Art Education, The MA Program at NYU Steinhardt The Art Education program is designed for students who wish to pursue graduate-level professional training as artist-teachers in public and private schools, museums, community-based programs, and other alternative educational sites. It also prepares graduates to be innovative researchers and strong advocates for the arts in schools.
NYU’s art education program offers two tracks:
1. For students who do not have certification and who would like to become art teachers in schools (36 points).
2. For art teachers with initial certification who need to get a Masters degree in order to keep their certification (30 points).
NYU’s program in art education combines a foundation in critical theory with a solid grounding in practice. With a special focus on contemporary art and its social context, the program conceptualizes the artist-teacher as cultural producer, intellectual, and activist. Through a sequence of core courses that incorporate a progressive, multicultural approach, students examine the making and teaching of art as a social act, considering it within philosophical, historical, political, and sociological contexts. Students continue their work as artists in graduate-level studio courses, while developing a pedagogical foundation through courses in education, art education, critical theory in art, and research methodologies. Emphasizing the importance of theory and practice, the Art Education program utilizes the idea of praxis to support the critical, reflective, and practical application of theory in diverse educational contexts.
As part of the program’s emphasis on praxis, our graduate students enrolled in School Arts II: Issues in Pedagogy and Curriculum will teach an 9-week Saturday Art Workshop for high school students from across New York City. As an opportunity to design and implement a thematic unit plan based on social issues, this field experience allows Art Education students to establish a dialogue between theory introduced in the seminar and practice in the classroom, as well as develop their teaching style. Thematic classes are designed to help high school students explore ideas using a range of visual media and through multi-disciplinary projects that may include drawing, painting, printmaking, video, installation, and photography. An exhibition at the end of the session allows students to share their work with a wide audience of parents, friends, teachers, and NYU faculty.
Students in the 36 credit program also spend two-semesters student teaching in New York City schools at both the elementary and secondary level. In the Fall semester, students are assigned to art classrooms in the elementary schools, while in Spring they spend time in secondary schools.
The 30 credit program is tailored to student’s interests allowing them to take full advantage of the many courses offered across the different schools at New York University. Students in this track have the opportunity to do an internship in the many art institutions we partner with in NYC and the NYU global sites.
Personal attention is given to each student throughout the duration of program, from initial advisement through completion of the Masters final project. Classes are small and many Special Projects are pursued in order to foster optimal exchange between faculty and students.
enrollment
Students come from a wide variety of backgrounds including studio art, graphic design, and education. Enrolled students are interested in working within the public sector as well as community-based, non-profit, and for-profit educational contexts. Graduates go on to serve as classroom teachers, museum educators, and educational consultants, as well as to pursue doctoral studies.
The program enrolls 15-25 new students each year. Students may participate in the program on a full-time or part-time basis. Admission is for the summer semester only. Students can complete the program in as little as 12-months and have the option to study in the Studio Art MA program in Berlin, Germany.
admission prerequisites
In order to be considered for admission, applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.0, a Bachelor’s Degree with a minimum of 27 credits in studio art and a minimum of 9 credits in art history, and a liberal arts/general education from an accredited 4-year college or university. For international applicants, a minimum TOEFL score of 650 (paper-based) is required.
If any of these are not fulfilled, students will be required to take the necessary courses in addition to the courses required for their Masters degree. Students should take these courses during the first year of study in the program. This pre-requisite coursework does not count towards the M.A. degree.
More information about how to apply is available from the Office of Graduate Admissions.
information sessions
Informal information sessions about the Art Education M.A. program are held on alternate Thursdays from 6-7pm in the Barney Building located at 34 Stuyvesant Street. Fall 2011 dates are 11/10, 12/1, 12/15, 1/12, 1/26. Contact Rachel Brown to RSVP.
Interested students are also invited to attend our Graduate Programs Information Session on Wednesday, October 26, 2011 at 6pm. Take advantage of this opportunity to meet with the Art Education Program Director and faculty, as well as representatives from the NYUSteinhardt Graduate Admissions Office.
34 Stuyvesant Street, Barney Building
The Commons
New York, NY 10003
Please RSVP
for further information
Please contact Erin Sircy, Art Professions Graduate Advisor, for additional information or inquiries about the Masters of Arts in Art Education Program.