Low Residency MFA in Illustration

Requirements for Admission

“This program allows us to remain professionals, to keep our existing teaching jobs, and yet to still get the best education an illustrator could ask for. It's a winning combination and my sincere thanks go to the administration for their wholehearted support.”

Scott Anderson, Class of 2007
Santa Barbara, CA

Step 1:

An initial telephone interview with Murray Tinkelman, Director and Carol Tinkelman, Program Administrator. Please contact Murray and Carol at tinkelman@hartford.edu and Murray will gladly view your website or a CD of at least 10 of your best commissioned and reproduced illustrations as your portfolio.

Students are evaluated individually on the basis of their work and experience in the field to see if this program is a good fit for them. This program is designed for illustrators, illustrator/designers and illustration educators who wish to further their skills in illustration and who have some experience in field of illustration. After the portfolio is approved and you are ready to apply, we will send the portfolio acceptance form to Graduate Admissions at the Hartford Art School, University of Hartford.

Step 2:

All applicants for the Low Residency MFA in Illustration must apply online. Students are accepted by rolling admissions throughout the year until we reach an incoming class of 20.

Application Requirements:

Phone Interview
Online application
Application fee of $50.00
Official transcripts sent to Graduate Admissions by the issuing institution
1 Letter of recommendation
Letter of Intent
Immunization Record: Required prior to registering for classes

International Students

In addition to the above requirements, International applicants are required to submit the following.

Guarantor's Statement: A certified Guarantor’s Statement of financial support with a bank statement is required.
Transcript Evaluation WES: All international transcripts must be evaluated by WES on a course-by-course basis. Visit www.wes.org *
- International applicants, who incur the expense of having their non-U.S. academic degrees evaluated by WES, have their $45 application fee waived
English Proficiency Examination: TOEFL or IELTS for students who are not native speakers of the English Language. The University of Hartford’s test code is 3436.
- The official score of TOEFL or IELTS is to be submitted by international students who earned a baccalaureate degree in a country where English is not their first language. For information visit TOEFL at www.ets.org and IELTS at www.ielts.org

Please click here for additional information and forms.

Send transcripts and recommendations to:

Graduate Admissions, CC231
University of Hartford
200 Bloomfield Avenue
West Hartford, CT 06117 USA

Recommendations may be emailed to GradStudy@hartford.edu or faxed to 860.768.5160.

Student Financial Assistance

Students enrolled in the program are considered full time during all phases of their course of study and are eligible for student loans. All MFA in Illustration candidates are required to maintain continuous enrollment in the program. The Director of the program must approve all leaves of absence. Graduate students must maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 on a scale of 4.0 to remain in good academic standing in the program. Failure to maintain the required minimum grade point average may result in the loss of merit scholarship funding or dismissal from the program.

Financial Aid: http://www.hartford.edu/graduate/FinancialAid.aspx

Graduate Presidential Fellowships

The Director, Murray Tinkelman, makes one nomination for the University of Hartford Graduate Presidential Fellowship for a fully registered first-year student. The goal of this merit-based fellowship is to recruit the very best applicants to the University’s graduate programs. The award defrays 25% of the student’s annual tuition, up to $5,000, for each of the first two years after matriculation and is paid directly to the student’s Bursar’s account. No extensions of the award beyond two years are possible. In order to be nominated, students must be fully registered by March 1 and intend to start that July. Award recipients are notified by April 1st. Recipients are not required to provide any services to the University in exchange for the award.

Merit Scholarships

Merit Scholarships are awarded to 6 – 8 fully registered students during their first-year. The awarding of scholarships is determined by the Illustration Committee and is based purely on the merit of their professional work. Registered students will be given the necessary information on how to apply for these Scholarships. Merit Scholarships are approximately $4000.00 for your first year only and are applied to your tuition.

Scholarships: http://www.hartford.edu/graduate/Dean.aspx