We have information on this website to get you started: Read the Graduate Program section of this website, especially the Specialization pages. Watch a short video in French with English subtitles with design alum Calypso Michelet. View a new brochure about the MFA in Design. Contact faculty members listed in the Specialization that interests you, or the Graduate Program Director, Gilbert McCauley, with questions or to set up a phone or Zoom meeting.
We are a small graduate program: currently, 15 MFA students (four in Directing, four in Dramaturgy, seven in all areas of Design.) The Department itself is medium-sized, with about 140 undergraduate theater majors.
No. We have admitted students from a wide variety of majors. We do look for students who have a record of commitment to the MFA program they are applying for and/or a portfolio that shows the promise to succeed in that program.
Our MFA students vary widely in age, from right out of college to the later stages of their careers. Most of our entering students are in their mid to late 20s, but we warmly welcome applicants of all ages. In general, we look favorably upon applicants with some level of experience beyond college.
We generally admit a cohort of students two out of every three years. There will be an entering class for Fall 2023, 2024, 2026 and 2027. Applications for admission in fall 2024 are due January 15, 2024. We design our admissions cycle this way to allow our faculty to offer a wider variety of classes and to increase the size of each entering cohort.
Absolutely. We receive applications from around the world, and have admitted students from France, China, India, Iran, Mexico, Taiwan, Turkey, and the UK, to name a few places. UMass has a large population of international students and offers good support for their needs.
The TA-ships vary from area to area, and semester to semester. In Directing and Dramaturgy, they regularly include teaching our introductory classes. They may also include public relations, production management, arts management, or shop-related responsibilities. In the Design programs, they regularly include shop-related responsibilities. They may also occasionally include teaching, public relations, production management, or arts management.
We offer TA-ships to every student we admit, with a stipend of about $23,000 for the 2019-2020 school year. We offer this support for all three years of the student’s study here, pending successful academic progress. The TA-ship also includes a waiver of tuition and generous medical benefits.
Absolutely. All MFA students will be assigned multiple, fully produced mainstage productions over the course of their three years. Directors normally direct a mainstage show in their second and third years. Dramaturgs and Designers will be assigned at least one mainstage show for each of their three years. Generally, MFA students are at the heart of our mainstage season, and we see the season as integral to our curriculum.
No. Our MFA program is designed for three years of residency. In some instances, previous graduate work may allow a student to place out of certain required classes, but all students are still required to complete 60 graduate credits at UMass, which requires three years of study.
You have to apply to one of our five specific programs. With very few exceptions, students pursue their MFAs in this chosen program. On occasion, we encounter students with multiple interests, and we are sometimes able to tailor programs individually for them, though generally one specific MFA program remains their primary area. If you have more questions about combining specific programs, you should ask the Graduate Program Director and area faculty either during the application or interview process.
Our alumni go into theater and many related fields. Some work as freelance artists, some join the faculty of other prestigious theater programs, and others find success with renowned organizations.
No. You only need to be here for the academic year, September through early May. Some students choose to remain in the area over the summer, others go elsewhere or pursue internships.