Overview
ITP is a two-year program of full-time study leading to the Master of Professional Studies (M.P.S.) degree. The degree requires completion of a minimum of 60 graduate credits within a three-tier structure. ITP is a full-time program and thus students must take 12-18 points per semester to maintain full-time status. It is possible to go part-time (below 12 credits) in the last semester to reach the minimum of 60 credits to graduate.
The degree is a terminal degree and also considered a qualified STEM program.
The department brings together smart, passionate people from different disciplines, provokes them with the skills and conceptual understanding necessary to manipulate new media and then supports the applications students dream up. It is sometimes described as an art school for engineers and at the same time an engineering school for artists.
Located in New York City, we constantly attract the best and the brightest faculty to guide our students, making ITP one of the top-ranked departments in the interactive arena.
Tier 1 – Foundation Classes
Foundation classes provide a baseline of technical skills, conceptual understanding and creative process to support and catalyze student projects. Each foundation course will be offered at least once a year. Generally, students will be expected to complete these foundation courses before moving to Tier Two or Tier Three. Sixteen credits in foundation courses are required for completion of the degree program. Due to previous studies or work experience, some students may consider themselves already proficient in a field covered by a foundation course. They may apply to a faculty advisor for permission to waive it. Waiver of a foundation course does not in itself reduce the 60-point requirement for graduation; it means a student will increase the number of elective studies or fieldwork courses taken.
Tier 2 Electives
The second tier classes provide students with contexts in which to develop their creative thinking, problem solving and technical abilities. The curriculum changes in response new developments in the field, student interests, opportunities to bring interesting practitioners as teachers and the outcomes of previous semesters. It is a mixture of seminar classes where students read, discuss and write about the implications of new media and production classes where they make things. Students are encouraged to maintain a balance of three production classes and one seminar every semester. Though most classes run for many years, as many as 20% may be experimental. Because failure is a natural outcome of experimentation, students must be prepared to derive value from unexpected outcomes.
Students may also arrange for internship credits. See course listings for more ideas about the types of classes that we have run in the past. The majority of classes are 4 points and students typically take 4 courses each semester. There are a few 2 point classes as well.
Please note: This is a sampling of classes that ITP has offered over the years. It is not a complete list, since our courses change every semester.
If you are looking for more specific and up to date listings, please visit Albert and then click the “Public Course Search” button. You will find our listing under ITPG-GT – change the year and semester to see a historical log of courses.
Tier 3 – Thesis
Students register for a final project seminar that is designed to help them define and execute their final projects. It is structured as a series of critique and presentation sessions in which various aspects of individual projects are discussed. Critique sessions are a combination of internal sessions (i.e., the class only) and reviews by external guest critics. Students are expected to complete and present a fully articulated thesis project and related documentation by the end of their last semester. Thesis takes place over 2 semesters in the students’ second year (part 1 for 2 credits in the Fall, and part 2 for 2 credits in the Spring semester).