Round 1 Deadline: January 19 // Round 2 Deadline: March 19. For more information about deadlines and timelines, visit the Apply page.
The Photography+Media & Society MFA program invites applicants eager to produce photography and media as a gateway for ideas and a vital social mirror within and beyond Fine Art. Students in the program study a wide range of making and thinking that inform and inspire still and moving images while preparing to join a global community of thought leaders and influencers who produce knowledge, make meaning, and generate critical dialogues through photography and media at the highest level.
Those who are considering the program may also want to consider MICA's multidisciplinary Mount Royal School of Art or the M.F.A. in Graphic Design.
Application Requirements & Procedures for the MFA in Photography + Media & Society
1. Graduate Admission Application Form: completed and submitted online via mica.slideroom.com
2. Curriculum Vitae/Resume
3. Statement of Intent
Tell us how you propose to make use of the human and material resources of the college and the community of Graduate Studies at MICA. Please write a 600–800-word statement of intent in response to the following prompts.
Your goals and objectives for graduate study and how they align with the goals and objectives of the program.
An idea or issue that has personal, social, cultural, and intellectual urgency for you, and how this idea or issue informs and inspires your practice—or the concepts, form, and content of a specific body of your work.
Cite the image-making skills and experience you have (or need) to produce the idea you propose to conceive and develop through the program.
Describe a vision for your post-graduate launch of a professional practice that will engage audiences through the creative, informed, and innovative use of photography and media as thought-leading visual culture.
4. Two (2) Letters of Reference
Recommendations are submitted online via SlideRoom.
5. Proof of Degree or Equivalent
Digital transcripts from the last degree-granting institution can be uploaded to SlideRoom. Official transcripts are not required for the initial review process, however, the Graduate Review Committee may request additional or official documentation before decision notification.
6. Portfolio of Artwork
Applicants to the MFA program in Photography + Media & Society should upload a digital portfolio to mica.slideroom.com. The portfolio may be a combination of photographic, computational, and time-based visual work, or a cohesive body of work. Note, please limit still images to a total of 20. For time-based work, a maximum 5-minute reel should be chosen for preliminary viewing. Longer works may be included as supplemental evaluation material. For interactive works that do not fit either of these categories, judgment should be used in selecting a portion to be viewed.
For each piece uploaded, please include the following information in the notes field: the original format of the work, size, length in minutes (if time-based), year in which the work was completed, and contextual information about the concepts, form, process, and research that informs the portfolio content.
Applicants should submit their portfolio materials for review with their application via mica.slideroom.com. Specific technical guidelines addressing the submission of digital images, video files, sound files, and text files are available in the SlideRoom system.
7. $75 Application Fee
Payable via credit card during the application submission stage online.
8. Additional Requirements for International Applicants
International candidates whose primary language is not English must demonstrate proficiency in both written and spoken English. Additionally, certified translations of all letters of reference, transcripts and school documentation must be provided. For additional information on international applicant requirements, please visit Information for International Graduate Applicants.