Applications are now being accepted for the MFA Visual Arts and Sound Art Programs at Columbia University School of the Arts.

The Visual Arts + Sound Art Program offers students many opportunities to increase the depth and complexity of their studio practice and their ability to think critically in the contexts of contemporary art and theory. To that end, students have regular studio visits with faculty, guest artists, and critics who offer insight into both the form and underlying ideas of students’ work.

Students are also encouraged to explore electives across the university. Writing, Film Studies, Art History, Architecture, Philosophy, and Anthropology are a few of the programs at Columbia where our students gain knowledge and inspiration that inform their studio practice.

The Visual Arts Program is interdisciplinary, offering an MFA degree in Visual Arts rather than in one specific medium, allowing students to explore new ways of working or to focus on a particular technique including moving image, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and expanded practice. 

The Sound Art Program awards the Visual Arts MFA Degree in association with the Department of Music and the Computer Music Center. Students are also free to work across moving image, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, expanded practice, and performance technique while focusing on integrating sound.

Learn more at the Information Sessions on Sunday, November 12.

The School of the Arts will also present MFA Open Studios on Sunday, November 12, featuring the Class of 2024. Get a preview of upcoming Visual Arts + Sound Art thesis projects in progress and meet the artists. 

Open Studios | November 12, 2–5pm (ET)
Prentis Hall
632 West 125th Street
New York, New York 10027

This event is free and open to the public. Learn more.

We encourage you to contact the Admissions Office at soaadmissions@columbia.edu with any questions. For application requirements and to apply online, visit Visual Arts application requirements and Sound Art application requirements online.

For more details on the programs, visit arts.columbia.edu.

Applications for Fall 2024 admissions are due January 17, 2024.