MA in Visual and Critical Studies Admissions Information

Reduced Application Fee Deadline: December 1—$45 Application Fee     
Application Deadline: January 10—$90 Application Fee     
Apply Online 

SAIC requires applicants to apply online. Filing an online application requires a valid credit card and a current email address. You may apply to up to three programs with one application and fee.

Applications must be submitted prior to 11:00 p.m. (CST) on the appropriate deadline. When you click the "submit" button on the Graduate Application form, you will be prompted to enter credit card information to pay the application fee. Your application form is not fully submitted until you have entered your credit card information.

Under no circumstances will an application fee be refunded. After you submit the application form, there will be a waiting period until you are able to see the program-specific application(s) in your portal.  

Once your program-specific applications are available, for each program you will be able to submit your program-specific application requirements (writing sample or portfolio), request the required recommendations, and see any additional checklist items.

A conferred four-year baccalaureate degree or its equivalent is required for admission to all graduate programs at SAIC. Transcripts are records of your studies that list the courses you completed, the grades received, and provide evidence of degree conferral. They may include grade sheets, exam results, final diplomas, degrees, or graduation certificates. Official copies are issued in the original language directly by your university. Copies must bear the official stamp or seal of the institution, as well as the signature of the appropriate official such as the dean, rector, registrar, controller of examinations, or office of teaching affairs. Photos, notarized copies, facsimiles, or email transmissions are not acceptable.

Official translations are expected for all educational documents issued in a language other than English. A translation agency or university language department should issue official translations typed on official stationary and the translator must attest proficiency in the original language and indicate their translations are accurate word-for-word.

During the application process an unofficial transcript is acceptable for review pending an Admissions decision. Official transcripts are required upon admission. Include transcripts both official and unofficial from all universities/colleges from which a degree was obtained or prerequisites were fulfilled. You can attach unofficial transcripts as .pdf or .jpg files in the Educational History section of the application form. If you are in the process of completing a bachelor's degree when you apply, a transcript showing your first three years of study is acceptable.

Transcripts are considered official if sent directly from the degree- or credit-granting institution to the SAIC Graduate Admissions Office. Hard copy transcripts are considered official if the documents remain in the registrar's original signed and sealed envelopes. Official transcripts can be sent both in digital and hard-copy format. Digital transcripts can be sent from the degree- or credit-granting institution to gradmiss@saic.edu. Hard copy transcripts can be mailed to:

SAIC Graduate
36 S. Wabash Ave., Suite 1201
Chicago, IL 60603

Students admitted to a graduate program who have not received a high school diploma, GED or equivalent are not eligible for federal Title IV financial aid funds. 

Write a 500- to 700- word statement of purpose that describes the history of your interests and experience in your program of choice. Include your personal and professional motivations and goals, and your reasons for pursuing graduate study at SAIC, as well as any potential goals for the future.

You will upload your statement of purpose in your application portal.

Two letters of reference are required.

You are responsible for securing letters of reference from persons who are qualified to write about your potential for success at SAIC. If you are currently a student or are a recent graduate, we recommend you request letters of recommendation from current or former instructors.

Letters of recommendation should be submitted electronically via the Letters of Recommendation section in each program-specific application. In the Recommendations section click Add Recommender, where you will be asked to provide an email address and other details for each of your references. Once you click "Send To Recommender" an email will be sent from your application portal to your references, with instructions on how to submit their recommendations securely through our online portal.

If your references are unable to provide an online recommendation please contact the Graduate Admissions office at gradmiss@saic.edu.

A resume is required for all graduate programs. Upload your résumé in the Résumé or Curriculum Vitae (CV) section of your application form.

Submit a 10-15 page writing sample in any genre(s) or style(s) indicative of your practice. Additionally, it is strongly recommended that applicants with a background better documented in other formats also submit a visual, audio, or related portfolio to be considered in tandem with the writing sample. This is in recognition of applicants who may identify as visual artists, curators, filmmakers, journalists, programmers, archivists, alt-educators, etc. All audio and audiovisual materials should be captioned. 

Applicants may optionally submit an E-Portfolio. Once you pay the application fee, submit the application form, and the waiting period has passed, your application portal will direct you to create a SlideRoom portfolio for any program you selected in the application form that accepts a portfolio of visual or multimedia work.

IMPORTANT: you will be prompted to create a SlideRoom profile and must use the same name, email, and other credentials EXACTLY as they appear in your application form. 

Submission specifications:

• Images: .jpg, .gif, .pdf (up to 5 MB each)
• Videos: .flv, .wv, .mov (up to 60 MB each)
• Audio: .mp3 (up to 10 MB each)
• Text documents: MUST be in .pdf format (up to 10 MB each)

TOEFL: 100 

IELTS: 7 

DUOLINGO: 120

International applicants are required to submit evidence of English language proficiency. You are waived from this requirement if you meet any of the following conditions:

• Your native language is English
• You have an undergraduate degree conferred by a U.S. accredited university
• You have an undergraduate degree conferred by a university whose primary language of instruction is English

If you do not meet one of these conditions, you must submit official English language proficiency test scores. You are strongly encouraged to schedule a language proficiency test appointment as early as possible in order to receive official test scores before the application deadline.

SAIC accepts official scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), International English Language Testing System (IELTS), and Duolingo. The TOEFL Institution Code for SAIC is 1713. Please upload an unofficial copy of your test score results to the International Requirements section of the application form.

Although no interview is required, applicants are welcome to contact the department to request an informational interview with the graduate program coordinator.