Admission Requirements

Fashion Design and Society (MFA) Application Instructions

Deadline

The Admission Committee will make a decision on your application only after all the required materials have been received.

Applicants who wish to be considered for a Dean's Scholarship must submit a complete application packet by January 10. Applications received after January 10 will be considered on a rolling basis.

Required Materials

You may download these instructions.

Parsons graduate programs use a self-managed application process: You submit your application online; then you mail any supplemental application materials, preferably in a single packet, to the Office of Admission. The Materials Cover Sheet, which can also be downloaded from the Supplemental Forms section of the online application, should accompany all mailed application materials.

Applicants must submit the following items to the Office of Admission:

1. Application Form: Complete the online application.
2. Application Fee: Pay the $50 nonrefundable application fee. A credit card is required to submit the online application.
3. Official Transcripts: Submit a sealed original copy of your official college transcripts along with your application packet. If that is not possible, instruct the institution to send your transcripts directly to the Office of Admission. Photocopies are not acceptable.
   
   International Transcripts: All applicants with transcripts from international institutions must submit an original transcript from each institution attended outside the United States. Additionally, a certified English language translation must be provided for all official international transcripts that are not written in English. Applicants who wish to transfer academic credits earned at non-U.S. institutions must also have their transcript(s) evaluated by World Education Services (WES), our preferred provider, or by another member of the National Association of Credit Evaluation Services (NACES). A course-by-course evaluation report must be prepared for each transcript. Please start the evaluation process as early as possible, including the submission of all required documents to WES (or another provider), in order to ensure the timely completion of the evaluation report. In addition, an admission counselor may require a transcript evaluation by WES or an NACES-approved evaluator if it is deemed a necessary part of the admission decision process, even when applicants do not want transfer credits applied to a program of interest. Instruct the provider to send the report to
   
   Parsons Graduate Programs
   Office of Admission
   72 Fifth Avenue
   New York, NY 10011
   
   If applying online for transcript evaluation, search for "New School Parsons" when requesting our institution.
   
   If your provider is unable to send the evaluation report directly to the Office of Admission, please obtain a copy and forward it yourself to Parsons along with a Materials Cover Sheet.
4. Résumé: Submit a brief résumé/curriculum vitae summarizing your academic qualifications, relevant work experience, volunteer/community work, travel, exhibitions, public speaking, or any other relevant experiences as they may relate to your field of study, including dates and positions held. Please also note any special language or computer skills that you have. The résumé must be submitted online with the application.
5. Statement of Interest and Intentions: Please outline your reasons for applying to this program. In what ways will you contribute to the subject matter of the program? You should include a thoughtful description of your background, tentative plan of study or area of inquiry in the field as you now envision it, your professional goals, and how this graduate program will help you realize those goals. If you have not been enrolled as a student in the past five years, please address anticipated opportunities and challenges in pursuing the degree, and future career expectations upon completion of the program. The statement of interest must be submitted online with the application.
6. Recommendations: Submit two letters of recommendation from faculty members with whom you have studied or from people with whom you have worked professionally. Your references may submit their recommendations online, or a you may forward sealed original letters with your application packets.
7. TOEFL or IELTS: If English is not your native language, submit results of the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or IELTS (International English Language Testing System). The minimum TOEFL score required for acceptance to this program is 92 for the Internet-based exam, 580 for the paper-based, or 237 for the computer-based. A minimum IELTS score required for acceptance to this program is 7.0.
   
   Students required to take the TOEFL can obtain further information from the Educational Testing Service. Additional information for the IELTS can be found on their website atwww.ielts.org.
8. Portfolio: Submit a PDF file of 25 to 35 images that represent clearly your concepts and skills as a designer. Applicants may submit images of the following: pages from sketchbooks (showing in depth research and design development work), final illustrations, technical drawings, artwork from various design projects, textile/knitwear work, fabric use, and/or photographs of clothing collections that you have developed. The portfolio may be submitted on a CD in single file PDF format. If you would like to submit moving images such as installation, performance, or live fashion show work, please submit on a DVD format preferably with a maximum time of 5 minutes. Mail your digital portfolio to the Office of Admission at the address to the right. All mailed materials must be accompanied by a Materials Cover Sheet
9. Interview: All finalists for the Fashion Design and Society MFA program must be interviewed by the graduate faculty either in person or by Skype. All selected applicants are expected to bring full portfolios with evidence of process and design development work and examples of their 3D work (e.g. clothing).