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School of Art & Design

Graduate Studio and Design Programs

The application deadline is January 15, 2023, 11:00pm CST.

Overview

Applications and any application material submitted after this deadline will not be reviewed for admission. All application materials will be reviewed by the Graduate Admissions Committee of the Program to which the candidate has applied. Reviews will be finalized by mid-March 2023. Applicants will be notified by email shortly after.

MFA Programs include:

  • Design for Responsible Innovation
  • Industrial Design
  • Studio Art (Painting, Sculpture, Photography, New Media)

Applicants with an interest in Printmaking are encouraged to apply through Studio Art (Painting).

Admission

Depending upon national/international status, there are two or three separate submissions that applicants must complete:

  1. The University of Illinois online application requires Transcripts, Letters of Recommendation, Resume, and a Personal Statement. Eligible domestic minority applicants may request an application fee waiver via FreeApp.
  2. The School of A&D requires a portfolio of 12-20 media files with additional details via SlideRoom. There is a submission fee of $10.
  3. International students must provide English proficiency test results. Have the Educational Testing Service send these directly to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign using code 1836.

In addition, international students should review this important information.

The GRE and GMAT exams are not required.

Application Material

  • Transcripts: Upload (unofficial) transcripts/academic records (and diplomas or certificates of degrees if your degree is awarded and not listed on your transcript).
  • Letters of Recommendation: Three letters of recommendation are required. All letters should be submitted online by the recommenders. In addition to evaluating the applicant’s scholarly and creative achievements and potential, letters should also provide information regarding the applicant’s maturity, dependability, and potential for teaching.
  • Resume: Your resume should include relevant work and teaching experience, awards, exhibition record, and publications. This information will assist in consideration for graduate fellowship awards and graduate appointment positions. Your resume should be uploaded in the online application form and also on the portfolio site.
  • Personal Statement: This statement of 1000 words or less should describe your academic background and current creative work in relation to your interest in pursuing a graduate degree. Your statement should be uploaded in the online application form and also on the portfolio site.
  • Portfolio: Your portfolio should showcase your strongest work and convey an understanding of your creative research practice. Portfolios must be submitted online through an additional application process in SlideRoom. Applicants must submit 12 to 20 media files (images and/or videos). As part of the media upload process, and tied to individual files, you must provide additional details (title, date, media, contextual information, etc.) through “Label Media” to frame the work samples. This will help reviewers understand and appreciate your work.
    • Applicants are asked to provide some basic information in the SlideRoom interface, including the MFA program to which you are applying. This declaration should match your application on the university site. SlideRoom provides a confirmation screen at the successful completion of the portfolio submission process.
    • Prepare your files to fit the SlideRoom requirements. Images should be in JPEG (.jpg or .jpeg) format and cannot exceed 5MB per file. Please do not submit your images or portfolio as a PDF. Be sure to keep images large enough, without needless compression, such that they can be properly viewed. Videos can come in multiple formats (.m4v, .mov, .mp4, .wmv, .mpeg, or .mpg) and cannot exceed 60MB per file. It is also possible to link to external YouTube or Vimeo video files. Website links can be included in the Personal Statement.
    • Physical portfolios and/or discs are not accepted and will not be reviewed.
    • MFA Industrial Design applicants: you can submit up to 20 Jpeg images ( 5mB max size ). As ID projects tend to be complex you are encouraged to submit the maximum number but you should be aware of legibility issues. If you scan a large poster to produce one image it will not be readable on a laptop screen by a reviewer and that is the most common form of review. You could submit videos comprising a number of slides as long as the file size does not exceed 60mB and this might be better for complex projects. Reviewers process many applications so the easier and more foolproof the process the better.
  • International and non-native English-speaking applicants must provide TOEFL/IELTS test scores for admission. Learn more about university English proficiency requirements.
    • The School of Art & Design’s English proficiency standards are higher than the general campus requirements. For Limited Status Admission we require a minimum total TOEFL score of 96 iBT, or a 6.5-7.0 IELTS score.
    • Test scores must be dated after August 22, 2021.
    • Test scores must be received by the application deadline of January 15, 2023.
    • Students admitted on limited status will be required to take an English Placement Test (EPT) shortly after arrival on campus. Depending on the results of this test, Limited Status students may be asked to take additional English as a Second Language (ESL) classes.

Financial Aid and Funding

Funding packages are available for students in most programs.

International and/or non-native English speakers are considered for a funding package only when

  1. They submit a Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) speaking subsection test score of at least 24, or an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) speaking subsection test score of at least 8.0, with tests dated after August 22, 2021. Test scores need to be submitted to school code 1836 by the deadline of January 15, 2023. This is required even when the applicant is exempt from showing these scores for admission purposes. Duolingo test results are not considered for funding consideration.
  2. Their admission application includes completed proof of funding paperwork, submitted by the deadline of January 15, 2023.

The School of Art and Design offers several types of financial support:

  1. Graduate Fellowships are competitive awards granted by either the School of Art & Design or the University of Illinois Graduate College to new incoming degree candidates who have demonstrated especially strong academic achievement and have outstanding future potential. If you identify as a domestic minority applicant, it is recommended that you submit all admissions materials (including the portfolio) by December 15, 2022, to be considered for diversity fellowships. Fellowship stipends are usually $10,000 for the academic year and include a full waiver of tuition and a partial waiver of university campus fees. A fellowship is a gift and requires no service.
  2. Graduate Assistantships include Teaching Assistant and Research Assistant positions. They are available to students in good standing. Currently a nine-month 25% graduate appointment offers a stipend of at least $9,649.98 (before taxes) for the academic year. The appointment requires 10 hours a week of service. These graduate appointments include a full waiver of tuition and a partial waiver of university campus fees.
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