MA | 1-year+ program
The Master of Arts in Adaptive Reuse is a unique specialist design education in adaptive reuse that functions as a post-professional program for students who have previously earned a degree in architecture. Establishing a clear aesthetic, theoretical and technological framework for study in the field, students develop socially and environmentally responsible practices and expand on their knowledge of reuse as an aspect of an architectural practice. The 45-credit curriculum provides specific focus on the practice of adaptive reuse through design studios and additional coursework.
MA program preliminary semester
- Summer Studio in Scandinavia
- Scandinavian Design and Architecture
Summer
MA program
- Advanced Design Studio
- Applied Building Systems for Adaptive Reuse
- Theory of Adaptive Reuse
- Open elective
Fall
- Open electives
Wintersession
- Principles of Adaptive Reuse
- Adaptive Reuse Design Studio
- Graduate Adaptive Reuse Seminar
- Open elective
Spring
MA learning outcomes
Graduates of the MA program are prepared to:
- engage in the practice and implementation of adaptive reuse in the built environment through the demonstration of an appropriate aesthetic, theoretical and technological framework
- expand upon the architect's understanding of reuse as a product of practice and in the context of architectural history and theory
- develop strategies for acknowledging the importance of social and environmental responsibility through design projects
- view and evaluate adaptive reuse through a multifaceted lens
- recognize the origins of adaptive reuse as well as the contemporary context governing current practice
- use qualitative and quantitative methods to evaluate the economic and environmental merits of adaptive reuse
- become ambassadors of adaptive reuse as a specialty in the professional design setting through the advancement of such practice at conferences and as built work
MDes: Adaptive Reuse | 2-year+ program
The Master of Design (MDes) in Interior Studies provides a design education focused on altering existing structures through interior interventions and adaptive reuse. The curriculum approaches subject matter through a sequence of design studios and core support courses that equip students with a body of knowledge for understanding design and its implementation. In addition, students in the MDes in Interior Studies program can also concentrate in Nature, Culture and Sustainability Studies through the Division of Liberal Arts.
MDes Program: preliminary semester
- Intro to Design Studios: Spatial Investigation/Drawing and Making
- Intro to Design Studios: Existing Construct
- Intro to Design Studios: Transformation and Intervention
Summer
MDes program: first year
- Intro to Design Studio II
- Structures and Materials for Adaptive Reuse
- Advanced Drawing and Computing Tectonics
- History of Adaptive Reuse
Fall
- Open elective
Wintersession
- Advanced Design Studio
- Energy and Systems
- Theory Seminar: Investigating Interiority
- Spatial Perception: Light and Color
Spring
MDes program: second year
- Advanced Design Studio
- Human Factors, Ergonomics and Acoustics
- Design Thesis Preparation
- Open elective
Fall
- Open elective
Wintersession
- Design Thesis Studio
- Codes and Details
Spring
MDes: Adaptive Reuse learning outcomes
Graduates of the MDes program are prepared to:
- adopt a clear aesthetic, theoretical and technological framework for interior studies in order to engage in this subject in the design field
- investigate different aspects of design interventions in the built environment
- articulate the distinctive nature of interior studies as an effective member of a design team able to interact and collaborate with fellow professionals in related fields
- develop design strategies that recognize the importance of social and environmental responsibility
- assess the spatial transformation capabilities of an existing structure
- formulate an original design concept based on research and evaluate, develop, present and advocate coherent design propositions
- understand and incorporate related consultant feedback as part of the collaborative process in a professional setting
MDes: Exhibition and Narrative Environments | 2-year+ program
The Master of Design (MDes) for Exhibition and Narrative Environments explores these spaces through a unique curriculum that combines design studios and coursework in Interior Studies. In addition, students in this program engage in related studies through the RISD Museum as well as the Digital + Media, Graphic Design, and History of Art and Visual Culture departments.
MDes Program: preliminary semester
- Intro to Design Studios: Spatial Investigation/Drawing and Making
- Intro to Design Studios: Existing Constructs
- Intro to Design Studios: Transformation and Intervention
Summer
MDes program: first year
- Intro to Design Studio
- Advanced Drawing and Computing Tectonics
- Topics and Exhibition Design and Narrative Environments I
- Open elective
Fall
- Advanced Design Studio
- Spatial Perception: Light and Color
- Topics in Exhibition Design and Narrative Environments II
- Elective or Museum Fellowship
Spring
MDes program: second year
- Advanced Design Studio
- Human Factors, Ergonomics and Acoustics
- Design Thesis Preparation
- Elective or Museum Fellowship
Fall
- Open elective
Wintersession
- Codes and Details
- Design Thesis Studio
- Open elective
Spring
Graduate student work
Markus Berger | graduate program director
“In Interior Architecture we focus on adaptive reuse in all its forms: from remodeling and reusing existing structures to performing transformative interventions, reusing materials and preserving cultural memory across time and space. The discipline is built upon notions of conservation, preservation, alteration and intervention as well as the repercussions of our design decisions over time.”
Inspiring community
Approximately 78 graduate students and 37 undergraduates are pursuing degrees in the Interior Architecture department, working together in the Angelo Donghia Studio for Interior Architecture on the fifth floor of RISD's Center for Integrative Technologies. Students come from around the world and work with more than 25 full- and part-time faculty members who practice internationally and were educated in Germany, Portugal, Canada, the US and elsewhere. This lends the department has a very global, cosmopolitan feel and allows for especially fruitful collaborations and critical exchange.
Learning environment
Design studios are at the heart of both the MA and MDes programs, with seminars and research-based practice also enabling students to hone their theoretical and design skills and understanding of relevant technologies. For those who have earned a BArch or first professional degree in Architecture, the MA program provides a specialized post-professional education centered on adaptive reuse. It equips graduates to engage in the practice of adaptive reuse and incorporate strategies that emphasize social and environmental responsibility. For students with undergraduate degrees in fields other than architecture, the MDes program provides a unique design education on the alteration of existing structures through interior interventions and adaptive reuse, outside the confines of professional architectural licensure.
Curriculum
The MDes program involves a sequence of five design studios and core support courses designed to provide the requisite knowledge and understanding of design and its implementation so that graduates may practice as socially and environmentally responsible designers with a specialized knowledge and understanding of adaptive reuse. In the MA program, an intensive summer immersion is followed by one full year of study that culminates in a self-directed final project.
Degree projects
Each MA candidate produces a final project that begins with a research component in the fall and evolves into a studio/design project in the spring. MDes candidates demonstrate competency through self-directed Degree Projects that include a seminar on theory, a research component and a studio component. Each DP focuses on the transformation of an existing structure of their choice in the city of Providence. All MA and MDes candidates also participate in the RISD Graduate Thesis Exhibition, a large-scale public show held in the Rhode Island Convention Center.
Application requirements
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Application form
Submit your RISD application form, and all other credentials, through the RISD Applicant Portal. The application fee is $60.
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Academic transcripts
Initially, you must provide unofficial transcripts of all undergraduate and/or graduate study indicating satisfactory completion, or evidence of anticipated completion, of an undergraduate degree program from an accredited college or university. You can upload your unofficial transcripts within the RISD Applicant Portal. If your academic credentials are prepared in a language other than English, they must be translated into English by an approved translator before submitting. Enrolling students will later be required to submit official transcripts.
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Portfolio
Graduate applicants to studio programs are required to submit 10–20 examples of visual work, with certain programs suggesting more specific ideas or portfolio requirements.
Use SlideRoom to submit your graduate portfolio here.
Specific program instructions:
Digital + Media | Your portfolio should contain 10 samples total, which can be a combination of images and videos. You may submit up to 5 videos, with a total run time of no more than five minutes for all videos combined. Please do not submit multi-page PDF files. Each sample should be accompanied by text identifying the medium and year, and a four-sentence description explaining the concepts that inform your work and is no more than 50 words. If collaborative projects are presented, you must clearly identify your individual contribution.
Furniture Design | In the MFA programs, students make their own work as part of learning from, and with, materials. This applies to tests and models as well as to full-size objects at human scale. Material experimentation includes traditional, new and hybrid materials as appropriate to individual student interests.
In addition to your portfolio materials uploaded to Slideroom, we invite you to include a self-made video no more than 20 seconds duration of you making something. We are not looking for video with professional production values; we are interested in seeing you making something – small, large, modest or complex, any making action can work, the choice is yours. This is an option you might enjoy adding to your submission for us to learn more about your interests. Finally, please title your video.
Jewelry + Metalsmithing | The rigorous studio-based orientation of the graduate program leverages traditional skills and fabrication techniques to critically approach new territories and ways of making.
In addition to your portfolio materials uploaded to SlideRoom, we invite you to include a self-made video no more than 20 seconds duration of you making something. We are not looking for video with professional production values; we are interested in seeing you making something – small, large, modest or complex, any making action can work, the choice is yours. This is an option you might enjoy adding to your submission for us to learn more about your interests. Finally, please title your video.
Landscape Architecture | All applicants to the Master's of Landscape Architecture degree programs are required to submit a portfolio and an additional video essay. Your portfolio should contain 10 individually produced and carefully chosen images of work that reflects your interests in landscape and the discipline of landscape architecture. Applicants to the MLA-1 program who have no prior design training may include photographs, sketches or written work that conveys their ability to observe, identify and explore spatial conditions within the landscape. All other applicants should include a selection of work that best represents the development of their interest in this field of study. All work should be labeled to indicate if it is academic, professional or personal. If team projects are presented, your individual contribution must be clearly identified. The portfolio should include a minimal amount of text.
Prepare a short video of yourself telling us:
- The most important reason you are motivated to study landscape architecture
- At least one goal you hope to achieve in your graduate education
- Why you think RISD is the best place to achieve your goals
You are encouraged to be authentic and heartfelt in your response. This essay will function as the beginning of a conversation you will continue to have if you enter the program at RISD and it does not have to be the same information provided in your written essay. Cell phone videos are accepted as well. Maximum length: 2 minutes.
Master of Arts in Teaching | MAT | Your portfolio should consist of 20 images exhibiting the depth and breadth of your studio experience. Ten images should represent work that reflects your investigations within a single medium; seven images should represent your confidence in handling a variety of media; and three images need to be samples of drawings.
Master of Arts in Art + Design Education | MA | Submit a portfolio of 20 images that most clearly represent your creative practice as an artist or designer.
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Statement of purpose
Graduate applicants must submit a written statement (500–750 words) outlining their interest and goals in pursuing graduate study. Several programs suggest more specific ideas or written requirements as outlined below.
Specific program instructions:
Digital + Media | Within the statement of purpose, the committee seeks a clear explanation of the applicant’s goals for both their time in school and afterwards, and how the MFA in Digital + Media is specifically suited to support these goals. This statement should address the following questions: what are you interested in exploring conceptually? What outcomes do you hope to get from the degree? Where do you see yourself after graduation? In addition to the statement of purpose, applicants should outline their working methodology or practice from initial research to project realization.
Global Arts and Cultures | Applicants to the master’s program in Global Arts and Cultures must submit an academic statement of purpose of 1,000–2,000 words. The object of your statement is to introduce yourself to the Admissions Committee as a thinker, scholar and writer, and you should address in detail your intellectual interests and proposed topic(s) of graduate study. Be as specific as possible in describing your prior college-level experience in areas encompassed by Global Arts and Cultures and how this work has contributed to your professional and personal goals in pursuing a master’s degree. Your statement should also reflect your understanding of the contours and demands of graduate study in Global Arts and Cultures at RISD.
Landscape Architecture | Your essay should describe how your interest in landscape developed, how the work in your portfolio is indicative of that development and why the landscape architecture program at RISD seems well suited to your goals.
Master of Arts in Teaching | MAT | Submit a statement (500–700 words) describing your work as an artist or designer. What is it about? How do you feel your academic, studio or work experience prepares you for entry to a graduate teacher education program? Discuss how, in your opinion, the quality of an educator’s artistic practice contributes to high-quality arts learning for children and youth. Since the significance of arts education in K–12 schools is not universally recognized, please provide a succinct argument for including the visual arts as a required core subject for all students at this level.
Master of Arts in Art + Design Education | MA | Submit a written statement (500-750 words) describing your interest in pursuing the MA. Identify two questions or issues related to art and design education that pique your interest and which might have the potential to become topics for your MA thesis research. Describe how you might customize a program of study that maximizes the resources of RISD, Brown and the city in support of your particular interests in art and design education. In what ways do you, at this time, anticipate that earning an MA will advance your professional development and career aspirations?
Nature–Culture–Sustainability Studies | Applicants to the master’s in Nature–Culture–Sustainability Studies must submit an academic statement of purpose of 1,000–2,000 words. The object of your statement is to introduce yourself to the Admissions Committee as a thinker, scholar and writer, and you should address in detail your intellectual interests and proposed topic(s) of graduate study. You should be as specific as possible in describing your prior college-level experience in the areas of Nature–Culture–Sustainability Studies and how this work has contributed to your professional and personal goals in pursuing a master’s degree. Your statement should also reflect your understanding of the contours and demands of graduate study in Nature–Culture–Sustainability Studies at RISD.
Photography | In addition to a statement of purpose, applicants should send an artist’s statement describing the work included in their portfolio. In other words, the artist’s statement should be about the work submitted, while the statement of purpose should address why you are seeking a graduate degree.
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Writing sample
Applicants to the MA programs in Global Arts and Cultures and Nature–Culture–Sustainability Studies are required to submit an example of critical and/or analytical writing. See below for all program-specific instructions.
Global Arts and Cultures | Applicants are required to submit a writing sample that represents your strongest critical and/or analytical writing on a topic clearly related to Global Arts and Cultures. Please indicated if your writing sample is excerpted from a longer work. If it is, please make sure it forms a coherent argument and is framed such that the Admissions Committee understands its function as part of a longer work.
Nature–Culture–Sustainability Studies | Applicants are required to submit a writing sample that represents your strongest critical and/or analytical writing on a topic clearly related to Nature–Culture–Sustainability Studies. Please indicated if your writing sample is excerpted from a longer work. If it is, please make sure it forms a coherent argument and is framed such that the Admissions Committee understands its function as part of a longer work.
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Letters of recommendation
Applicants are required to submit three letters of recommendation. Recommendation letters should be written by teachers or other professionals who have firsthand knowledge of your art or academic achievements and can comment on your potential for graduate study. You may invite your recommenders to upload their letters through your Applicant Portal. If your recommenders are unable to submit using this method, their letters may be emailed to [email protected] or mailed to the Graduate Admissions Office.
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Tests
English language proficiency | All applicants who speak English as a second language, including US citizens, must submit results from any one of these three options: TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language), IELTS (International English Language Testing System) or Duolingo (an online English test). Since proficiency in English is a prerequisite for acceptance, applicants must attain an acceptable score on their chosen test; RISD requires a minimum result of 93 on the TOEFL, a 6.5 on IELTS or a 63 on Duolingo.
Plan to take the TOEFL or IELTS well in advance of the application deadline since it may take three weeks for your scores to be sent to RISD by the test agency. Duolingo test results may take up to four days to be received by RISD.
The language test requirement may be waived for applicants who have studied in an institution where English is the language of instruction. You must contact the Admissions Office to explain your school history and determine if you are eligible.
Graduate Record Exam (GRE) | Results from the Graduate Record Examination are not required as part of the application process, although candidates for MLA, MAT and MA programs are encouraged to submit their scores.