Degrees & Majors
Choose from dozens of nationally ranked and recognized programs and more than 250 majors, minors and pathways at Georgia State offering the widest variety of fields of study.
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The information shared here is intended to provide an overview of Georgia State’s offerings. For details on admissions requirements, tuition, courses and more please refer to the university catalogs.
The Georgia State University undergraduate concentration in Art Education prepares pre-kindergarten through 12th grade art educators with expertise in the visual arts and the skills to plan and teach in a way that is responsive to all students and their communities.
The program builds a community of collegial professionals who demonstrate disciplinary expertise, including art teaching skills with sound pedagogical strategies, an understanding of current scholarship and issues within the field and the ability to positively impact student learning. Special emphasis is placed on the teaching of diverse learners in urban and metropolitan settings. The program bridges the gap between theory and practice—helping students develop skills as an instructor and an artist.
Art Education students benefit from the activities of the National Art Education Association, which provides a variety of early professional experiences for pre-service teachers, including the organization of exhibitions of art education student and alumni artwork, the sponsorship of fundraisers and service projects in the Atlanta area and travel to state and national conferences.
The program also reflects a professional art school commitment to the mastery of art media. Students are required to take several courses in one art discipline to gain the depth needed for teaching and personal artistic development, as well as a broad range of elective studio courses to master the diverse skills that will be needed as a classroom teacher.
The student experience: Three of the four pre-student-teaching courses include on-site classroom observations. The last semester of the program is spent student-teaching with master's-level teachers in the Atlanta metropolitan area.
Georgia State University's Master of Arts in Teaching, Art Education (M.A.T.): Students seeking a teaching certification at the graduate level may apply to the M.A.T. in Art Education. Candidates for the M.A.T. may be asked to complete additional coursework as advised by graduate faculty based on the portfolio review. Students in this program may be artists who have worked in the community, experienced art teachers or recent art graduates.
The Georgia State University undergraduate Art History program approaches visual culture from an international perspective and features the history of the art of Africa, Europe, and North and South America. To prime students for a career in the 21st century, the school offers a full historical spectrum, engaging you in cross-disciplinary methods of analysis and evaluation. Study-abroad programs, internships and research assistantships offer additional opportunities for you to gain expertise in the field. The program prepares you for graduate work and professions in museums, galleries, non-profits, art consultancies and publishing.
The program emphasizes the study of visual art in relation to the historical and cultural contexts in which it was created. Students learn interdisciplinary methods of analysis and develop research, writing, formal analysis and critical thinking skills. Coursework takes the form of lower-level surveys of Western and non-Western art, higher-level specialized lecture classes and Introduction to Art Historical Methodology a seminar on Art Historical Methods and Research. The Art History program offers a variety of classes on a rotating basis, including courses in Ancient Roman Art, Medieval Art, Early Modern (Renaissance) Art, 18th and 19th-Century European Art, Latin American Art, Modern and Contemporary American and European Art, African Art and Contemporary African Art.
Art History, Dual Undergraduate/Graduate
Art History, Dual Undergraduate/Graduate
The Ernest G. Welch School of Arts & Design and The College of the Arts offer a dual undergraduate/graduate degree program in Art History. The program provides students with the opportunity to complete a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in as short a period as five years.
Acceptance into the dual-degree program does not constitute admission to the graduate-degree program. Admission to the graduate program occurs in the senior year and is contingent upon 1) earning a bachelor’s degree, 2) maintaining the required program grade-point average, 3) performing in the graduate-level courses taken during the bachelor’s degree program and 4) meeting the other admission requirements of the specific program.
The Georgia State University Arts Administration concentration provides students with a broad-based knowledge of business and the arts and positions graduates for managerial positions in galleries, theaters and other arts organizations, especially in the nonprofit sector. The program allows students with an interest in the arts to develop widely marketable skills. Students take courses in nonprofit management, business communication and marketing with electives in business administration, creative media industries study, entrepreneurship, marketing and nonprofit management.
There are four thematic concentrations: Art History Administration, Music Administration, Studio Administration and Theatre Administration.
Students can pursue their interest in the arts in one of these four areas while also taking courses in nonprofit management, business communication and marketing.
An internship course is required for Art History Administration and Theatre Administration or can be taken as an elective in Music Administration and Theatre Administration. Other possible electives include business administration, creative media industries and world languages courses.
Our campus is in the heart of downtown Atlanta. We are part of a thriving, vibrant arts scene with many arts administration opportunities in art, music and theatre.
The Georgia State University Ceramics emphasis fosters personal exploration of subject matter, technical proficiency in a broad range of working methods, and professional presentation. Students in this program develop a broad base of technique and process knowledge that emphasizes experimentation and conceptual development. The program encourages mixed media exploration, stemming from a core knowledge of ceramic art. The students develop an understanding of ceramics’ vast history as well as an investigation of contemporary practices.
Methods taught include handbuilding, wheel throwing, mold-making, slip casting, press molding, clay extrusion, figure sculpting, portrait sculpting, glaze calculation, decal creation and china painting.
Students gain the experience of organizing events and marketing through their involvement with the student organization, Student League of Independent Potters (SLIPS). The organization is responsible for managing a budget, participating in fundraising through two annual sales of work and coordinating two annual visiting artist workshops.
The Georgia State Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) in Ceramics program emphasizes professional skills and achievements and fosters personal direction, diversity, technical proficiency and professional presentation. The Ceramics program offers a highly progressive curriculum that considers ceramics as a broad-based, interdisciplinary practice while providing a strong foundation in the history of the discipline and fostering technical mastery of the material. The individual direction of each student is further developed and focused through intensive time in the studio, group interaction across disciplines and periodic critical reviews. Sensitive handling of material, the integrity of craftsmanship and depth of inquiry are the unifying characteristics of work made in the ceramics M.F.A. program.
The program emphasizes group seminars and critiques to provide a variety of settings for the development and exchange of ideas relevant to the arts in general and ceramics in particular. In the final two semesters of the graduate program, the student completes a thesis exhibition and writes a supporting thesis paper.
A strong component of the graduate program involves assistantships in either studio work or in teaching undergraduate-level courses. Students may teach a variety of courses during their studies, from Foundations to Introductory Ceramics. These experiences in conjunction with the acquisition of professional skills such as resume writing, job application skills and self-promotion prepare the student with the tools to be a professional artist once studies are complete.
Students also gain the experience of organizing events and marketing through their involvement with the student organization, Student League of Independent Potters. The organization is responsible for managing a budget, participating in fundraising through two annual sales of work and coordinating two annual visiting artist workshops.
Choral Conducting Concentration, Artist Certificate (ACERM)
The Choral Conducting concentration at Georgia State University offers exceptional training to talented musicians wishing to study choral art at an advanced level. Intensive study with our faculty and regular performance experience is the foundation for developing highly qualified, professional conductors. Students in the program regularly conduct the Master Singers, an auditioned chamber choir of 20 to 30 voices in rehearsal and performance and assist with the other four choral ensembles (Treble Choir, Tenor-Bass Choir, University Singers and Choral Union).
Choral Conducting Concentration, Master of Music (M.Mu.)
The Georgia State University Master of Music with a concentration in Choral Conducting program offers exceptional training to talented musicians wishing to study choral art at an advanced level. Intensive study with our faculty and regular performance experience is the foundation for developing highly qualified, professional conductors. Students in the program regularly conduct the Master Singers, an auditioned chamber choir of 20 to 30 voices in rehearsal and performance and assist with the other four choral ensembles (Treble Choir, Tenor-Bass Choir, University Singers and Choral Union).
The graduate program in Film/Video/Digital Imaging prepares students for professional activities in all areas of film/video/digital imaging in which the school has emphasis (moving image studies), as well as for continued advanced graduate work at the Ph.D. level. Those in the Moving Image Studies track write research theses examining the problems in the theory and history of moving images. The M.A. track in Moving Image Studies can be pursued as an end in itself (for example, educators in English and the humanities who find themselves increasingly working with moving images in their disciplines), but is often the stepping stone for pursuing the doctorate.
The Moving Image Production emphasis of the MA degree remains a part of the School of Film, Media & Theatre but is primarily designed to support our Dual-Degree program. All applicants who are interested in filmmaking and who were not in the Dual-Degree program at Georgia State as an undergraduate are encouraged to apply to the Filmmaking concentration of the MFA degree in Digital Filmmaking.
Communication Studies - Moving Image Studies, Ph.D.
The Ph.D. in Communication Studies with a concentration in Moving Image Studies is specifically designed to provide students with the conceptual and methodological tools to study the complex and vastly expanded moving image environment of the 21st century, where the boundaries separating cinema, television and new media are breaking down. Moving Image Studies is an outgrowth of cinema studies, television studies, new media studies, cultural studies and critical theory. Many of our core seminars are designed to cut across media boundaries (by examining how models, paradigms and methods are problematized and enriched, as we move across specific media); while other seminars are devoted to intensive examination of problems within a specific media formation.
The doctorate in Moving Image Studies is designed to give students a solid foundation in a specific moving image medium (whether cinema, television, or new media), while at the same time give them the preparation and the confidence to research and write about moving images wherever they circulate. The program encourages innovative new work that challenges existing paradigms of media study, that is theoretically rigorous, and that is aware of historical and cultural specificity.
Composition Concentration, Bachelor of Music (B.Mu.)
The Georgia State Bachelor of Music with a concentration in Composition offers students personalized instruction and an immersive learning experience. The program features distinguished guest speakers like Eric Whitacre, George Lewis, Caroline Shaw, John Luther Adams and the Grammy Award-winning ensemble, Roomful of Teeth.
Collaborative opportunities in film scoring, including a recent web series with the School of Film, Media, and Theater (FMT), further enhance students' practical skills. This comprehensive program not only provides exceptional faculty guidance and inspiring guest lectures but also equips students for graduate study in composition, professional composing careers and teaching positions. Successful applicants demonstrate proficiency in theory and aural skills, submit a portfolio of compositions with accompanying recordings and pass an entrance jury.
Freshman and sophomore students may enroll in Composition Seminar to develop their portfolio. Completion of Theory I and Aural Skills I is required for admission into the Composition Seminar.
Composition Concentration, Master of Music (M.Mu.)
The Georgia State University Composition Concentration offers aspiring composers a comprehensive and immersive experience. The curriculum is designed to develop students' artistic expression and compositional skills across various musical genres and styles. Through individualized instruction, students work closely with experienced faculty, honing their composition techniques and exploring their unique creative voices.
The program emphasizes traditional and contemporary composition approaches, fostering a well-rounded understanding of music theory, orchestration and electronic music. Students have access to state-of-the-art facilities and resources, including cutting-edge recording studios and composition software, allowing them to bring their musical ideas to life with professional-level production quality.
The mission of the Georgia State School of Music is to preserve, promote and advance humanity’s rich and expanding tradition of artistic music-making through performance, composition, education and research in accordance with the urban and global initiatives of the university.
The graduate programs in the School of Music offer unparalleled opportunities in one of America’s most vibrant urban centers. The school enrolls about 90 students in Master of Music degree programs, Artist Certificate programs, and Ph.D. and Ed.D. programs in music education.
Students have the opportunity to work with an internationally acclaimed faculty of 40 full-time and 24 part-time faculty in concentrations such as performance, pedagogy, music education, conducting, composition and jazz studies.
Conducting (Low-Residency) Concentration, Master of Music (M.Mu.)
The Master of Music concentration in Conducting (Low-Residency) at Georgia State offers conductors who are already working in the field the opportunity to advance their education and training during the summer. Students must hold a Bachelors in Music degree and have regular access to leading a large ensemble. This degree is offered in a fully online format during the academic year (fall and spring) with an in-person format for the Summer I Session (June). Applicants may apply for fall, spring, or summer admission.
For guidance and feedback, students take the respective conducting course (Choral Conducting or Instrumental Conducting) online in either the fall or spring semester of the program. During the summer, students participate in a six-credit hour conducting seminar that overlaps with the Atlanta Summer Conducting Institute (as auditors only). One additional elective course is also available each summer to round out the needed degree credits.
Digital Filmmaking, Filmmaking Concentration, M.F.A.
Launching in fall 2022, the new Georgia State University Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) in Digital Filmmaking program and its Filmmaking concentration leverage the rich curriculum of the School of Film, Media & Theatre to create an ethically sustainable and socially engaged future for film and media production. The program cultivates diverse perspectives in an active and demanding learning environment within Atlanta's vibrant cultural and historical traditions.
The Filmmaking concentration prepares candidates to produce documentary, fiction, experimental, community-based and advocacy media, and 16mm and 35mm filmmaking through a combination of rigorous practice, collaboration and study. The program shapes candidates into well-rounded and skilled individuals with a thorough knowledge of film and media production and may contribute to the ongoing social justice work while developing distinctive styles of visual expression attractive to industry, artistic and activist communities.
Georgia State has been teaching film production at the graduate level for over 25 years, making it the longest-running graduate film school in Georgia.
Students in the Filmmaking concentration will:
- Gain a thorough grounding in the strategies, complexities and varieties of contemporary filmmaking and creative mediamaking.
- Be exposed to new storytelling perspectives to challenge traditional filmmaking structures and realize alternative possibilities to represent the human experience and condition.
- Engage in mentorship with award-winning and internationally recognized faculty filmmakers.
- Become adept in a diverse and expressive range of approaches to do work that synergizes arts-based and industrial practices.
- Partner with critical studies and scholarship in the School of Film, Media & Theatre, including the internationally renowned research group liquid blackness
- Leverage creative opportunities with other arts disciplines across the College of the Arts, including theatre, music, visual arts and design.
- Discover and hone an artistic voice through courses in directing, producing, screenwriting, cinematography, editing, sound design, documentary and experimental media in preparation for each candidate's thesis project.
- Explore filmmaking in multicultural Atlanta, the third-largest media capital in America in the heart of Georgia's booming film and television industries. This unique environment provides filmmakers with access and experience to navigate the demands of a fast-changing and competitive film industry.
- Engage in rigorous, hands-on learning and professional training and develop a rich understanding of cinema and media history, theory and aesthetics while anticipating and developing future media practices.
- Gain practical teaching experience through funded teaching assistantships that prepare candidates for a career in education. The M.F.A. degree is a terminal degree required for most college/university teaching positions in film/media production.
- Acquire industry experience through Georgia Film Academy and Trilith Studios (formerly Pinewood Studios) for specialized technologies and crafts such as post-production, lighting and art direction, etc.
The M.F.A. in Digital Filmmaking offers two concentrations. The Filmmaking concentration is administered through the School of Film, Media & Theatre. The Visual Effects & Virtual Production concentration is offered through the Creative Media Industries Institute (CMII). Applicants applying for the Visual Effects & Virtual Production concentration should visit CMII.
The Georgia State Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) in Drawing and Painting program supports artists who explore unique approaches to the creative endeavor and who transcend boundaries. We are interested in applicants searching for new insights into our culture and time. The faculty encourages innovative and original ideas.
The curriculum of the Drawing and Painting program ensures a comprehensive exposure to an array of perspectives as represented by the various approaches to media, content, imagery and teaching styles of our faculty. Students are encouraged to explore the traditions of printmaking as well as drawing and painting, and to work in pursuit of new forms and with contemporary issues. While students work in the drawing, painting and printmaking combined seminar for a majority of their studio credit hours, they are highly encouraged to move among media in the discipline, as well as with other studio areas in the Ernest G. Welch School of Art & Design.
Drawing, Painting and Printmaking B.F.A.
The Drawing and Painting concentration hosts diverse media-specific and conceptually focused classes, dedicated classroom studios and a project/critique space. A stylistically diverse faculty offers courses in specific media and material content—oil-based, water-based, life drawing, digital possibilities—as well as concept-driven courses such as “Figure as Content,” “Sound and Radio,” “Anthropocene Studies,” “Research Methodologies,” “Maps and Messages,” “Science + Art” and more. Philosophically, the faculty engender a range of visual expression, media experimentation, social practice and conceptual art—all grounded in traditional technical training.
Faculty areas of expertise include classical drawing, mixed-media, collage, video, sound, animation, trompe l’oeil /ultra realist and abstract painting, sculpture and installation. A range of international travel programs have been hosted by area faculty and student internships are supported by faculty.
The Printmaking curriculum introduces students to cross-disciplinary modes of working while enhancing their understanding of foundational principles of design and the importance and beauty of method, process, discipline, repetition and perseverance.
Emphasis is placed on mastering the elements of mark-making while encouraging variation and risk-taking with the tools at hand. Stressing the notion of drawing and the formal elements of process and design as a language, the faculty encourage students to broaden their vocabulary and fluency in the medium, honing and translating their perceptions of a tangible world into legible and poetic works. Students look at the history of art and the tradition of printmaking in order to trace the evolution of the medium to the position it now enjoys as a vibrant and viable means of creating contemporary art. They are taught technique and concept through discussions, demos, examples, museum/studio/gallery visits and readings that demonstrate the uses of print-based techniques for image-making, which serves as a vehicle for learning and the proliferation of meaning and messages, taking cues from all aspects of the contemporary political, philosophical and social sphere. Students gain technical skill and are shown methods of employing the techniques unique to printmaking’s fundamental processes to make work that marries form and content in meaningful ways and when appropriate reaches beyond the confines of the traditional print.
The Printmaking area cultivates a culture of collaboration and is enhanced by a student-run organization, Printmaker’s Workshop, which organizes trips to conferences, museums and studios in Atlanta and beyond.
The Georgia State Film and Media major is devoted to the interdisciplinary study of film, television and new media. Courses focus on the histories and theories of cinematic, electronic and digital media and provide the opportunity for practical experience in film/media production. Students work closely with faculty members to devise an optimum program of study integrating creative and collaborative thinking. This liberal arts approach to film, television and new media provides the student with the necessary skills and knowledge to adapt to the changing media environment.