The glass program offers BA, BFA and MFA degrees.
Undergraduate Program
The undergraduate program of study in the 3-D area, with a concentration in Glass, involves committing a large block of time that will be devoted to the development of a clear personal "vision", a sense of intention, and a basic "facility" in a wide range of material manipulation techniques. The Glass area stresses excellence in the individual strengths of young "Artists", "Designers", and "Craftspeople". We, as a rule, encourage the old adage of learning by doing, and more often than not, learning experientially through (what could be categorized as) failure! The main "philosophical thrust" of the undergraduate area of study can be said to be........."never under estimate the value of editing!" The students are challenged to be "prolific" in their "experiments".....and must learn to be their own "harshest critics"
Graduate Program
General Philosophy
Since Glass is a component of the 3-D area, faculty from a myriad of disciplines invariably serve on the graduate review committees across the board. It should be noted that there are no walls between disciplines within the 3 -D areas, and that there is total and complete movement and mobility between studios.
A typical program of study includes:
The Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) Degree is structured as a 60 credit hour program that demands a commitment of minimally 2 1/2 years to complete. There may be a certain amount of flexibility to this, as the amount of work needed for the completion of the program will depend entirely on the students rate of progress.
At least 36 semester hours must be taken in the School of Art, of these, at least 24 must be at the 400 level. At least 24 semester hours must be in the student's studio major area, and of these at least 18 must be at the 400 level.
At least 12 semester hours are required in Art History. (Options exist in scheduling in the related areas of Esthetics, Philosophy, Anthropology, and the Graduate MFA Seminar.) Also required are at least 3 hours of Graduate Seminar and 6 hours of 496, MFA Exhibition and Supportive Statement. 496 involves a comprehensive exhibition of studio work, an exhibition related thesis, and a comprehensive oral review.
Financial Aid
Financial Aid is available for qualified applicants in the form of graduate assistantships and full tuition waivers. These assistantships currently pay a $600 per month stipend for approximately 20 hours per week of teaching and technical support within the school.
Admission
To enter the M.F.A. program the applicant must meet the minimum requirements of the Graduate School (Bachelors degree from an accredited college or university, while having maintained a minimum of a 2.6 grade point average for the last 60 hours of undergraduate study.) In addition, the applicant must submit 3 letters of recommendation, an example of scholarly writing, and a portfolio of 20 slides for review.
Application packages for the Masters of Fine Arts program in Glass must be sent to:
Graduate Admissions
Hovey Hall
Illinois State University
Campus Box 2200
Normal, Il. 61790-2200
Faculty
John Miller
