidate in a graduate art program is not guaranteed acceptance into another graduate art program. A change from the M.F.A. program to the M.A. program (or the reverse) must be approved by the graduate faculty of the School of Art and Design. Under normal conditions, such a change is not considered until the student has established credibility by successfully completing a minimum of nine approved credit hours of study at WVU. Transfer to a program outside the School of Art and Design must be approved by the receiving unit. To make an application for a double degree program or a special interdepartmental program at the graduate level, students must have prior written approval of the School of Art and Design Director.
Thesis
All candidates for a graduate degree in art must prepare a written thesis (or graduate project) related to their work and activity as a graduate student (see specific requirements for each major). The chair of the student’s graduate committee supervises the preparation of the thesis. The thesis must be prepared according to the form prescribed in the WVU regulations governing the preparation and electronic submission of dissertations and theses as well as School guidelines, unless an exception is authorized in advance by the student’s graduate committee and the School Director. A final draft of the thesis must be submitted to committee members at least one month prior to the electronic filing date for review and approval.
Residence Requirements
M.F.A. students take nine to fifteen hours per semester. All students accepted into the M.F.A. program are required to spend six full-time semesters (excluding summer sessions) in residence. Approved study abroad semesters count toward the residency requirement.
Faculty
Director
- Kristina Olson - M.A. (Stony Brook University)
Art History-Modern and Contemporary, Art Criticism
Associate Director and Graduate Advisor
- Joseph Lupo - M.F.A. (University of Georgia)
Printmaking
Undergraduate Advisor
- Dylan Collins - M.F.A. (Kent State University)
Sculpture, Drawing
Professors
- Alison Helm - M.F.A. (Syracuse University)
Sculpture - Joseph Lupo - M.F.A. (University of Georgia)
Printmaking - Kristina Olson - M.A. (Stony Brook University)
Art History-Modern and Contemporary, Art Criticism - Naijun Zhang - M.F.A. (West Virginia University)
Painting, Drawing
Associate Professor
- Dylan Collins - M.F.A. (Kent State University)
Sculpture, Drawing - Joseph Galbreath - M.F.A. (Maryland Institute College of Art)
Graphic Design - Terese Giobbia - Ph.D. (Northern Illinois University)
Art Education - Gerald Habarth - M.F.A. (University of South Florida)
Time-Based Art - Jason Lee - M.F.A. (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
Sculpture, Foundations - Robert Moore - M.F.A. (Utah State University)
Ceramics - Kofi Opoku - M.F.A. (West Virginia University)
Graphic Design - Rhonda Reymond - Ph.D. (University of Georgia)
Art History-American, African American, 17th-19th century European art - Shoji Satake - M.F.A. (University of Indiana-Bloomington)
Ceramics - Michael Sherwin - M.F.A. (University of Oregon)
Photography, Digital Imaging
Assistant Professor
- Kent Kerr - M.F.A. (Radford University)
Graphic Design - Anne McFarland - Ph.D. (Florida State University)
Art Therapy, Art Education - Jeffrey Moser - M.F.A. (University of Delaware)
Game Design, Interactive Media
Service Assistant Professors
- Heather Harris - Ph.D. (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Museum Studies
Teaching Assistant Professors
- Megan Leight - Ph.D. candidate (City University of New York)
Art History-Ancient, Anthropology, Archaeology, Mesoamerican, Museum Studies
Visiting Assistant Professors
- Nichole van Beek - M.F.A. (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Painting, Foundations
Lecturers
- Jennifer Allen - M.F.A. (Indiana University-Bloomington)
Ceramics - Douglas Barkey - M.F.A. (University of Iowa)
Photography, Game Design - Aaron Blum - M.F.A. (Syracuse University)
Photography - Sarah Ceci Dadisman - B.M. (West Virginia University)
Arts Administration - Kelley Galbreath - M.F.A. (Maryland Institute College of Art)
Graphic Design - Ronald Hollingshead - M.F.A. (West Virginia University)
Sculpture - Katherine Inge - Ph.D. candidate (University of Arizona)
Art History - Patrick Jones - M.F.A. and M.A. (West Virginia University)
Painting, Drawing, Contemporary Art History - Lourdes Karas - B.A. (Allegheny College)
Arts Administration - Eowyn Kerr-Di Carlo - Ph.D. candidate (Courtauld Institute of Art)
Technical Art History - Michael Loop - M.F.A. (West Virginia University)
Foundations, Sculpture - Jack Moffett - Master of Design in Interaction Design (Carnegie Mellon University)
Graphic Design - Abigail Ruppert - M.A. (West Virginia University)
Foundations - Ian Sampson - M.F.A. (University of Delaware)
Game Design, Interactive Media - Charles Scott - M.F.A. (Southern Illinois University)
Foundations, Sculpture - Nathan Ward - M.F.A. (University of Oregon)
Photography - Jason Zeh - M.F.A. (University of Kansas)
Time-Based Art
Professors Emeriti
- Eve Faulkes
Graphic Design - J. Bernard Schultz
Dean, Art History - Janet Snyder
Art History
Associate Professors Emeriti
- Victoria Fergus
Art Education
Admissions
The application deadline occurs annually on January 15. There is a two-step process for graduate applications.
Step 1: Apply to West Virginia University Graduate School online. This application will require you to upload your transcripts, resume, letter of intent, three letters of recommendation, and pay an application fee.
Step 2: Submit your portfolio to the WVU School of Art & Design.
Submit the following material for the degree you are interested in:
MFA Studio Art concentration and MA Studio Art: Portfolio: 20 images or video documentation of recent work
MA Art Education: PDF writing sample; Applicants with teaching experience may include images of student work
MA Game Design: Portfolio of creative work
Applicants may be required to take additional course work after careful review of undergraduate transcripts.
In addition to the application materials listed, transfer students must officially submit graduate credits completed elsewhere. Transcripts must accompany the written request. The acceptance of transfer credit is not automatic. The graduate faculty, the graduate advisor, and the School Director will determine how much, if any, previous graduate-level work may be transferred. The maximum allowable number of graduate transfer credits toward the degree is nine. All transfer credits must be in place by the end of the first semester.
Financial Aid
Financial aid information is available through the Student Financial Aid Office, West Virginia University, P.O. Box 6004, Morgantown WV 26506-6004.
Graduate Assistantships
Graduate assistantships and other forms of financial aid are awarded to students of exceptional promise by the faculty of the School of Art and Design.