Design (M.F.A.)

In the School of Design we have a long history of designing with social impact in mind. We are excited to relaunch our two-year design master of fine arts (M.F.A.) degree with a deliberate focus on how design can be used as a tool to address the systemic issues that impact society. There has perhaps never been a more important moment in history for designers to join with others to address issues of social impact such as equity, access, and how to imagine and build regenerative futures. We welcome applications for Summer 2025 entry.

Admission + Portfolio Requirements

Visit Opportunities

Where We Came From

When we first designed this M.F.A. degree in 2012, we envisaged a degree that would allow students to wrestle with some of the wicked problems that face us as a society, an ecosystem, and frankly, as a planet. Over a decade later, all of us know all too well the challenges of climate change, the challenge of establishing true equity for all, and the challenge of discovering new regenerative ways to coexist on this planet with all of its inhabitants.

Design is at the heart of these issues. It is responsible for many of the issues that flow from over-consumption and a propagation of a Western capitalist worldview. It also has the potential to be a key factor in finding ways through and out the other side of many of these challenges.

Where We Are Going

As designers in this new and complex era we must be catalysts of change–not the sole creative genius to sell a great idea but an empathic, listening facilitator who takes our powerful design tools out of the studio and places them in the hands of people at the grass roots of these many and various challenges.  We must partner with people like this:

• The food studies expert who is wrestling with how to scale and propagate an innovation to combat food deserts.
• The activist who is trying to communicate the need for a collective re-envisioning of land and resource use and stewardship in the face of infrastructure change.
• The clinician who is trying to find affordable ways to create adaptations for people with disabilities to enable them to have a more independent life.

Overall we must find ways to co-create a regenerative future for society, people, and planet in which we can all not just survive but thrive.

The Design M.F.A.

The design M.F.A. is a two-year graduate program that engages students in collaborative practice within a dynamic, multidisciplinary studio environment. This professional graduate program breaks down boundaries and brings together students, faculty, communities, and businesses to work collaboratively on the world’s significant problems for the greater good.

We offer a dynamic multidisciplinary studio environment within a tier one research-led university. This professional graduate program is designed to operate across disciplinary boundaries collaborating with experts across the University and beyond working in a spirit of co-creation and participation to together seek to understand and find collective solutions to some of the most entrenched systemic issues facing people and planet.

• Do you see the potential of design in addressing social impact?
• Are you excited by the idea of co-creating responses to systemic societal issues?
• Do you understand that these issues are too complex and entangled to work on alone as a designer?
• Are you looking for a community to learn with, and create stories of hope?
• Do you want to work with others to research the issues, define the problems, and co-create solutions?

If so, come and join us.

The program intersects design thinking with a specific area of focus, allowing for in-depth exploration of major issues with a variety of industry and research partners. The M.F.A. in design is closely aligned with the internationally recognized strengths of Syracuse University, allowing design to be integrated with various campus-wide initiatives. Examples include:

• Sustainability (Syracuse CoE, Biomaterials Institute)
• Entrepreneurship (Martin J. Whitman School of Management, Blackstone LaunchPad)
• Social innovation (Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics, College of Law)
• Aging and disability studies (Aging Studies Institute, School of Education Center on Human Policy)

We are proud of our alumni, who come from across the globe, including China, India, Pakistan, Syria, Taiwan, and New York State (Brooklyn and Syracuse).

A background in design is normally required for admission, although we have in the past had exceptional candidates who can demonstrate an affinity with design practice through their prior experience and learning. If you think you are this person, please don’t hesitate to contact us so we can discuss your interest in the program.

All students will attend a summer orientation to gain an understanding of the many opportunities for focused research on our campus. They are also required to take Design Thinking and Strategies (DES 601) in preparation for the fall semester.

New Project Example: Design Project Class DES 772

Kahuna

The students in DES 772 imagined one possible future for global travel informed by post-pandemic realities of remote working and a desire for low-carbon travel. Here we see a map of the route that the “Kahuna” would take assisted by ocean currents and the trade winds, thus limiting the additional power needed to move the vessel. The vision was to take six weeks to make a trip from the Americas to Europe, but because of the design of the floating environment the experience would be far more sustainable than existing means of transportation. It was exciting to see the detail that the students went into to overcome challenges and bring this concept to life.

Curriculum

View full curriculum for the M.F.A in design.