Master of Fine Arts in Sculpture

Challenge yourself while mastering an interdisciplinary, exploratory approach to multimedia artmaking with Temple’s Master of Fine Arts in Sculpture at the Tyler School of Art and Architecture. Pursue a range of creative pathways in this 60-credit graduate program, including digital fabrication, film and video, large-scale architectural installations, material and object-based practices, performance, research-based practices, socially engaged art, sound, and time-based media. 

Spend extensive studio time in your core area of practice and research and engage in critiques and discourse within a boundary-pushing community that values a robust exchange of ideas. The curriculum emphasizes mentorship, interdisciplinarity, inquiry and research to enrich practices and create theoretical, philosophical and concrete links between art and society. 

Sculpture MFA students learn from an award-winning faculty of artists in state-of-the-art, expansive facilities that host dedicated metal, wood and mold-making shops; new media labs; and a sound recording booth. Students are challenged to grow creatively, intellectually and emotionally through risk-taking, technical mastery and expanded practical knowledge. 

Students have access to extensive resources that inform and advance their practice as part of Temple—a large, public research university located in Philadelphia, a historic city with a vibrant arts scene. Many Tyler MFA students choose to pursue study abroad opportunities at Temple University Rome, a home base for immersive artistic, academic and cultural exploration for Tyler students since 1966. 

An image of a sculpture

Program Format & Curriculum  

MFA Sculpture courses provide a broad, cross-disciplinary framework to develop individual creative practices and professional goals within a community of peers. The faculty-student ratio of two full-time sculpture professors to eight graduate students creates a supportive learning environment to integrate diverse studio practices with independent study and research. The professors are actively exhibiting artists with differing aesthetics and provide mentorship in a range of areas within 3D and multidimensional practice. 

With core courses aligned over two weekdays, students have considerable flexibility and choice when adding art history and other required or elective classes, either within Tyler’s graduate curriculum or across the university. Courses in critique and critical discourse are a foundational to the first year of study. Under the mentorship of a faculty member, students also participate in research and a thesis exhibition. 

Examples of Sculpture MFA coursework include the following classes. 

  • Art History Seminar (5000, 8000 and 9000 level)  
  • Critique and Critical Discourse I and II  
  • Directed Studio Practice  
  • Graduate Projects, Sculpture 
  • Master of Fine Arts Thesis 

​Learn more about the coursework for the Sculpture MFA.

Related Graduate Degrees  

Related Graduate Certificates 

Tuition & Fees

In keeping with Temple’s commitment to access and affordability, this Master of Fine Arts offers a competitive level of tuition with multiple opportunities for financial support.

Tuition rates are set annually by the university and are affected by multiple factors, including program degree level (undergraduate or graduate), course load (full- or part-time), in-state or out-of-state residency, and more. These tuition costs apply to the 2024–2025 academic year.

Pennsylvania resident: $1,318.00 per credit
Out-of-state: $1,751.00 per credit

You can view the full Cost of Attendance breakdown on the Student Financial Services website.

TA-SCLP-MFA

Additional Program Information