MA Design Research, Writing and Criticism

Applications are now open for SVA’s MA Design Research, Writing and Criticism (D-Crit). This one-of-a-kind graduate program combines research, writing, and critical analysis to position students for work in design journalism, curating, cultural programming, and strategy. Beyond creative fields, the skills of discernment and credible, persuasive communication are highly sought after in a variety of industries. 

This semester, D-Crit’s seminars are buzzing with guest visits from acclaimed critics, editors, and writers: Pulitzer Prize–winner Alexandra Lange, COMMON EDGE founder Martin Pedersen, New York Review of Architecture editor Samuel Medina, design journalist Diana Budds, Design Observer editor in chief Ellen McGirt, and writers P.E. Moskowitz and Steven Phillips-Horst, to name a few. 

D-Crit students learn from a core faculty of active professionals, including Karrie Jacobs, Jon Key, Alex de Looz, Steven Heller, Leital Molad, Jennifer Kabat, Jennifer Krasinski, Nicolas Kemper, Eric Schwartau, Adam Harrison Levy, and Molly Heintz. The department recently received a Google Artists + Machine Intelligence grant to launch a workshop with Outland editor Brian Droitcour on critical frameworks for art, design, and AI.

D-Crit graduates hold positions at Metropolis, Curbed, Architectural Record, MoMA, Cooper Hewitt, Vitra Design Museum, IDEO, Pentagram, Google, Microsoft, and more—and have founded consultancies like Superscript, Original Copy, and For Play, as well as publications like CLOG, Wrong House, and Fazer Magazine.

Virtual info session: Tuesday, October 28, 12–1pm ET RSVP here Attendees receive an 80 USD application fee waiver. Deadline: January 15, 2026. Scholarship support available for both full- and part-time students.

Change the way you see the world. Change the way the world sees you.