EIU Online MA in Art

MA in Community Arts Option

The Master of Arts degree in Art, Community Arts Option provides individuals interested in community arts education with professional development for the teaching of art in multiple settings. Audiences for the Community Arts Option include artists, community workers, education text authors, museum educators, arts center educators, elementary teachers, special needs teachers, and other professionals. This option does not lead to licensure. Professionals may complete their masters part-time over two years by taking courses online during the fall and spring semesters, and art history courses online and studio art courses on campus for two summers or take courses as their other professional commitments allow. 

Benefits of this online program include the following:

1. The online courses allow you the opportunity to continue to work as a professional and earn the MA in Art, Community Arts Option.
2. You are not limited by geographic proximity to EIU.
3. The tuition costs for taking EIU online courses are the same for residents and non-residents of the State of Illinois.
4. Studio courses are designed as eight days of immersive work at EIU proceeded or followed by independent work at home.

Degree Requirements:

• Downloadable Study Plan (pdf)

The Master of Arts in Art, Community Arts Option consists of 21 hours of coursework and six hours of art history, all online courses, and six hours of studio art offered on campus during the summers. Applicants must have 18 hours of ART courses.

All candidates in the Community Arts Option are required to complete a master’s research project.  Students will enroll in ART 5800, Research Methods in Art Education, and ART 5970, Individualized Study in Art Education, to complete an independent research project that documents a substantial application of theory and practice as applied to community arts.  The research project may involve historical, philosophical, empirical, community, or curricular topics.  All candidates are required to pass an oral comprehensive examination of the completed research project in the final term.

Community Arts Coursework Online

 9 semester hours of required coursework:

• ART 5500 - Foundations of Art Education. Credits: 3
• ART 5800 - Research Methods in Art Education. Credits: 3
• ART 5970 - Individualized Study in Art Education. Credits: 3 

12 semester hours of coursework selected from the following:

• ART 5506 - Artistic Development: Contemporary Perspectives on Artistic Learning from Birth through Adulthood. Credits: 3
• ART 5510 - Curriculum Design & Assessment in Art Education. Credits: 3
• ART 5515 - Art, Culture, & Community: Alternative Sites for Art Education. Credits: 3
• ART 5520 - Creative Technology in Art Education. Credits: 3

Art History Coursework Online

 6 semester hours of art history coursework selected from the following:

• ART 5785 - Navigating the Virtual Museum. Credits: 3
• ART 5786 - Special Topics in Art History. Credits: 3

 Total 6 hrs.

Studio Coursework on Campus (8 day intensive on campus studio per summer)

• ART 5563 - Printmaking Techniques. Credits: 3
• ART 5574 - Impressions in Clay. Credits: 3
• ART 5602 - Methods in Digital Media. Credits: 3
• ART 5625 - Methods in Water Media. Credits: 3
• ART 5613 - Investigating the Figure. Credits: 3
• ART 5675 - Creative Casting. Credits: 3
• ART 5804 - Fiber Structures. Credits: 3

 Total 6 hrs.

Admission Requirements:

For admission to the Master of Arts in Art, Community Arts Option, the following departmental, graduate and university requirements will need to be met:

• Possess a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited four-year college or university.
• Have taken 18 hours of art courses.
• Provide an official transcript verifying the degree, grade point average and date of degree completion.
• Meet all of the requirements for admission to the Graduate School.
• Have a 2.75 grade point average on a 4.0 scale or have a 2.75 GPA for the last 60 hours of graded academic work.  Course work taken as a post-baccalaureate student may be considered in the computation of the GPA.
• Submit three letters of recommendation from professors, supervisors or others who can attest to the applicant’s academic and professional performance.

The Department of Art does not require an admissions test (GRE, MAT, GMAT, portfolio or written statement).

International Students:

International students must meet English proficiency requirements (TOEFL or 550 or better, Level 9 Certificate from an ELS Language Center in the United States). See International Students and Scholars website https://www.eiu.edu/international/gcost.php. International students are charged a different tuition rate.