Master of Fine Arts

Abbreviation
M.F.A.
Code
MFA
Degree Type
Masters
Interdepartmental Program
No
The mission of the Department of Interior Design is to educate students to become successful designers and scholars who enhance human experience and improve built, cultural, and social environments through interior design.
Interior Design

Our programs are ideal for energetic and inquisitive students who want to study within an energetic field that encourages innovation, creativity, collaboration, and experimentation. Through coursework, hands-on projects, and research activities, our students leave Iowa State ready to tackle any challenge that comes their way.

We foster core design and technical knowledge including diverse histories, theories of space and form, principles of color and light, ergonomic and accessible furniture and furnishings, efficient environmental systems, and effective interior construction and building systems. Our integrated educational process builds skills sequentially over the program.


The national ranked Department of Interior Design at Iowa State University offers the following graduate degrees:

1. MFA in Interior Design: A terminal, post-professional degree emphasizing advanced creative achievement. This degree can be completed in as few as five semesters;

2. MA in Interior Design: A post-professional degree emphasizing applied design research and analysis;

3. First-Professional MA in Interior Design: Combines entry-level preparation with advanced knowledge of design analysis and research options.


Degrees Offered:

  • Master of Arts (M.A.)
  • Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.)

 

How long does it take to earn a degree?

  • Median time to earn the master’s: 2.8 years (Methods)
Program Degrees Offered

Learning Goals

The Master of Fine Arts in Interior Design, Master of Arts in Interior Design, and First Professional Master of Arts in Interior Design programs are accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD).

515-294-3366

Melissa Stenstrom

msten@iastate.edu
Student Recruiter I
Iowa State University
715 Bissell Road
159 Design
Ames, IA 50011-3094

Program Homepage

Application Requirements

Application Deadlines:

Please submit your application by February 1 for priority admission consideration and for graduate assistantship consideration. Spring and summer entry not available.

Application Details:

This program is open to domestic and international students.

Application Instructions

Admission Requirements

Graduate College Requirements:

  • 4 year Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent)
  • Academic Records/Transcripts
  • Minimum 3.0 GPA (Program may alter requirement.)
  • Proof of English Proficiency.

Program Specific Requirements:

  • Resume or CV
  • Digital portfolio
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • Program Requires GRE: No
  • Program Requires GMAT: No
  • Program Will Review Without TOEFL or IELTS: No

International Requirements:

  • Financial Statement:  Application
  • English Proficiency Minimum:
    TOEFL Paper (PBT) 550
    TOEFL Internet (iBT) 79
    IELTS 6.5
    PTE 53
    Duolingo (approved through spring 2026) 115
Program Virtual Tour
Program Interest Area
Program Department
Does this Program Offer a Distance Option?
No
Program offers a Coursework Only?
No
Program Director
dshihabi@iastate.edu
Program Staff
janders@iastate.edu
msten@iastate.edu
annegn@iastate.edu
Interdepartmental Program
No
The Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Integrated Visual Arts (IVA) graduate program is committed to the professional development of artists and arts innovators. It offers unique opportunities for collaboration with students and faculty from around the world in art and design programs that represent a wide spectrum of professional activities.
woman painting on the floor

The 63 credit Master of Fine Arts in Integrated Visual Arts at Iowa State University is a distinctive and unique interdisciplinary program offering study across the following areas: ceramics, computer applications, drawing, textiles, illustration, jewelry/metalsmithing, painting, printmaking, photography, furniture design and areas outside of Art & Design. The Integrated Visual Arts program offers an innovative curriculum aligned with emerging art and design markets.


Degrees Offered:

  • Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.)

How long does it take to earn a degree?

  • Median time to earn the master’s: 2.9 years (Methods)
Program Degrees Offered

Learning Goals

  • Develop a fully realized creative direction that provides a platform for continued professional research and visual expression.
  • Produce a body of work that demonstrates a high level of creative investigation and accomplishment.
  • Acquire a professional level of technical proficiency in one or more media areas.
  • Effectively communicate ideas verbally and in writing.
  • Know the current and historical contexts within which their creative pursuits exist.
  • Develop a well-formed personal creative philosophy.
  • Understand current ethical and social issues relevant to the visual arts.
  • Use relevant theory in pursuing creative university level scholarship.
  • Understand the structure and organization required for university-level art instruction.
515-294-3366

Melissa Stenstrom

msten@iastate.edu
Graduate Coordinator Assistant
College of Design Business Center
146 College of Design
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-3094

Program Homepage Program Handbook

Application Requirements

Application Deadlines:

Please submit your application and supporting materials by January 15 for fall admission and November 1 for spring admission. Submission by these dates ensures consideration for a graduate assistantship. Applications received after these dates may be considered for program admission, but applicants may have fewer assistantship options.

Application Details:

This program is open to domestic and international students.

Application Instructions

Admission Requirements

Graduate College Requirements:

  • 4 year Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent)
  • Academic Records/Transcripts
  • Minimum 3.0 GPA (Program may alter requirement.)
  • Proof of English Proficiency.

Program Specific Requirements:

International Requirements:

  • Financial Statement:  Application
  • English Proficiency Minimum:
    TOEFL Paper (PBT) 550
    TOEFL Internet (iBT) 799
    IELTS 6.5
    PTE 53
    Duolingo (approved through spring 2026) 115
Program Virtual Tour
Program Interest Area
Program Department
Does this Program Offer a Distance Option?
No
Program offers a Coursework Only?
No
Program Director
emorgan@iastate.edu
Program Staff
msten@iastate.edu
janders@iastate.edu
annegn@iastate.edu
Interdepartmental Program
No
Through a curriculum that integrates theory and practice, students explore typography, branding, user experience (UX) design, motion graphics, and more. Hands-on projects and collaborative opportunities with industry professionals foster creative thinking and technical proficiency.
Women working a laptop

The Iowa State University Graphic Design Department offers two graduate degrees: the Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Graphic Design and the Master of Arts in Experiential Graphic Design (MAxGD). The focus in each of these degree programs is on expanding your knowledge through new problem-finding/solving situations. Each course of study relies heavily on such areas as methodology, history, research and testing to arrive at fresh new communications.


Degrees Offered:

  • Master of Arts (M.A.)
  • Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.)

How long does it take to earn a degree?

  • Median time to earn the master’s: 2.2 years (Methods)
Program Degrees Offered

Learning Goals

  • Clearly and accurately communicate scholarship orally and in writing, integrating theory, creation, research, and design problem solving.
  • Through the develop of a broad body of work, demonstrate proficiency in the design of communications through the use of technologies that incorporate human interaction within environments, objects, and electronic and traditional publications.
  • Demonstrate comprehensive understanding of scholarly literature in graphic design.
  • Articulate how the graduate program, including coursework and creative scholarship, fits into life and career goals.
  • Conduct scholarship, in teams or with independence, in ways that consistently demonstrate ethical practice and professionalism.
515-294-3366

Melissa Stenstrom

msten@iastate.edu
Student Recruiter I
Iowa State University
College of Design
159 College of Design
Ames, IA 50011-3094

Program Homepage Program Handbook

Application Requirements

Application Deadlines:

Students are only accepted for admittance in the Fall semester of each academic year. There are two review periods for graduate admission. Please submit your application by February 1 to be considered for a graduate assistantship. All MFA applications completed by February 1 are considered for funding. There is no separate application for this. MAxGD students are not offered assistantships. Applications completed by April 1 will also be considered for Fall admission. All materials must be available on the deadline date, or you may not be considered for admission. Spring and summer entry are not available.

Application Details:

This program is open to domestic and international students.

Application Instructions

Admission Requirements

Graduate College Requirements:

  • 4 year Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent)
  • Academic Records/Transcripts
  • Minimum 3.0 GPA (Program may alter requirement.)
  • Proof of English Proficiency.

Program Specific Requirements:

  • Digital portfolio (.pdf or website)
  • Resume
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • Statement of Purpose
  • Program Requires GRE: No
  • Program Requires GMAT: No
  • Program Will Review Without TOEFL or IELTS: No

International Requirements:

  • Financial Statement:  Application
  • English Proficiency Minimum:
    TOEFL Paper (PBT) 550
    TOEFL Internet (iBT) 79
    IELTS 6.5
    PTE 53
    Duolingo (approved through spring 2026) 115
Program Virtual Tour
Program Interest Area
Program Department
Does this Program Offer a Distance Option?
No
Program offers a Coursework Only?
No
Program Director
abr@iastate.edu
Program Staff
msten@iastate.edu
janders@iastate.edu
annegn@iastate.edu
Interdepartmental Program
No
Through a program of study that includes a rigorous combination of creative writing workshops, literature coursework, environmental fieldwork experience, interdisciplinary study in courses other than English, and intensive one-on-one work with a mentor (major professor), our MFA program offers gifted writers an original and intensive opportunity to document, meditate on, mourn, and celebrate the complexities of our transforming natural world.
students talking

Iowa State University’s three-year MFA program in Creative Writing and Environment cultivates in its students an interdisciplinary approach to research and writing. The program's unique design allows writers to develop a heightened environmental imagination that finds expression in quality, publishable works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and drama. The program is designed to prepare students for careers as writers, teachers, editors, and environmental educators. The MFA degree requires 54 hours of graduate credit: a core of creative writing courses, a book-length thesis (6 credits), experiential environmental fieldwork (3 credits), and 12 credits in disciplines other than English (such as Landscape Architecture, Anthropology, Environmental Science, among many others) relevant to an individual student's research interests and thesis project.


Degrees Offered:

  • Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.)

 

How long does it take to earn a degree?

  • Median time to earn the master’s: 2.8 years (Methods)
Program Degrees Offered

Learning Goals

  • Demonstrate understanding of craft and professional practice through coursework, workshops, and completion of refined imaginative literary manuscripts in multiple genres
  • Identify, research, and examine—through coursework, fieldwork, and literary practice—the natural world and the environmental imagination
  • Broaden and deepen understanding of literary and theoretical traditions of the major genres and the methodologies of craft analysis and practice
  • Broaden and deepen understanding of the cultural and natural environment through significant coursework in environmental courses available at Iowa State University both within and beyond the MFA program and English Department
  • Design, write, workshop, refine, and defend a significant body of publishable- or production-quality imaginative writing, including a full-length thesis manuscript, which demonstrates professional understanding and application of craft and technique, literary tradition, and the environmental imagination
  • Gain practical training and experience in creating and fostering a healthy literary community and sustaining a professional life in letters through teaching and research assistantships and internships, literary journal editorial internships and positions, as well as land stewardship, reading series, and other outreach opportunities
515-294-2477

Graduate Program Office

englgrad@iastate.edu
English Department
Graduate Program Office
Iowa State University
227 Ross Hall
Ames, IA 50011-1201

Program Homepage Program Handbook

Application Requirements

Application Deadlines:

January 5 (once per year for fall semester entry only). Early application completion is encouraged.

Application Details:

This program is open to domestic and international students.

Application Instructions

Admission Requirements

Graduate College Requirements:

  • 4 year Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent)
  • Academic Records/Transcripts
  • Minimum 3.0 GPA (Program may alter requirement.)
  • Proof of English Proficiency.

Program Specific Requirements:

International Requirements:

  • Financial Statement:  Application
  • English Proficiency Minimum:
    TOEFL Paper (PBT) 587
    TOEFL Internet (iBT) 95
    IELTS 7
    PTE 68
    Duolingo (approved through spring 2026) 115
Program Interest Area
Program Department
Does this Program Offer a Distance Option?
No
Program offers a Coursework Only?
No
Program Director
begray@iastate.edu
Program Staff
tsmiley@iastate.edu
jkilborn@iastate.edu
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