Degrees Offered

BFA in Glass

Tyler's Glass program combines a contemporary art context with coursework that emphasizes the history, chemistry, and technical aspects of working with glass. In addition to learning glass blowing, glass casting, and kiln work, students are responsible for helping to run the hot and cold studios, and for learning to build the tools they need to articulate their concepts in glass and other media. The curriculum integrates issues and practices in contemporary art, critical theory, and the artist’s practice in the 21st century with a hands-on approach to materiality and matter.

The program also emphasizes the development of a closely-knit artistic community. Having a cohesive group of students is a valued goal, and genuine teamwork is required to make work and run the studios. Students play an essential role by overseeing the studios—a significant responsibility here, and an opportunity to see firsthand what a practicing artist’s career is really like. They leave Tyler fully prepared to take on their careers.

Tyler also prepares students by making sure they are part of the greater glass community. Through membership in a variety of professional associations, faculty members bring visiting artists, workshops, and guest lecturers to campus. Students tour Philadelphia studios and explore the city’s wealth of cultural institutions. Internships, scholarship opportunities for summer study, and a study abroad program round out the curriculum.

BFA in Glass with Entrepreneurial Studies

In partnership with the Fox School of Business at Temple, Tyler School of Art and Architecture offers BFA with Entrepreneurial Studies for all BFA major disciplines. The BFA with Entrepreneurial Studies is a 126 credit degree program integrating the disciplines of art and entrepreneurship. Program coursework includes 68 credit hours of art and art/related courses (which includes a 3-credit Tyler business, entrepreneurship or internship course); 14 credits of art history; 32 credits of Gen Ed; 3 credits of open electives and nine credits of Fox entreprenuership coursework. The BFA with Entrepreneurial Studies prepares students with the requisite skills for entrepreneurship in their respective studio discipline and necessary preparation to pursue graduate studies in their studio discipline, in entrepreneurship, or in similar professions upon graduation.

MFA in Glass

The MFA experience at Tyler Glass is defined by a commitment to cultivating each graduate student’s unique voice, with glass as only one of many modes of expression. Students explore the intersections of glass, sculpture, installation, video, performance, culture, making and criticism—an approach that has helped build one of the most tight-knit alumni communities in the discipline.

MFA students in Glass study in an intensive studio setting with a diverse and highly accomplished faculty. The curriculum is comprised of studio, research, and seminars, and students participate in peer reviews with other disciplines. Visiting artists regularly give lectures and demonstrations, critique student work and widen the students’ artistic network. Interaction among MFAs and undergraduates both in the shop and in the studios broadens and strengthens the teaching experience of graduate students, and has led to the program’s strong track record of placing alumni in faculty positions across the country.

Tyler Glass is a tight-knit community housed in a 10,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility that includes a hot shop with two 530 pound day tanks, four benches, and four glory holes including one 30", and 10 dedicated annealers; a 710 pound casting furnace with seven annealers, including a car kiln; a kiln casting room with 16 kilns for slumping, fusing, and casting, outfitted with a 1-ton crane for large molds; a cold shop with the latest equipment including Merker and Czech lathes and four flameworking stations. All graduate students have private studios. The program is highly selective and takes only two new MFA candidates each year.