Department of Visual and Media Arts

View Faculty in the Department of Visual and Media Arts

The Department of Visual and Media Arts educates students to become informed, ethical, creative, and disciplined scholars and practitioners while learning to present ideas and tell stories. The department’s faculty encourages broad-based learning built on a balance of theory and practice and is dedicated to including the perspectives of many cultures and nations. Students gain an understanding of the social, political, and cultural implications of the visual, media, and sound arts, so that they develop an appreciation of the principles that lead to reasoned and humane outcomes.

Programs

The Department of Visual and Media Arts offers a curriculum designed to provide students with a comprehensive education in various media arts disciplines, including screenwriting, digital media, experimental media production, TV, sound design, interactive media, game design, photography, and others. The department offers two tracks within its Bachelor of Arts (BA) curriculum: Media Arts Production and Media Studies, as well as a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree in Media Arts Production.

Policies

At least 20 of the Visual and Media Arts degree credits, which count toward meeting the major requirement, must be taken at Emerson College.
Students are required to complete the Production Safety Workshop prior to enrolling in any 200-level production courses.
During junior and senior years, students must take two courses in the liberal arts at the 300 level or above from courses approved by the department. These courses may not also be used to satisfy a major requirement.
No more than one course in which a student earns a D may be counted toward the major requirements.
Sophomores are limited to a maximum of 8 credits of major courses each semester.
Juniors and seniors are limited to a maximum of 12 credits of major courses each semester.

Transfer Policy

Any student in the College wishing to apply for transfer into the Visual and Media Arts Department must do so by the designated deadline, have a GPA of at least 3.5, and provide a two-page, double-spaced statement that clearly explains the motivation for the transfer request and interest in visual and media arts. Even if all requirements are met, acceptance into the VMA Department is subject to the approval of the department chair. Details regarding the application process and deadlines are available from the Academic Advising Center at advising@emerson.edu.

Double Major Policy

Because of the intense demands of the Visual and Media Arts curriculum, students who pursue a major in the Department of Visual and Media Arts may not double major.

Class Enrollment Policy

Any student enrolled in a course in the Department of Visual and Media Arts who does not attend class during the first four class hours, and who has not made prior arrangements with the instructor, may be dropped from the class at the instructor’s discretion, regardless of any prior registration of the student for the course in question. Students dropped from a class for this reason will be readmitted only with the approval of the course instructor and if there is still room for an additional student in the class.

Internships, Directed Studies, and Directed Projects

Although students may take more than one internship, no more than 4 credits of internship or 8 credits combined of internship, directed study, or directed projects may count toward the major in Visual and Media Arts.

Co-curricular Activities

A wealth of co-curricular activities (VM 337 and VM 340-349) are available to students interested in various facets of the visual and media arts. Options include two radio stations (WERS and WECB), a television station (the Emerson Channel), a record label (Emerson Records), a magazine of criticism (Latent Image), a screenwriting workshop (spec), and multiple production groups (Emerson Independent Video, Frames Per Second, Women in Motion, a chapter of the National Broadcasting Society, and the EVVYs).

Programs

Major

Minor

Other Programs

Co-Curricular Activities in VMA