The Master of Fine Arts in Creative Media (MFACM) programme is the first of its kind in Hong Kong. The MFA is a degree with a long history in many prestigious European and North American universities and is commonly regarded as the highest level of academic qualification available in the creative arts. While the MFA once was primarily associated with the traditional fine arts, such as music and painting, it has since the 1960s become the standard “terminal” degree in programmes specializing in more technology-intensive creative fields, including computer-based media production.

The Degree

MFACM emphasizes the integration of the Arts, Science, Culture and Technology. As an internationally-recognised terminal degree in the creative arts, MFACM provides intensive and advanced training in Digital Audiovisual Media Cultures, Animation, Computer Graphics, Film & Video Production, Interactive Media, New Media Art and Digital Fabrication. A cutting-edge art programme with a global vision, MFACM is a hub and a laboratory for creative exchanges and professional collaboration regionally and internationally.

Our students come from all over the world including Canada, Mainland China, France, Germany, India, Italy, New Zealand, the Philippines, Portugal and the United States. Non-local students are encouraged to apply since we are strongly committed to artistic and cultural diversities.

Programme Aims

• To develop the artistic and intellectual competence required for contemporary artists and future leaders of the creative industry
• To nourish a critical and cross-disciplinary understanding of issues in contemporary art-making and creative industries
• To equip students with knowledge of artistic, scientific, and technological development in relevant areas with an emphasis on the creative processes involved
• To provide to the local and overseas industry with graduates who demonstrate a high level of originality and a commitment to the highest standards of professional ethics, and who are capable of taking on significant responsibilities and leadership roles in the industry

To be eligible for admission, you must satisfy the University’s General Entrance Requirements for taught postgraduate programmes and must have a bachelor’s degree or equivalent, with preferably some working experience in the arts, design or creative industry. You should submit a portfolio of creative work with an artist statement (please see the Portfolio section of the School Admissions website).

Applicants without the specified qualifications may still be considered for admission to the programme if they are able to present equivalent qualifications and artistic credentials. All applicants must have a demonstrated capacity to pursue the programme. The School assumes that applicants will have achieved a basic level of computer literacy. Also, some prior experience with photography and/or video production is encouraged.

Applicants may be required to attend an interview so that the School of Creative Media can gauge their creative potential.

English Proficiency Requirement

Applicants whose entrance qualification is obtained from an institution where the medium of instruction is not English should also fulfill the following minimum English proficiency requirement:

• a TOEFL score of 59 (revised paper-delivered test)^ or 79 (internet -based test)^@#; or
• an overall band score of 6.5 in International English Language Testing System (IELTS)^@; or
• a score of 500 in the new College English Test (CET-6) of Chinese mainland; or
• other equivalent qualifications

^ Effective from 11 April 2021, the TOEFL revised paper-delivered test is no longer offered.

^@TOEFL and IELTS scores are considered valid for two years. Applicants are required to provide their English test results obtained within the two years preceding the commencement of the University's application period. 

^#Applicants are required to arrange with the Educational Testing Service (ETS) to send their TOEFL results directly to the University. The TOEFL institution code for CityU is 3401.

In view of the recent development of COVID-19, ‘TOEFL iBT Home Edition’ and ‘IELTS Indicator’, as indicated below, are accepted as equivalent qualifications for the fulfillment of the University’s minimum English proficiency requirement for admission to TPg programmes until further notice:

•    TOEFL iBT Home Edition: a score of 79; or
•    IELTS Indicator: an overall band score of 6.5

Fellowship awards are available for local students admitted to this programme under the Fellowships Scheme supported by the HKSAR Government. This programme in the priority area of “Creative” is one of the targeted programmes listed under the Fellowships Scheme with 4 fellowship awards. Local students admitted to the programme in full-time, part-time or combined study mode may be invited to submit applications for the fellowships.

MFACM is designed as an intensive, project-based programme. The programme consists of 54 credit units, and will be offered in a full-time mode over two years. The curriculum includes 24 credit units of required courses and 30 credit units of elective courses.

Out of the 24 credit units of required courses, a total of 18 credit units are dedicated to project-based studio classes. The other required courses within the curriculum are SM5303 Introduction to New Media Arts - Theories, Technologies, Aesthetics and SM5345 Introduction to Digital Processes: From Creative Computation to Fabrication. SM5303 intends to provide students with a contextual foundation in aesthetic, cultural, and theoretical principles relevant to the programme. SM5345 is structured as a series of interlocking lectures, workshops and hands on, in-class exercises, introducing students to the basics of digital manufacturing.

The elective courses are organized into three different clusters, namely: Interaction, Media Worlding and Fabrication, and two areas, Media & Culture and Independent. Students must declare two clusters and take at least nine credit units in each of the chosen clusters. The remaining 12 credit units can be selected from any clusters / areas.

Assessment in all classes normally will be entirely through coursework, which will consist primarily of practical and creative projects.

In general, the School of Creative Media uses an interdisciplinary education approach, and believes that education is interdisciplinary whenever it forges links among the attitudes, concepts, skills, or processes arising in different fields of learning. Its main aim is the integration of knowledge from different areas of study.

Course Descriptions
School of Creative Media
Sample Study Plan