A male art education master’s student from BGSU and a little boy play with clay at a community art education event with many tables, exhibits and other students and children.

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Art Education

The part-time M.A. in art education at BGSU in Ohio is offered 70% online and 30% in visual arts studios. Our innovative, hybrid degree program guides you to become a stronger and well-informed artist-teacher within K-12 art education, community arts education and art museum education.

BGSU enjoys a well-established reputation for the quality of its undergraduate art teacher licensure preparation. The M.A. in art education program does not include coursework for initial professional licensure.

Why study art education at BGSU in Ohio?

  • A strong, national reputation. We strive to create a productive community of diverse artists, designers and scholars. Students come to BGSU from all over the U.S. and the world.
  • Convenient and flexible. 70% of coursework is online. The additional 30% of studio credits can be earned at other accredited programs approved by the School of Art. This program is only available part time.
  • Community partnerships. Our collaborations with area art museums and community centers offer valuable teaching and learning experiences.
  • Nationally ranked art programs. The BGSU ceramics, graphic design and digital arts programs rank among the top 5% of the nation’s art programs. Other School of Art programs include art history and 2D and 3D media.

    Graduates of our programs continue to achieve high levels of professional recognition. They exhibit their art and publish, as well as obtain university teaching jobs and museum and community arts positions.
  • Outstanding faculty. Faculty members within the M.Al in art education program have diverse research interests. They specialize in bringing contemporary perspectives to the content, curriculum and pedagogy of teaching within the visual arts.
  • Opportunities for international students. We welcome applicants from around the world. Up to nine credits in the studio arts and art history programs can be acquired through BGSU’s School of Art or reviewed for transfer from other accredited institutions.

The BGSU ceramics, graphic design and digital arts programs rank among the top 5% of the nation’s art programs.

Career - what can you do with an art education degree?

Nearly 100% of our graduates in the art education master’s program work in state or private art institutions within schools and communities.

Career paths

  • K-12 art teacher
  • Museum educator
  • Community art teacher
  • Art teacher mentor
  • Design teacher
  • Youth arts instructor

Quick Facts from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

View Average Salaries

Curriculum

Students will learn to:

  • Model and facilitate innovative curriculum and pedagogy, applying concepts taken from contemporary art theory and art practice to your current visual arts curriculum.
  • Cultivate arts-inspired relationships with fellow educators in schools, communities, museums and other settings.
  • Lead collaborative artistic explorations, engaging contemporary studio art practices.
  • Teach students the habits of mind essential to the development of the whole student.

Students will be introduced to issues related to fundraising, entrepreneurship, organized governance and community-supported grant writing as ways to exercise advocacy in visual arts education.

With expanded artistic adeptness and enhanced professional competences, students will engage with the visual arts community through a wider lens and prepare to develop and implement a well-informed visual arts curriculum in which the complex identities of all people are honored.

Required courses

Capstone project

Students complete a capstone research project and conduct new research using action research and arts-based research (ABR) methodologies. The two, three-credit-hour capstone courses facilitate collaborative work with fellow students and the community, online and in person. It will include primary research and feedback on your chosen topic.

Prospective graduate students in the M.A. in art education program need to apply and upload their portfolio to the Graduate College.

BGSU MA in art education students pose on a scissor lift in front of a mural, one of several in the northwest Ohio area that our students worked on.

Sample courses

  • Perspectives in Visual Arts Education
  • Contemporary Art Practices in the Visual Arts Classroom
  • Contemporary Issues and Advocacy in Visual Arts Education
  • Research Methods in Visual Arts Education
  • Contemporary Concepts in Painting
  • Community Mural Painting
  • Contemporary Book Arts
Criminal Justice

BGSU College of Arts and Sciences

The Master of Arts in art education is a program of the School of Art in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Updated: 12/12/2023 03:49PM