MFA - How to Apply
To apply for the Master of Fine Art (MFA), you should submit a completed online application form together with between 10-20 images of your studio work. These may be in the form of slides, photographs or a CD/DVD containing images or video. There are no requirements in terms of the work that the images should represent - it should be recent work but candidates may also wish to include past work that they feel is pertinent to the application, or reveals particular development. Images can be attached to the on-line form, but large files should be submitted on CD/DVD and sent by post to the Fine Art Department.
On their application form, applicants are required to provide a statement about their studio work, as well as outlining their reasons for wanting to study at postgraduate level, and their reasons for applying to Newcastle. In addition, if you are a UK or EU student who is also wishing to apply for AHRC funding, please be aware that this application will be the one we use to determine whether or not to forward you for consideration for funding, and therefore the proposal needs to be well-argued, well-written and clear. Please see the Funding section for more details.
On the basis of this submission, candidates whom we feel would be capable of benefiting from the programme are invited for interview and to visit the department. We may ask you to bring original examples of recent work with you. Audio visual and computer equipment will also be available for slide and video presentation if required. At the interview you will meet with studio staff from Fine Art and be asked to introduce your work. You will have the opportunity to discuss your plans for postgraduate study on the MFA and to ask questions of us. Before or after the interview you will have the opportunity to tour the Fine Art building and to meet with students from both the postgraduate and undergraduate courses.
Following the interview, offers of places are made to suitably qualified candidates. Those who have yet to complete a first degree must do so before a final offer can be made. All offers will be conditional on receiving satisfactory references and proof of academic qualifications.
We particularly welcome applications from international students. Applicants not based in the UK are not required to attend an interview. However, we may conduct an interview via Skype, and the decision to offer a place will be based on this interview along with the completed application form, the supporting statements, references and visual documentation.
Entry qualifications
Candidates should normally hold a good undergraduate degree (2:1 Honours or higher) or equivalent. Applicants who hold non-standard qualifications and/or have relevant experience will be considered on an individual basis.
English Language
Applicants for whom English is not a first language must provide evidence of a satisfactory command of English, preferably with an IELTS score of 6.5 or greater, TOEFL 575 (paper-based) or 233 (computer-based), or equivalent.
Closing Dates
For all applicants, we would normally expect applications to be submitted to us by May 31st 2013 , but late applications to the MFA course will be considered on an individual basis and if places are still available.
However, for UK and EU applicants who also wish to apply for Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funding through us, the deadline for applications is likely to be mid-February 2013. Further details will be posted here in late Autumn 2012. We will accept applications to our programmes after this deadline, but will not consider late applications for AHRC funding. Please see our funding information.
International Students - funding
Newcastle University offers a large number of partial scholarships to prospective international postgraduate research students.
International students may be eligible to apply for funding from their own governments or educational bodies, especially for PhD level research. You are advised to investigate these possibilities with your governmental or educational bodies as early as possible as many sources of funding have application deadlines in advance of those followed in the UK.
Other funding opportunities
There are other funding opportunities available to both UK and non-UK citizens. In the first instance, try using the university's funding pages to help you. You could also check out the DirectGov pages on finance (for students from England).
