SVAD - School of Visual Arts & Design

Emerging Media is a term that encompasses interactive works of art, electronic games, virtual reality, the Internet, portable devices, wearable computers - and new tools for thought, work and play that haven't yet been invented.

At UCF's School of Visual Arts and Design (SVAD) our graduate programs are evolving. We currently offer three graduate degrees in this area:

• An MFA that emphasizes the creation of studio art using computers
• An MFA that emphasizes digital media research and development focusing on new forms of interactive media and the creation of story-driven content for them
• An MA that focuses on the development of advanced skills for digital media professionals.

We will informally refer to the programs as the "Studio Art and the Computer MFA", the "Digital Media MFA", and the "Digital Media MA". See the footnote(*) for current names as listed in the 2011-2012 Graduate Catalog

Financial aid is available in the form of graduate teaching and research assistantships. Special fellowships are also available.

This brochure/website offers an informal guide to our graduate program. The UCF Graduate Catalog is the only official description of the graduate degrees.

MFA in Art

The Studio Art and the Computer MFA provides students an opportunity to inform and enhance their artistic practice using twenty-first century electronic media - not just as new tools for creation and display, but as new means of perception and experience. The emphasis on electronic media encompasses 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 twenty-first 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 will flourish in this creative, integrative, and interdisciplinary studio environment.

Backgrounds of students. A majority of students in this program have undergraduate degrees in Art. However, all disciplines are encouraged to apply. A portfolio review plays a major role in the admissions process.

Curricular Structure. The Studio Art and the Computer MFA program is composed of a minimum of 70 credit hours,to be acquired in three years (six full-time semesters excluding summers). Degree credit is obtained in theory courses, studio art courses, electives, and in supervised research. All courses must be approved by the Graduate Program Director. The thesis consists of a body of artistic work accompanied by electronic (Internet) documentation and a culminating exhibition.

Admissions

For information on general UCF graduate admissions requirements that apply to all prospective students, please visit the Graduate Catalog.

Application Deadlines

Studio Art and the Computer	Fall Priority	Fall
Domestic Applicants	January 15	February 1
International Applicants	January 15	January 15
International Transfer Applicants	January 15	February 1

Students are admitted only for the fall semester of each academic year.

Please submit all requested application materials by the established deadlines. Timely submission of your application will ensure a thorough review of your materials. The final application deadline for international students is January 15th, for domestic students the final application deadline is February 1st.

The application requirements for the program include the following:

1. Application for admission and application fee: http://www.graduate.ucf.edu - click on Apply Online
2. 2 letters of recommendation (please use the online recommendation system in the application). Preferably from former visual arts professors
3. A letter of research intent (please upload this directly to the application). One 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.
4. Official Bachelor’s transcripts and transcripts of all prior college work attempted. Please submit this directly to the admissions office:
   College of Graduate Studies
   P.O. Box 160112
   Orlando, FL 32816-0112
   
5. A portfolio of original creative works on CD or DVD. 20 jpeg images total (1000 pixels longest dimension, 72 dpi) or a 3-minute QuickTime demo reel for animation portfolios.
6. Please submit your portfolio directly to the program:
   MFA in Studio Art & the Computer
   Center for Emerging Media
   500 West Livingston Street
   Orlando FL 32801
   

For international applicants, additional materials are required:

1. International Transcript Evaluation from Josef Silny or World Evaluation Services - http://www.jsilny.com/, http://www.wes.org/
2. An official copy of the TOEFL test score (minimum score: 230)

For more information about the Studio Art and the Computer MFA, please contact:

Ms. Kelley Rasgaitis
Kelley.Rasgaitis@ucf.edu
407-235-3596

MFA in Digital Media

The Digital Media MFA teaches the conceptual, research, design, and technical skills needed to create and study twenty-first century media technologies. The principal emphasis of the track is on the nature of storytelling, narrative and interactive experience through emerging media.

Students produce story-based and interactive media works, and engage with digital scholarship through both traditional media (e.g., reading scholarly essays and papers or writing a literature review) and new media (e.g., deconstructing web media, understanding computer games as scholarly vehicles). Students may be admitted on either a full-time or part-time basis, through full-time participation is recommended.

Students explore new media under the guidance of a faculty member and collaborate with this faculty member in creative and research projects.

The Digital Media MFA track is embedded in a rich environment of scholarly and professional digital media work at UCF and in the surrounding community including:

• Instructional applications of digital media
• Immersive experience design (e.g., science center exhibits)
• Serious games for training and education
• Information architecture for the World Wide Web
• Social and community-based media design
• Cultural heritage preservation using new media
• Human-computer interaction
• Applications of artificial intelligence for expressive purposes

The faculty of SVAD have extensive professional and academic experience in areas spanning interactive web design, human-computer interaction, exhibition and theme park design, simulation and training, game development, broadcast design and motion graphics, 2D and 3D animation, visual language, immersive environments, database design, e-commerce, film, digital storytelling, wearable computing, artificial intelligence, and educational technology.

Here are some images from a few of our research projects:

Backgrounds of students. Our MFA students may have undergraduate degrees from any discipline. The key factors for admission are a strong score on the Graduate Record Exam (GRE), a portfolio showcasing your accomplishments in any domain, and an admission essay. Portfolios might include works of art, software or games you have designed, written articles and proposals or projects you have created.

Curricular Structure. The Digital Media MFA requires 60 credit hours and can be completed in three years of full-time study. Part-time study is permitted but not encouraged. The curriculum consists of 32 hours of required courses, 18 hours of electives and a ten-hour thesis project. The thesis is a formal research report, and may also incorporate media products and projects.

MA in Digital Media

The Digital Media MA builds on undergraduate knowledge to develop a mature set of conceptual, theoretical, design, and technical skills needed to communicate stories and messages in a single discipline or in an interdisciplinary environment.

The program is based on an apprenticeship model. Students explore new media under the guidance of a faculty member and collaborate with this faculty member in creative and research projects that foster a unique and innovative contribution by the student.

Backgrounds of students. Our MA students may have undergraduate degrees from any discipline. Admission is based on your undergraduate transcript, your Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores, a portfolio showcasing your accomplishments in any domain, and an admission essay. Portfolios might include works of art, software or games you have designed, written articles and proposals or projects you have created.

Curricular Structure. The program has a non-thesis and a thesis option, both requiring 36 credit hours. Most students pursue the non-thesis option. The thesis option requires acceptance by a faculty advisor and completion of a six hour thesis project. Students may be admitted on either a full-time or part-time basis. Full-time students normally complete the curriculum in two years.

For more information about the Digital Media MFA and MA, please contact:

Ms. Kelley Rasgaitis
Kelley.Rasgaitis@ucf.edu
407-235-3596