Digital Media, M.F.A.

General Program Information

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Faculty: Cheryl Cornett, Todd Emma, Martin Fitzgerald, Jonathan Hounshell, James Livingston, Gregory Marlow, Jacy Richardson, Saritdihkun Somasa

Christopher Wilson

The Master of Fine Art in Digital Media is the terminal degree in the field and is designed for students who are passionate about creating original digital content in the creative economy. The MFA in Digital Media, is designed to serve the professional creative community by both advancing learning and skills, and providing credentials for career transitions. This degree would help graduates to further develop professional, technical, and artistic skills to break into an increasingly competitive industry. M.F.A. in Digital Media at ETSU utilizes a hands-on problem-solving approach with a professional focus to prepare students to be professional digital media practitioners.

There are twelve credit hours in the degree dedicated to advancing the individuals’ skills in their digital media specialization (DIGM 5301 Solo Studio in Digital Media). There are an additional twelve credit hours dedicated towards team work in digital media projects for internal and external clients (DIGM 5302 Group Studio in Digital Media). Since digital media is a swiftly evolving field, there are six credit hours dedicated to experimenting with new technologies (Experimental Media I and II). Additionally, there are twelve credit hours dedicated to the culminating experience where individual students further develop and finalize a professional body of work for peer and faculty review (DIGM 5970 Culminating Experience).

Admission Requirements

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Unconditional Admission

Admission to the M.F.A. in Digital Media follows the ETSU standards for Graduate Admissions. 

Additionally, the M.F.A. in Digital Media requires:

• Three letters of professional or academic reference;
• Portfolio of digital media work;
• Resume.

The selective process for admission to graduate study in the M.F.A. in Digital Media is based on a critical examination by Digital Media Graduate Faculty of the applicant’s academic record, the content of courses taken, synergies between the applicant’s interests and the program’s strengths, content and strength of the recommendations, and the portfolio of studio work, papers, and/or professional experience as appropriate.

Unconditional Admission with Provision(s)

Unconditional Admission with Provision(s) is intended for those students whose undergraduate record does not reflect their current capacity to do graduate work in Digital Media. Unconditional Admission with Provision(s) will have a specified date to remove the provision(s). Applicants admitted on this basis must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0.  A final admission decision shall be determined by the academic unit after the conditions have been met and the applicant’s performance has been evaluated. For unconditional admission status, an applicant must, at a minimum:

• Meet ETSU requirements for graduate admission;
• Satisfy additional admission provision(s) of the Digital Media Department.

These provisional credits will not count towards the completion of the M.F.A. in Digital Media, rather they are required to begin the program.  Unconditional Admission with Provision(s) in Digital Media complies with ETSU policies, found here.

Retention Requirements

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The degree will follow the ETSU Graduate Student Retention Standards, that state, in part: To remain in good standing, a graduate student (degree or non-degree), must maintain an overall grade point average of 3.0 (B) or better on all graduate work attempted. In order to graduate, students must have a minimum 3.0 grade point average overall, and in the program of study. When the cumulative grade point average falls below 3.0, the graduate student will be placed on academic probation. Digital Media complies with the ETSU Retention Policy.