Spring semester 2014
MFA in Graphic Design
Vermont College of Fine Arts
36 College Street
Montpelier, Vermont 05602
www.vcfa.edu/graphic-design
www.vcfa.edu
One of the first low-residency master’s programs in graphic design in the country, the MFA in Graphic Design at Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA) is now accepting applications for its April 2014 semester.
The two-year highly immersive program synthesizes five intense one-week residencies with four six-month semesters of independent study with a range of faculty mentors.
Students and faculty in the graphic design program come from across the United States and around the world, gathering twice yearly on campus in Montpelier for intensive one-week residencies.
Suddenly an MFA degree is possible for many who thought it was geographically and logistically unavailable to them. The result is a world-class education in graphic design that fits within the students’ limitations of time and place.
Faculty and students in the program continuously rethink graphic design by considering the role of design in our culture, the relationships between designers and their work, and the nature of education in design.
Design is a natural human ability and as such is inseparable from the individual’s awareness of self. This recognition of self makes learning an act of cognition, not a transferral of information. Here at VCFA, we honor the belief that design education should not emphasize what the student makes, but rather, what the student learns through making.
We value the broader context of design and use it to reveal the relationships between things. With study, we erase the false divide between design history and its future, recognizing that design is an artifact of the time it which it is created.
Graphic design is not limited to any particular medium or combination of mediums. We believe that graphic design is primarily concerned with communication, and with exploring the complex relationships between form and content.
Applicants must have completed a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university and have proficiency in both current hardware and software used in the field of design. Candidates should show evidence of strong writing and research abilities and submit a portfolio of visual work that demonstrates aptitude for study at the master’s level in design.
Visit the Admissions page here or contact an admissions counselor directly here.
