Online + 1 Summer Greeley Intensive
- Master's degree: the Art & Design Master of Arts can be completed in less than two
years (five academic terms).
- Certificate program: the Studio Art Graduate Certificate can be completed in one year
(three academic terms).
Both programs start each fall term and most students will take two courses per term.
Fall and Spring Terms
- Courses during the fall and spring terms can be completed via distance learning.
- You will complete online course activities, including occasional synchronous course
sessions when students and instructor meet online at the same time.
- You will need access to appropriate studio equipment/facilities for your chosen fall
and spring courses.
- If you do not reside near our campus, you will need access to these resources near
you. This can often be equipment you already use at home or at work. The Program Coordinator
can help you determine if you have the proper setup available.
- If you do reside near our campus, you can come to on-campus studios to complete activities.
There is a required safety training for each studio that will be delivered at the
beginning of the appropriate term(s).
Summer Intensive
- Summer coursework will be focused on art studio courses taken on-campus in Greeley,
Colorado, (approximately two weeks in June) with some follow-up coursework online.
- During summer courses, you will use artistic research and studio practice to develop
new skills, themes, purposes and functions for your artmaking.
Coursework
Art and Design Master of Arts: 30 credit hours.
Art Studio Graduate Certificate: 18 credit hours.
These new programs will appear in the UNC Graduate Catalog by May or June 2024. Please
contact the Program Coordinator if you would like to see a breakdown of courses prior
to then.
You can choose your art studio focus in these flexible programs. Art studio elective
options are repeatable up to nine credit hours, and topics include:
- Ceramics.
- Computer Graphics.
- Drawing.
- Integrated Media Arts.
- Metalsmithing
- Painting.
- Photography.
- Printmaking.
- Sculpture.
- Or a personalized combination of courses as available.
Admission Requirements
Possess (or be in the process of finishing) a baccalaureate degree from a regionally
accredited college or university, or a comparable degree from a foreign institution.
Have a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or better (on a 4.00 point scale) for the most recent
degree earned or current degree in progress.
If you are still completing your bachelor's degree at the time you apply, admission
will be based on your current cumulative GPA, and you will need to re-submit your
official transcript (showing your conferred degree and final GPA) during your first
semester. If your final GPA fell below 3.00, you will be given additional requirements
as defined by the academic program that must be met within one calendar year to remain
enrolled at UNC.
If you have completed a master's degree, or at least 18 credit hours towards a master's
degree, the GPA of your master's work will be used.
-
An undergraduate degree in art, art education or the equivalent. An applicant who
does not have an undergraduate major in art, art education or its equivalent may be
required to complete specified coursework or demonstrate competency in specific areas
of study before beginning the program.
- Note for those seeking to meet credential requirements for teaching dual enrollment/undergraduate
Art courses: if you choose the Art Studio Graduate certificate, you will need to hold
a master’s degree in addition to the certificate. If you do not hold a master's degree,
you should choose the MA degree instead.
Eligibility by State
At this time, UNC can serve online education to students from every state, the District
of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. We are not able to offer distance
education in American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,
the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the
Republic of Palau.
Certain programs may have additional state approval processes for some experiential
learning activities, such as practica, internships and clinicals. Please check the
State Authorization page for additional information on UNC’s ability to offer distance education across
state lines and a list of those programs and states where additional state approval
is required. For additional information or questions, please contact jake.henderson@unco.edu.
International Student Eligibility
International students residing outside of the United States are eligible to apply
to our online programs. Applicants for online programs must demonstrate English proficiency,
or enroll in the UNC Intensive English Program, in order to be considered.
This program requires occasional visits to the United States. You will need to submit
financial documentation before you plan to arrive in the U.S. (and again each time
you travel to the U.S.). The financial documentation needs to demonstrate that you
can pay for the cost of tuition and living expenses for the days that you will be
in the U.S.
Please visit the International Students Admission Requirements page for details about English proficiency requirements, financial documentation and applying
as an international student.
Transferring Credit
Master's Program Transfer Credit Policy
UNC graduate school accepts applicable graduate credit with a grade of C or higher
from accredited institutions. Please note that if your chosen program has a higher
grade minimum for any program coursework, that minimum would apply to transfer requests
for those courses. Graduate program faculty are responsible for reviewing any proposed
transfer credit to ensure that course content and objectives match program content.
- Students must complete at least 50% of their graduate program credits at UNC, not
including research, capstone, seminar, internship/externship/practicum, thesis, dissertation
proposal, dissertation and any credits graded with S/U (P/F).
- Courses requested for transfer must not be more than five years old for master's degree
credit, and cannot have been used to fulfill requirements for a previously awarded
degree. See the full Graduate Transfer Credit Policy.
Certificate Program Transfer Credit Policy
Our graduate certificate programs feature highly specialized learning outcomes determined
by our expert faculty. Therefore, to ensure that certificate graduates attain this
specialized knowledge, students will need to complete all certificate coursework directly
from this UNC program.
Tuition
This is an Extended Campus program, which means:
- A flat per-credit tuition rate for all students (in-state or out-of-state)
- There are no student fees – they are incorporated into our flat tuition rate
- Certain courses may carry specific course fees for additional services and materials
Program tuition for the 2023-24 academic year (which runs Fall, Spring, and Summer
terms) is $612 per credit hour. Tuition for the 2024-25 academic year will be determined
mid-June 2024.
Estimates of additional costs: For the purposes of determining financial aid, UNC
follows Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE) and federal guidelines to develop
an estimated, average Cost of Attendance (budget) for different student classifications.
For your personal tuition estimates, we recommend using the program-specific tuition
information above. But UNC's official Cost of Attendance/Student Budgets page can help you identify other estimated expenses for which you may be responsible while
completing your program.
Financial Aid
Master's Program Students
Degree-seeking students who cannot pay for tuition alone are encouraged to apply for
federal financial aid. Students must first complete the Free Application for Federal
Student Aid (FAFSA). The UNC FAFSA/financial aid page for graduate students has key dates and support, including the release date and deadline for each academic
year (a Fall-Spring-Summer cycle which begins each August).
Late submissions of the FAFSA are still accepted throughout the school year but you
may not be considered for the maximum amount of aid. If the priority deadline has
passed for the upcoming/current school year, we encourage you to apply for FAFSA consideration
as soon as you enroll for your first courses. Depending on the time of year, you may
be able to submit an application for the current academic year and an early/priority
application for the following academic year.
Master's degree students must be enrolled in a minimum of 5 credits per academic term for financial aid eligibility. Full time
enrollment is based on 9 credits per term.
To apply for federal financial aid assistance
Fill out the FAFSA form at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa
Certificate-Only Students
Certificate program students (non-degree seeking) are not eligible for aid through
the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Your program coordinator may
be aware of your eligibility for any discipline or campus-based aid if available.
All Students
For more specific help, contact the Office of Financial Aid: ofa@unco.edu, 970-351-4862 or via the UNC Financial Aid website.
Students can also find helpful information such as the Guide to Federal Student Aid
at https://studentaid.gov/resources. Most of the resources are available in English, Spanish and Braille.
Student Health Insurance (for Master's Degree Students Only)
The University of Northern Colorado offers a Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP)
to all degree-seeking students who enroll in courses on our main UNC Campus, an Extended
Campus Center, or Online.
Degree-seeking graduate students enrolled in 6 or more credit hours will automatically
receive this benefit each term. SHIP premiums will appear on your semester bill. If
you have comparable insurance coverage, and do not want to be charged for SHIP coverage,
you must opt out of this plan each Fall via an online waiver process.
Please visit the UNC Student Health Insurance pages for more information about the insurance plan.
