Master of Fine Arts in Design - Exhibition Design

The MFA in Design is a two-year program that encourages an interdisciplinary approach through research and practice that align with social and environment responsibilities. We offer graduate students a unique opportunity to work with a dedicated and renowned design faculty within one of the nation's top public research universities. And we do our best to fully fund our graduate students through Teaching Assistant (TA) and Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) positions. Students work with outstanding faculty within the Design Department and the greater university. Design faculty expertise includes design theory, exhibition, fashion, history, information, interactivity, interior architecture, immersion, lighting, product, textiles, time-base, visual communication, wearables, and more. Students are encouraged to build connections across campus by working with faculty from the arts and humanities, to social sciences and politics, from biological sciences and agriculture, to the professional schools of medicine, law and veterinary.

The MFA in Design prepares students with an emphasis in Exhibition Design for research, teaching and professional leadership opportunities in a highly interdisciplinary field that shapes museum, theme park, tradeshow, exposition, retail, public and civic spaces. An expanding global economy demands a need for exhibition design research that explores innovative approaches to artifact display, interpretive and narrative environments, signage and wayfinding, and engaging experiences for a broad range of audiences that are fully immersive, interactive and participatory. Visit Storied Spaces for more information about the exhibition design concentration in the UC Davis Department of Design.

Applicants to our MFA should hold an undergraduate degree with a minimum of a 3.0 GPA, preferably in design or related field such as art, art history, or architecture. They should show excellent promise in design, as demonstrated by portfolio review, and have had suitable course preparation in foundation areas such as two- and three-dimensional composition, drawing, media, computer graphics, design history, art history, and related social sciences, as well as in the area of study they wish to pursue. Undergraduate studies should include a minimum of 20 units of university level design or topics related to the areas of design taught at UC Davis. Letters of Recommendation. Transcripts. For International Students, you must have a TOEFL score of above 90 (speaking must be 26 or above) or a minimum IELTS score of 8. Duolingo is also accepted and a minimum of 115.