Professor Carole Rosenstein studies cultural policy and the social life of the arts and culture with a focus on cultural democracy and cultural equity.
New ways of thinking built by testing Arts Management practice.
"Today, artists, arts organizations, and art lovers face real and pressing challenges. We require new ways of organizing and resourcing our creative lives. This MFA provides space, time, platforms, and money for Arts Management innovators to grow their ideas about directions and methods of change for the field." – Professor of Arts Management and Director of the MFA Arts Management Concentration, Carole Rosenstein.
About the Master of Fine Arts (MFA) Concentration in Arts Management:
Are you an Arts Manager with a new idea for how to use technology in community outreach, programming, or fundraising? Perhaps you want to explore how a business model such as a Cooperative or an L3C might work to support your artistic mission? Maybe you want to contribute to building a relatively underdeveloped area of the arts ecosystem such as artist support or arts in the public sector?
George Mason University’s Master of Fine Arts in Visual and Performing Arts (MFA) – Arts Management Concentration is a new 60-credit terminal degree for Arts Managers who wish to innovate arts management practice through research and experimentation.
This highly selective and individualized program of study welcomes applicants who already hold an MA in Arts Management or a closely related field. Students may transfer up to 29 credits from an earned Master’s degree into this MFA – Arts Management Concentration, and the program is designed so that it is possible for a student who transfers 29 credits to complete this MFA degree in one calendar year.
In 2025-2026, its inaugural year, the MFA – Arts Management Concentration will offer two Fellowships for Innovation in Arts Management.
Fellows will receive:
- Free tuition and fees (within the MFA curriculum)
- A research stipend of $36,000/per academic year
- Subsidized health insurance
Fellows must maintain full-time enrollment. Fellowships are renewable for one additional year.
All enrolled MFA – Arts Management Concentration students are expected to stay in residence in the greater Washington, DC area for their first two semesters in the program to attend courses and meet with faculty.
Think this program might be a good fit for you? If you have questions, please contact Carole Rosenstein, Professor of Arts Management and Director of the MFA – Arts Management Concentration.
Applications will open September 15, 2024; the deadline for completed applications is December 15, 2024. Interested students should contact Carole Rosenstein to start an application.
Frequently Asked Questions about the MFA
What is a Master of Fine Arts (MFA)?
A Master of Fine Arts or MFA is a practice-oriented, terminal graduate degree. It is a type of degree particular to the arts.
An MFA is practice-oriented in the sense that the curriculum focuses on artistic practice and that, in order to earn the degree, students are asked to produce work demonstrating mastery of the practice of an arts discipline. In a creative writing MFA, this might mean producing a collection of poems. In a studio art MFA, this might mean producing an exhibition of paintings. In an arts management MFA, this might mean producing a community engagement or public administration program, managing a performance series, or creating a new organization.
An MFA is a terminal degree in the sense that it is considered the highest degree in a field. In arts management, we have two types of terminal degree: the MFA and the PhD. In general, an MFA is practice-oriented, while a PhD is oriented toward scholarship.
It is important to note that both the MFA and the PhD are research-based degrees. MFAs do their research on varieties and histories of forms of practice and use that research to test and create new work in an arts discipline.
Why get an MFA in Arts Management?
An MFA provides three important potential benefits:
- First, an MFA program enables its students to take what they have learned a step further – to engage deeply in a question or problem of their choosing and formulate new ideas about how to understand and address it.
- Second, an MFA program provides time, support, feedback, platforms, expertise, and community to build, test, and grow those ideas.
- Third, because an MFA is a terminal degree, it can provide advantages to those who wish to go on to teaching full-time in a university.
How long will it take to complete the MFA with an Arts Management Concentration?
This will depend on two primary factors: 1) how many credits a student can transfer from their MA degree, and 2) how long a student spends writing their thesis. If enrolled full-time, a student who transfers the maximum number of credits from the MA – 29 transfer credits – can complete the remaining MFA coursework in two semesters. A student in this situation could complete the thesis in one additional semester. However, students may choose to take longer to complete their thesis. Students who transfer fewer than 29 credits and those who will attend part-time should plan to spend at least four semesters completing the MFA.
Students must complete the degree within nine years of their admit term, learn more about George Mason University's graduate policies.
How much will it cost to complete the MFA with an Arts Management Concentration?
Fellows pay no tuition or credit-related fees for the MFA, so long as they maintain fulltime status, remain in residence in the greater Washington, DC area for their first two semesters in the program, and (if necessary) are successfully renewed for a second year.
In AY 2024-2025, graduate tuition in the College of Visual and Performing Arts at George Mason University is $589/credit (in-state) and $1520/credit (out-of-state). Paid credits carry additional student fees of approximately $190/credit. Student can review the most current tuition rates by visiting Students Accounts.
An MFA – Arts Management Concentration student who can transfer 29 credits into the MFA would pay a total of approximately $24,200 (in-state) or $53,100 (out-of-state) to enroll in the remaining 31 credits required to complete the degree.
Currently, federal government loans to graduate students allow for maximum borrowing of $20,500 per year. For the most updated information and to understand your Financial Aid support, students should contact the Office of Student Financial Aid.