Furniture Design Master of Fine Arts Degree
Overview for Furniture Design MFA
The master's in furniture design is structured to support your individual interests and aesthetic development. While engaging in the design and construction of a range of furniture objects, you will be challenged to advance your aesthetic, conceptual, and design sensibilities while simultaneously strengthening your building techniques and construction strategies. You will be exposed to a broad range of contemporary practices and creative approaches to design and art-making in support of experimentation, critical reflection, and the development of your personal aesthetic and design philosophy.
RIT's Master's in Furniture Design
The first year of the furniture design degree exposes you to a broad range of critical issues related to the conception and production of art, serves to inspire and provoke your critical reflection, and facilitates the development of your preliminary thesis topic. You will spend ample time creating work, while you strengthen your woodworking techniques, design fundamentals, and your sense of personal creative expression. In the second year, you will continue to refine your work aesthetic as you propose and fully engage in a thesis project. You will work with RIT's gallery coordinators and curators to install and exhibit a final body of work.
Furniture Design Scholarship Available
The Beth and Ira Nash Endowed Scholarship is available to qualified applicants applying to the master's in furniture design. Learn more about the Beth and Ira Nash Endowed Scholarship, including application deadlines and how to apply.
Studio Residency Program
The School for American Crafts offers a Studio Residency Program for students in ceramics, furniture design, glass, and metals and jewelry design. Residence positions are limited and are awarded after the review of all applicants’ portfolios, transcripts, and references. An interview is required. Accepted residents are required to register for one independent study credit during each semester of residence.
Accepted residents are expected to be present in their assigned studio during class hours and to contribute up to 10 hours of work per week in the main studio. These work hours are coordinated and overseen by the faculty in the resident's discipline. In exchange, the school will provide workspace, access to facilities, and supportive instruction. The resident is invited to participate in the full range of studio activities.
Participants may be those seeking additional studio experience prior to undergraduate or graduate study, early career professionals, or teachers on leave who wish to work again in an academic studio environment. The faculty in each discipline will make decisions concerning appropriate candidates.
Inquiries should be made to the Studio Residency Program, School for American Crafts, College of Art and Design, Rochester Institute of Technology, 73 Lomb Memorial Drive, Rochester, NY 14623-5603.
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Apply early for priority consideration for admission and financial aid.
Applications are accepted after the deadline, but are only considered on a space-available basis.
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30% Tuition Scholarship for NY Residents and Graduates
Now is the perfect time to earn your Master’s degree. If you’re a New York state resident with a bachelor’s degree or have/will graduate from a college or university in New York state, you are eligible to receive a 30% tuition scholarship.
Careers and Experiential Learning
Typical Job Titles
| Craft Artist | Sculptor | Furniture Designer |
| Designer |
Cooperative Education and Internships
What makes an RIT education exceptional? It’s the ability to complete relevant, hands-on career experience. At the graduate level, and paired with an advanced degree, cooperative education and internships give you the unparalleled credentials that truly set you apart. Learn more about graduate co-op and how it provides you with the career experience employers look for in their next top hires.
Co-ops and internships take your knowledge and turn it into know-how. Your art and design co-ops provide hands-on experience that enables you to apply your artistic capabilities in dynamic professional settings while you make valuable connections between classwork and real-world applications.
Cooperative education, internships, and other experiential learning opportunities are optional but strongly encouraged for graduate students in the MFA in furniture design.
Creative Industry Days
Connect with Design Industry Leaders
RIT’s Office of Career Services and Cooperative Education hosts Creative Industry Days, which connects students majoring in art, design, film and animation, photography, and select computing majors with companies, organizations, creative agencies, design firms, and more. Creative Industry Days are a series of events that allow you to network with company representatives and interview directly for open co-op and full-time employment positions.
Featured Work and Profiles
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![Embracing creativity and exploration video]()
Embracing creativity and exploration
Alex Lobos, Gregory Halpern, Elizabeth Kronfield, Todd Jokl The College of Art and Design at RIT offers distinctive graduate degrees that combine the best of art, design, creativity and technology. Our diverse portfolio of graduate program offerings includes...
Read More about Embracing creativity and exploration -
![Culture in Art - Arabic inspiration video]()
Culture in Art - Arabic inspiration
Fatmah Bamashmous ’18 MFA (Furniture Design), from Saudi Arabia, combines Arabic inspiration with traditional woodworking techniques, infusing her cultural heritage with contemporary functional...
Read More about Culture in Art - Arabic inspiration -
![A tall wooden sculpture inspired by industrial architecture.]()
Slip Cast Experiments
Ryan Zimmerman This piece — "Vessel Study: Interior Friend" by Furniture Design MFA student Ryan Zimmerman — is one of a series of similar experimentations, in which he explored the organization and...
Read More about Slip Cast Experiments -
![Leah Woods stands next to one of her large, red sculptures.]()
Alumna Helps Lead Prison Outreach Program
Leah K. Woods ’00 MFA (Woodworking and Furniture Design) chose to attend RIT because of the Furniture Design MFA program’s focus on artistic approach and craftsmanship. Those values have shaped her...
Read More about Alumna Helps Lead Prison Outreach Program -
![A chair design with a cylinder-shaped back support.]()
Culture in Art - Chinese culture and Asian philosophy
Yahui Gao Yahui Gao ’20 MFA (Furniture Design) designs and creates work that contributes to the transformation of an environment, bringing us closer to a feeling of home. The circle becomes a primal connection...
Read More about Culture in Art - Chinese culture and Asian philosophy -
![Wendy Maruyama, a pioneering female artist, in RIT's furniture design studio during a campus visit in 2018.]()
Pioneering Female Artist
As one of the first women to break into the field of studio furniture, trailblazing female artist Wendy Maruyama ’80 MFA (Furniture Design) combines education and ethics on subjects ranging from...
Read More about Pioneering Female Artist
Curriculum for 2024-2025 for Furniture Design MFA
Current Students: See Curriculum Requirements
Furniture Design, MFA degree, typical course sequence
| Course | Sem. Cr. Hrs. | |
|---|---|---|
| First Year | ||
| CWFD-601 | Furniture Design Graduate Studio Furniture Design Graduate Studio covers the advanced aesthetics and techniques of woodworking and culminating in the master’s thesis. This program is structured on the basis of the individual student’s needs, interests and background preparation as they may be determined through faculty counseling. There will be a strengthening of woodworking techniques, design fundamentals and encouragement of personal expression. The student will be encouraged to evaluate new techniques, materials and concepts. This repeatable course leads to the master’s thesis, proposed by the student and approved by the faculty. Lab fee is required. (This course is restricted to students in the WOOD-MFA program.) Studio 12 (Fall, Spring). |
12 |
| STAR-701 | Technology in the Studio This course will introduce a contemporary technology used by the course instructor in their studio practice. Students will be encouraged to investigate how this technology may be applied in their making process. The subjects offered in the course will vary according to the faculty teaching the class. The course can be taken multiple times with faculty permission. (This course is available to RIT degree-seeking graduate students.) Studio 6 (Fall or Spring). |
3 |
| STAR-702 | Studio Art Research This course will prepare graduate students for the written component of the thesis. Course content will cover defining research in the arts, arts based research, research through practice, critical judgment, writing strategically and critically for reflective thinking and scholarly dissemination. At the completion of this course students will be able to write a thesis proposal addressing a research question or direction along with objectives, context, and methods. (Prerequisites: STAR-701 or equivalent course.) Lecture 3 (Spring). |
3 |
| STAR-714 | Ideation and Series Creative flow, having an endless stream of ideas, alternatives, and choices for solutions, helps creative work evolve and reach more advanced levels. In this course students develop appropriate skills and strategies to generate ideas and develop them effectively into a cohesive body of work. (Prerequisites: This course is restricted to students in the FNAS-MFA or GLASS-MFA
or METAL-MFA or CCER-MFA or WOOD-MFA programs.) Studio 6 (Fall). |
3 |
Open Electives |
6 | |
Professional Elective |
3 | |
| Second Year | ||
| CWFD-601 | Furniture Design Graduate Studio Furniture Design Graduate Studio covers the advanced aesthetics and techniques of woodworking and culminating in the master’s thesis. This program is structured on the basis of the individual student’s needs, interests and background preparation as they may be determined through faculty counseling. There will be a strengthening of woodworking techniques, design fundamentals and encouragement of personal expression. The student will be encouraged to evaluate new techniques, materials and concepts. This repeatable course leads to the master’s thesis, proposed by the student and approved by the faculty. Lab fee is required. (This course is restricted to students in the WOOD-MFA program.) Studio 12 (Fall, Spring). |
12 |
| STAR-706 | Business Practices for Studio Artists This class is devoted to business issues that artists must address including portfolio management, pricing and marketing strategies, and public relations for pursuit of a professional career as studio artists. Financial and communication skills are highlighted as are networking skills for the advancement of an artist’s work. (Prerequisites: This course is restricted to students in the FNAS-MFA or GLASS-MFA
or METAL-MFA or CCER-MFA or WOOD-MFA programs.) Lecture 3 (Spring). |
3 |
| STAR-718 | Research Methods and Publication Students will conduct research appropriate for individual thesis directions, incorporate that research into writing, analyze and review their thesis body of work then produce and publish their written thesis document. (Prerequisites: STAR-702 or equivalent course.) Lecture 3 (Spring). |
3 |
| STAR-790 | Research and Thesis This is the first of two courses designed to advance a student towards completion of their thesis. Students will work independently on their approved proposal while meeting on a regular basis with their committee chair. Students are required to meet at least twice with their full committee during the semester. (Prerequisites: STAR-702 or equivalent course.) Thesis (Fall). |
3 |
| STAR-890 | Thesis For this final thesis course students continue working with their committee to evaluate work produced, and select the work to be exhibited. In addition, students will work with gallery coordinators and curators to install and exhibit their final body of work. Students are expected to defend their work to the committee through an oral defense and a written document. (Prerequisite: STAR-790 or equivalent course.) Thesis (Spring). |
6 |
Open Elective |
3 | |
| Total Semester Credit Hours | 60 |
|
Professional Electives
| Course | |
|---|---|
| ARTH-600+ | Any ARTH-600 level course or above This course explores the history of contemporary art and visual culture from postmodernism to the present. We will focus on major artistic movements such as Pop Art, Minimalism, Conceptualism, Performance Art, and Relational Aesthetics. Along with and inseparable from aesthetics and media, we will chart the ways in which class, gender, race, and sexual inequality have figured into the major aesthetic movements of our time. By reading theory and criticism, discussing artworks across media forms, and researching artistic movements in context, students will examine art since the 1960s and its connections to cultural history. Graduate students will complete a research project and class presentation in addition to the writing assignments and discussion expected in the undergraduate section. Lecture 3 (Spring). |
| IDEA-705 | Thinking About Making: The Practice of Art in a Global Society The course seeks to bridge the gap between studio practice and contemporary art history. Course content will explore current work and ask questions about what is art, who is the audience, what is “our” art making practice, and how does that fit within the larger context of the current state of the global art world. How do we measure success and artistic failure? The course emphasizes observation, critical analysis, and written interpretation. Lecture 3 (Fall, Spring). |
| IDEA-776 | College Teaching and Learning This course will provide students with an introduction to the scholarship of teaching and learning in the university environment. Students will explore a range of perspectives on pedagogical practice, curriculum development and the assessment of learning in a studio, lab and seminar based classroom. Additionally, students will focus on ways that students learn, how learning can be improved, and different methods of conducting research into teaching and learning. Students are expected to write critical papers and essays, develop curriculum resources, and to participate in weekly small and large format discussion groups. Online technology is utilized in addition to lectures, videos, and other forms of media. (This course is restricted to CAD degree-seeking graduate students.) Lecture 3 (Fall). |
| STAR-635 | Curating and Managing Art Spaces This course explores the roles of contemporary, traditional, and alternative art spaces through curatorial studies, exhibition evaluation and criticism. Student will consider gallery administration roles and supporting operations, and undertake site visitations and gallery research. Students will organize and install a final exhibition project in an approved exhibition venue. (This class is restricted to degree-seeking graduate students or those with permission from instructor.) Lecture 3 (Fall). |
| STAR-645 | Art Exhibition Critique This course will explore the role of the art exhibition and its effect on the discourse and practice of art. Course content will focus on: contemporary and historical exhibition studies, individual and group projects. Student will also conduct site visitations and evaluation, and critique work in the context of exhibition. (This class is restricted to degree-seeking graduate students or those with permission from instructor.) Lecture 3 (Fall). |
| STAR-758 | Studio Art Critique Students will explore the process of critical analysis of studio work. Content will focus on the structure and form of the critique process. They will discuss, defend, and interpret existing studio work as they work towards their thesis. Faculty led critiques will include studio visits for in depth analysis of works in progress. (Prerequisites: This course is restricted to students in the FNAS-MFA or GLASS-MFA
or METAL-MFA or CCER-MFA or WOOD-MFA programs.) Lecture 3 (Fall, Spring). |
Admissions and Financial Aid
This program is available on-campus only.
| Offered | Admit Term(s) | Application Deadline | STEM Designated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full‑time | Fall | February 1 priority deadline, rolling thereafter | No |
Full-time study is 9+ semester credit hours. International students requiring a visa to study at the RIT Rochester campus must study full‑time.
Application Details
To be considered for admission to the Furniture Design MFA program, candidates must fulfill the following requirements:
- Complete an online graduate application.
- Submit copies of official transcript(s) (in English) of all previously completed undergraduate and graduate course work, including any transfer credit earned.
- Hold a baccalaureate degree (or US equivalent) from an accredited university or college. A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 (or equivalent) is recommended.
- Submit a current resume or curriculum vitae.
- Submit a personal statement of educational objectives.
- Submit two letters of recommendation.
- Entrance exam requirements: None
- Submit a portfolio. View portfolio requirements.
- Submit English language test scores (TOEFL, IELTS, PTE Academic), if required. Details are below.
English Language Test Scores
International applicants whose native language is not English must submit one of the following official English language test scores. Some international applicants may be considered for an English test requirement waiver.
| TOEFL | IELTS | PTE Academic |
|---|---|---|
| 79 | 6.5 | 56 |
International students below the minimum requirement may be considered for conditional admission. Each program requires balanced sub-scores when determining an applicant’s need for additional English language courses.
How to Apply Start or Manage Your Application
Cost and Financial Aid
An RIT graduate degree is an investment with lifelong returns. Graduate tuition varies by degree, the number of credits taken per semester, and delivery method. View the general cost of attendance or estimate the cost of your graduate degree.
A combination of sources can help fund your graduate degree. Learn how to fund your degree
Crafts Scholarships
Students applying to the MFA programs in ceramics, glass, furniture design, and metals and jewelry design may apply for a competitive, full-tuition scholarship. Learn more about the crafts scholarships, including eligibility, application requirements, and deadlines to apply.
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January 18, 2024
![illustration of a brown sofa in a green dumpster.]()
Your New $3,000 Couch Might Be Garbage in Three Years. This Is Why.
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Contact
- Delaney Ball
- Assistant Director
- Office of Graduate and Part-Time Enrollment Services
- Enrollment Management
- 585‑475‑6933
- Delaney.Ball@rit.edu
- Andy Buck
- Professor
- School for American Crafts
- College of Art and Design
- aabsac@rit.edu
School for American Crafts