Graduate Programs Master of Fine Arts in Interior Design (MFA-1) Mission Statement The Master of Fine Arts in Interior Design (MFA-1) is a three-year, full-time, 90-credit professional degree program dedicated to providing students from diverse backgrounds with a graduate professional-level interior design education, and prepares them to be leaders in interior design practice and education. The program’s comprehensive curriculum emphasizes research and analysis applied to a diverse range of user groups, taking into account global practice, sustainable design, and social justice. Graduates will be prepared to lead the discipline into the future, to broaden the understanding of how interior design can serve the greater world community, and to provide creative design solutions at the highest level. The MFA-1 program provides students who possess a baccalaureate degree in an unrelated field (of which 30 credits must have been in the liberal arts) with an advanced degree containing the professional-level education to be leaders in interior design practice and education. Students with a humanities degree in architecture or design will be considered for this program. The MFA-1’s comprehensive curriculum emphasizes the role of global practice, sustainable design, and other areas of social and cultural concern. In combination with the required professional experience, the curriculum satisfies the educational requirements for membership in national and local interior design associations and allows graduates to sit for qualifying exams for interior design certification in many jurisdictions. Admission to the MFA-1 program requires formal acceptance and submission of a portfolio demonstrating the applicant’s creative abilities in the fine or applied arts or, for those with no portfolio, the successful completion of the NYSID MFA Workshop prior to matriculation. This 90-credit MFA degree requires full-time study and is composed of 80 professional, technical, and design history credits and 10 required elective credits, offering both seminar and studio courses in art and design history, graphic communication, technical skills and knowledge, professional practice, and interior design studios. If they wish, students may take up to 6 additional free-elective credits over the course of their program during the fall and spring semesters as part of the flat tuition. Of the 90 credits required for the MFA-1 degree, a minimum of 60 credits must be taken at NYSID, all of which must be in required professional courses. Only 500-level courses may be satisfied by transfer credit, including transfer credit from certain courses taken at NYSID’s undergraduate level. The residency requirement includes all 600-level courses, 506 Experiential Learning I, 606 Experiential Learning II, 608 Interior Design Studios III, 618 Interior Design Studios IV, 628 Interior Design Studios V, 642 MFA-1 Thesis Preparation, and 648 MFA-1 Thesis Studio. All courses within the Master of Fine Arts program (MFA-1) are graded using the Letter Grade system. Refer to the current NYSID Student Handbook for Grading Descriptions and Standards. To earn the MFA-1 degree, a student must have a minimum cumulative/ career GPA of 3.0. Students must attend full-time during each semester (12 credits minimum). Students must enroll in the 3-credit 506 Experiential Learning I/ 606 Experiential Learning II course in the designated summer. In satisfying the required number of elective credits, students may, with the approval of their academic advisor, choose to take elective credits in semesters other than those listed. 16 • New York School of Interior Design • Academic Catalog 2017/2018
CURRICULUM (90 CREDITS + 6 OPTIONAL) First Semester — 14 Credits 501 517 519 528 541
Historical Styles I (2) Design & Drawing I (2) Textiles for Interiors (2) Interior Design Studio I (4) Color for Interiors (2) Electives (2)
Second Semester — 14 Credits 502 527 530 538 587
Historical Styles II (2) Design & Drawing II (2) Codes (2) Interior Design Studio II (4) Materials & Methods of Construction (2) Electives (2)
Summer Session One — 3 Credits 506 Experiential Learning I (3)
Third Semester — 15 credits 601 Modern Architecture & Design I (2) 608 Interior Design Studio III (4) 617 Building Systems (2) 633 Lighting I (3) 636 Construction Documents (3) Electives (1)
Fourth Semester — 14 Credits 602 618 631 639 641
Modern Architecture & Design II (2) Interior Design Studio IV (4) Kitchen & Bath Design (3) Advanced Graphic Communications I (3) Interior Design Practice (2)
Summer Session Two — 3 Credits 606 Experiential Learning II (3)
Fifth Semester — 15 Credits + 3 optional free electives 628 634 642 643 646
Interior Design Studio V (4) Advanced Detailing (2) MFA-1 Thesis Prep (2) Lighting II (3) Advanced Graphic Communications II (2) Electives (2) + (3)
Sixth Semester — 12 Credits + 3 optional free electives 635 Theory of the Built Environment (2) 644 Furniture Design (3) 648 MFA-1 Thesis (4) Electives (3) + (3)