All required application materials (except the online application and application fee) must be received together in one package by the Office of Graduate Admissions.

Applications for fall 2010 are currently being accepted and will continue to accepted on a rolling basis through spring 2010. Applications will be reviewed by the admissions committee as they are submitted. The first round of acceptance letters will be sent to students in April 2010.

Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree, or its equivalent, from an accredited college or university.

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

Receipt of the following materials by the Office of Graduate Admissions constitutes a completed application. Please refer to the Departmental Requirements section that follows for information on individual departmental requirements.

NOTE: Applicants may submit only one active graduate or undergraduate program application for admission per academic year. Entry to the graduate programs takes place in the fall semester only.

Application and Fee:

All graduate applicants are required to complete the online application form and submit the $80 application fee. The application form can be found through our Web site at www.applyweb.com/apply/svag.

Portfolio:

Please refer to the Departmental Requirements section of this page.

Permanent Resident:

If you are a permanent resident you must submit a photocopy of your alien registration card.

Official Transcripts:

Applicants must submit one official transcript from each college or university attended, whether or not it reflects enrollment in a degree program; and all transcripts for credits transferred to degree-granting institutions. Transcripts should be sent in their original envelopes (with the seal unbroken and the registrar’s signature intact to remain official) with all other application materials. Individuals who have made a name change since attending a college or university should make certain that the transcript indicates the current name as it appears on the application for admission.

Transcripts from Foreign Institutions:

Applicants who have academic documents from institutions outside of the United States are required to provide original, attested or certified true copies of academic records for each year of study. These records should be in the original language issued. If transcripts are not issued in English, applicants must also submit an official translation of all academic documents. Translations must be a complete, literal, word-for-word translation of the original academic document.

All foreign transcripts must be converted to U.S. educational equivalencies. Those records that are not converted to U.S. equivalencies by the issuing educational institution must be evaluated by an approved external evaluation agency. The evaluation must be a course-by-course evaluation of university work and include:

• Name of educational institution
• Location and address of institution
• Length of study
• Equivalent U.S. degree (two- or four-year college or university degree)
• Area of concentration
• Courses studied per academic year
• Conversion of course hours into U.S. semester hours of credit for each course evaluated
• Credits earned for each course evaluated
• Conversion of grades/marks into equivalent U.S. grades of A, B, C, D or F for each course evaluated
• Overall grade point average (GPA) equivalent to 4.0 grading system

The School of Visual Arts strongly recommends that international academic records be evaluated by one of the following approved external evaluation agencies:

American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers(AACRAO)/Foreign Education Credential Evaluation Service, or the World Education Services (WES)

AACRAO/Foreign Education Credential
Evaluation Service
One Dupont Circle NW, Suite 520
Washington, DC 20036
Telephone: 202.296.3359
E-mail: oies@aacrao.org
Web site: www.aacrao.org

World Education Services (WES)
Bowling Green Station
PO Box 5087
New York, NY10274-5087
Telephone: 212.966.6311
Web site: www.wes.org/application

NOTE: When requesting a credential evaluation, make sure that the School of Visual Arts is listed as the recipient of the evaluation. All documents become the property of the School of Visual Arts and will not be returned. Credit evaluation can take six to eight weeks; please plan accordingly.

Statement of Purpose:

A written statement (250–500 words) of the applicant’s intent and reason for pursuing graduate study may be submitted online or via mail.

Resume:

Applicants must submit a résumé, which should include professional experience as well as related activities such as research, awards and exhibitions. The résumé may be submitted online or via mail.

Letters of Recommendation:

Three letters of recommendation from instructors or practicing professionals must be received in an envelope sealed and signed by the person issuing the recommendation. The recommender should seal the envelope, sign across the seal, and return it to the applicant. Recommenders should indicate the applicant’s full name and department of interest at the beginning of the letter. Applicants should send letters of recommendation in their original envelopes (with the seals unbroken and the recommender’s signature intact to remain official) along with all other supplementary application materials.

NOTE: Letter of recommendation forms are not provided.

Interview:

Personal interviews are only required for applicants to the Art Therapy, Design Criticism and Interaction Design programs. Prospective students living beyond a 1,000-mile radius of New York City may request to waive the in-person interview. In such instances, a telephone interview is required. Applicants to the Art Education, Design and Social Documentary Film programs may be scheduled for interviews by the commit- tee on graduate admissions after all required application materials have been reviewed. Interviews are not available for the following programs: Art Criticism and Writing; Computer Art; Digital Photography; Fine Arts; Illustration as Visual Essay; Photography, Video and Related Media.

English Proficiency:

All applicants whose primary language is not English must demonstrate proficiency in written and spoken English. Applicants must submit one of the following:

• Official score report showing a minimum score of 213 on the computer-based version of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL cbt). For information on taking the TOEFL, call 609.771.7100 or visit www.toefl.com.
• Official score report showing a minimum score of 79 on the Internet-based version of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL ibt). For more information on taking the TOEFL, call 609.771.7100 or visit www.toefl.com.
• Official score report showing a minimum score of 6.5 on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). IELTS is jointly managed by University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations (Cambridge ESOL), British Council and IDP Education Australia: IELTS Australia. For information on taking the IELTS, call 626.564.2954 or visit www.ielts.org.
• Official score report showing a minimum score of six (6) in all categories of the English proficiency exam from the American Language Institute. For more Information on this test, call 212.998.7040. In addition, students who have successfully completed the following course work may also submit official transcripts to be considered as demonstration of English proficiency: one year of full-time study at a regionally accredited U.S. college or university, including two semesters of English composition, with a minimum grade of B each semester; or graduation from a U.S. college or university.

NOTE: Course work taken in conjunction with English as a Second Language (ESL) is not applicable. The committee on graduate admissions will determine if further proof of English language proficiency is required. During the summer, students who have met the English proficiency requirement and are interested in further development of their English language skills may enroll in SVA’s Advanced English as a Second Language course. Designed to enhance verbal expression and the use of current, sophisticated and precise vocabulary of arts professionals, this course will help students prepare for their graduate studies. For more information on this course, contact the English as a Second Language coordinator at 212.592.2621 or e-mail: hrubinstein@sva.edu.

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

All required application materials (except the online application and application fee) must be received together in one package by the Office of Graduate Admissions by January 15, 2009. This department has a rolling admission however, we recommend that applications be submitted by January 15, 2009.

Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.

Apply online at: www.applyweb.com/apply/svag

All materials should be sent to:

Office of Graduate Admissions
SCHOOL OF VISUAL ARTS
209 East 23 Street
New York, NY 10010-3994
Telephone: 800.436.4204 or 212.592.2107
Fax: 212.592.2116
E-mail: gradadmissions@sva.edu
Web site:www.sva.edu

Please mail all admission materials in enough time to ensure that they will be received no later than January 15, 2009. When submitting application materials via post, we strongly advise applicants to request delivery confirmation.

Applicants will receive an admissions decision, in writing, by April 1,2009. The College does not disclose admissions decisions via phone, fax or e-mail. All application materials become the property of the School of Visual Arts and will not be returned.

Deferred Application and Readmission

Admission cannot be deferred to another academic year. Applicants who delay enrollment must reapply to the program by submitting a new application and fee, and resubmitting all application materials.

DEPARTMENTAL REQUIREMENTS

In addition to the general requirements for admission, applicants must also comply with the department requirements as outlined in this section. The general portfolio submission criteria are listed as follows. Please review these instructions as well as individual departmental portfolio requirements.

An annotated portfolio description list with the applicant’s name must accompany the portfolio. The list should include the following information: title, slide number (if applicable), size (if applicable), medium (specify software/application for digital work), and date of work.

Slides must be submitted in a clear plastic slide sheet. Only 35mm slides will be reviewed. Please do not submit glass slides. Each slide must have the slide number, applicant’s name and orientation of the slide clearly indicated on each slide. DO NOT USE LABELS.

NOTE: All portfolio submissions become the property of the School of Visual Arts and will not be returned. No oversize portfolios, binders, prints or original work will be accepted. Permanent bindings, notebooks and oversized cases will be discarded. The College is not responsible for any media that is received in damaged condition and cannot be viewed.

Portfolio:

• Applicants must write a concise treatment for a documentary film they might wish to make (two to three double-spaced pages in length). Be specific in detailing the nature of the issue to be addressed and describe the stylistic approach to be taken. Please be precise about what the audience will see on the screen.
• Please submit one of the following:
• Video: VHS/NTSC format or a DVD (region 1 only) or Mini DV format. Work must not exceed ten minutes in length.
• Still imagery: 20 images on CD (jpeg format for the Macintosh platform). Files must be labeled as follows: First initial, last name, project title (or number) of image, e.g., jdoe-project.jpg. Digital images must be 1500 pixels in width or height at 72 dpi. The images should express the concepts of the central theme. A brief written commentary may accompany the images. No PowerPoint or other type of presentation format or online portfolio will be accepted.
• Applicants without prior filmmaking experience must create a visual documentation of a subject. using A visual vocabulary—video, photographs, or mixed media—create a body of work that fully explores a documentary subject.

Tuition and Expenses:

The estimated tuition fee for the academic year 2009-2010 for the Social Documentary Film program is $18,325 per semester. In addition, a supplies fee is also estimated to be $2,000 per semester. *Also, it is required that students enrolled in the MFA Social Documentary program have a MacBook Pro laptop, equipped with Apple Final Cut Pro and an external hard drive with at least 1 Terabyte. Click here for a full schedule of tuition and fees.

Note: Tuition includes registration, student activities, technology, student accident insurance, locker rental, library, and buildings and grounds.

Information Session and Departmental Visit:

Please email mfasocdoc@sva.edu or call 212-592-2919 to schedule a visit or an informational call.