MFA DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

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MFA Degree Requirements

Revised: October 2021

POLICY
To earn an MFA degree at Maine Media College a student must complete 60 graduate credits. Of these 60 credits, 39 credits (65%) must be earned through mentored projects where the primary focus is on producing creative work; 12 credits (approx. 20%) must be earned in mentored projects where the primary focus is academic; 3 academic credits (approx. 5%) must be earned by completing 3, one-week intensive courses offered at Maine Media College: the remaining 6 credits (10%) may be studio, academic, or any combination of the two as is most beneficial to a student. A student with the guidance of their advisor determines the appropriate distribution of elective credits. While it is possible to earn the required 60 credits in 2 ½ years, an MFA student has three years from matriculation to complete the program.

Credits are semester hour credits. Please refer to “Time on task” in “Standards for Awarding of Credits” for a description of the relationship between semester credit hours and clock hours. These standards conform to those generally accepted throughout academia.

PROCEDURE
The MFA degree is conferred only when the following conditions and requirements are met:

  • Successful completion of all projects and coursework with a “satisfactory” evaluation or better, totaling 60 credits over 3 years.
  • Successful completion of comprehensive progress reviews including the Gateway review after the first year to qualify continuation in the program as well as the Penultimate review to determine the preparedness to undertake thesis work
  • Successful completion of all components of the Thesis Project: a discrete creative work, a written thesis, an oral presentation to take place at a student’s final retreat, and a public exhibition or screening of the creative portion of the thesis. The MFA Committee, including appropriate guest faculty, must accept all elements before the degree will be granted.