The Master of Arts in Design program provides an opportunity for advanced independent work within a broadly conceived field of visual studies. The program accepts 2-3 students per year, each of whom takes on a project defined in consultation with an advisor to include the active involvement of other CED faculty and, as well, of faculty from other University departments. These projects vary widely as to subject, but the caliber of the work is high, and graduates of the program have consistently received recognition for their accomplishment in the arts, for their curatorial work, and for their teaching at the college and University level. The degree is conferred after completion of a two-to-three semester, 20-unit-minimum individualized program of study (worked out with the advisor), an exhibit, and a thesis.

The core faculty member and chair of the program is Professor Anthony Dubovsky, a painter whose work has been shown internationally, most recently in a solo exhibition at the CUE Art Foundation in New York. Dubovsky, also the author of Jerusalem: To Know by Living (El Leon Literary Arts), is actively involved in online media. Architecture faculty involved in the graduate program thesis work include Mark Anderson, René Davids, and Jill Stoner, among others, along with Chip Sullivan and Walter Hood from Landscape Architecture.

Visual Studies. For students enrolled in other programs at UC Berkeley, the Department of Architecture offers visual studies courses in drawing, photography, and word-image relationships, all of which take the visual world as their focus: how to see, how to structure an image, how to give visual clarity to an idea. See the Visual Studies Area webpage for further information.

Admissions

The program is small and admission is highly selective, with only a few candidates admitted each year. Students applying should have sufficient studio experience to undertake advanced projects independently. The design program is intended for students who wish to pursue an original creative/research project. This is not the program for students who seek applied professional training in graphic design or illustration. See the Master of Arts in Design admissions page for application information.