Product Design at Montclair State University

Academics Overview

College of the Arts

The College of the Arts offers more than sixty graduate and undergraduate majors, minors, and concentrations through the John J. Cali School of Music, the School of Communication and Media, and the departments of Art and Design and Theatre and Dance.

Departments and Schools

The John J. Cali School of Music offers a curriculum blending a liberal arts education with the intense musical instruction of a conservatory. Students specialize in the areas of performance, jazz, music education, composition and music therapy, and learn from world-class faculty, including the Shanghai Quartet. Students perform in the elegant Leshowitz Recital Hall, practice on Steinway pianos. The School presents over 200 performances and masterclasses each year by students, faculty and guest artists. Students perform off-campus and on tour in the U.S. and abroad, and may study abroad through international exchange programs in several countries.

Founded in 2012, the School of Communication and Media (SCM) offers a range of dynamic programs in communication and media—including degrees in advertising, communication and media studies, film and television, journalism and digital media, social media and public relations, sports communication, and, in 2022, animation and vfx, as well as an MA in public and organizational relations,. The School houses several co-curricular programs, including WMSC Radio, the Montclarion newspaper, Hawk Communications Agency, the Red Hawk Sports Network, the NewsLab, PRSSA, Lambda Pi Eta, and a newly launched Center for Strategic Communications for social media and data analytics. The School has received several prestigious national awards and nominations, including an Edward R. Murrow Award, several Marconi Award nominations, and a College Television Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The School is home to the Center for Cooperative Media, which serves the public by helping to grow and strengthen local journalism. The School is housed in a new, state-of-the-art teaching and production facility and  programs give the School’s over 1300 students the tools they need to succeed in the communication and media industry and help to prepare and inform the next generation of leaders, critical thinkers, and professionals.

Alongside its array of established fine arts concentrations and studio specializations, the Department of Art and Design offers the only BFA in Product Design in N.J., as well as top of the line facilities for its ever popular Fashion Studies BA (which hosts an annual student fashion show and yearly international field trips); a highly competitive Visual Communications Design BFA with annual trips to London and a dual degree program with Seoul National University of Science & Technology; and a growing Animation/Illustration BFA with strong professional ties to the Society of Illustrators.

The Department of Theatre and Dance offers nationally acclaimed undergraduate degree programs in Dance, Design/Technology/Management, Acting,  Musical Theatre, and Theatre Studies. On the graduate level, the department offers an MA in Theatre Studies, a low residency MFA in Dance and a Graduate Certificate in Theatre of Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Change. Graduates find work as actors, dancers, production artists, educators, writers, and arts managers across the country and abroad. Through innovative teaching and challenging curriculum in both their arts disciplines and the liberal arts, students embrace imagination, critical thinking, and collaboration. The department is dedicated to developing a robust community of students, faculty, and staff with a wide range of backgrounds, ideas, and viewpoints. The community recognizes the profound benefits of creating an inclusive environment in which students, faculty, and staff are seen and can learn from one another. With hands-on training and one-on-one mentorship from professional faculty, staff, and renowned guest artists, graduates emerge not merely with a degree, but with a commitment to making innovative and purposeful contributions to the wider community.

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