To explore our comprehensive SMFA at Tufts website, click here.
The School of the Museum of Fine Arts
The School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University (SMFA at Tufts) is a dedicated art school within Tufts University. Students enjoy the resources of a top tier research university and an innovative approach to arts education on a specialized campus next door to our partner, The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
As a student at SMFA at Tufts, you’ll combine an in-depth liberal arts education with intensive studio arts training to build a rigorous but flexible course of study, working hand in hand with faculty and staff mentors to create a curriculum customized to your interests and goals. You’ll have access to any studio discipline as well as any other academic resources you choose to explore—taking advantage of everything Tufts University has to offer while being part of a thriving community of artists. As an artist at Tufts University, you’ll expand your perspective, making connections with students and faculty from a broad range of disciplines and backgrounds. You'll explore new concepts and mediums, make new friends and professional networks, and learn why Boston is a great place to study and make art. And you'll do it alongside faculty, mentors, art professionals, and peers who challenge and support you through every part of your journey.
At SMFA, you’ll never be constrained by one description. You won’t be bound by just one medium. Instead, your artistic and intellectual interests will expand and evolve. In the studio and in the classroom, you’ll explore ideas, make discoveries, delve into research, and develop new passions. Our personalized, interdisciplinary approach means that no two student portfolios look the same: check out recent student work here.
The MFA in SMFA: Our Partnership with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
SMFA was founded in 1876 as the educational wing of the MFA, meaning generations of artists have pursued their education here in conversation with the history of art.
Our students have unlimited, free visits to see the second largest art collection in North America. The Museum houses everything from ancient Greek sculpture to contemporary video art, to a surprisingly large collection of bagpipes – as well as the work of many SMFA alumni. More than free admission, our students have unparalleled access to the MFA’s collections, events, and large professional network. Ever wanted to visit the vaults and flip through prints and pastels too light-sensitive to display to the public? Ever wanted to get feedback on your work from a contemporary curator? To get hands-on experience restoring an ancient artwork for display? To meet with prominent artists? To stage a performance piece in the midst of a bustling museum gallery? As a student at SMFA at Tufts, you can!
More than just a place to engage with other artists’ work, the MFA is a launching pad for our students to show their own artwork. Every year, the MFA hosts exhibitions dedicated to our students, alternating between a current student show and the Traveling Fellows exhibit. These, and other exhibition opportunities, provide invaluable experience for our students to experience the collaboration of mounting a public exhibition, and to have their work seen by the thousands of visitors the museum hosts each day.