DEGREE REQUIREMENTS – DOCTOR IN FINE ARTS (DFA)
The minimum extent of the postgraduate degree is 240 study credits (ECTS). The education is intended to be completed in four (4) years, which presumes fulltime dedication to the work.
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ARTISTIC DEMONSTRATION OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILL
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150 CR
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Production part(s)
Theoretical part(s)
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90–115 CR
35–60 CR
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POSTGRADUATE STUDIES IN FINE ARTS (COMPULSORY)
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60 CR
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Research seminars, 3 academic years:
- working seminars (1/year)
- essay seminars (total of 3)
- theory seminars (3 academic years)
Teaching
Symposium
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15 CR
18 CR
18 CR
2 CR
7 CR
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OTHER RESEARCH-SUPPORTING ACTIVITIES
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30 CR
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Other artistic productions
Publications
Curatings etc. (max. 15 CR)
Participation in seminars or postgraduate studies relevant to own research elsewhere
Teaching at the FinnishAcademy of Fine Arts
Other teaching relevant to own research
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STUDIES TOTAL
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240 CR
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Compulsory postgraduate studies in fine arts (60 CR)
The practical and theoretical studies in artistic research make up 60 credits of the doctoral degree.
Research seminar
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Theoretical postgraduate studies consist mainly of seminar work which supports the student's research. Research seminar sessions are held during three to five consecutive days per month. The seminar weeks are a combination of working seminars, essay seminars and theory seminars. Attendance is compulsory for a minimum of three years.
Each postgraduate student holds a
working seminar (15 CR) once a year, presenting his/her research, its current status and recent developments. The seminar includes a group discussion on new productions and texts created for the demonstration of knowledge and skill. The critical feedback gained in the group discussions helps the students to deepen and develop their research further. The working seminar is attended by the student's supervisor(s) and possible outside experts.
The essay seminars
(18 CR) provide a context within which the students write at least three essays during their studies. The purpose of the seminars is to train the students in the writing of the theoretical part of their demonstration of knowledge and skill. The topics of the essays and texts to be discussed in them should be agreed upon with the lecturer.
Theory seminars
(18 CR) consist of thematic lectures given by visiting lecturers (theorists, artists, other experts) or by the department's own staff. The aim of the theory seminars is to deepen the students’ knowledge in the theory of their own field as well as in the methodology of artistic research and to enable them to use these in the demonstration of knowledge and skill in such a way that new knowledge is produced.
Other compulsory requirements
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Teaching
(2 CR): During their studies, postgraduate students work as teachers or tutors either at the FinnishAcademy of Fine Arts or some other institution. Completion of this requirement is agreed upon individually for each student with the head of the department.
Symposium
(7 CR): Towards the end of their studies, each postgraduate student plans and organises a public symposium with a view to disseminating information about new creative knowledge in their own research area. The symposium must have an international group of presenters; it may include a publication, an exhibition, or some other cooperation measures.
Other research-supporting activities (max. 30 CR)
The Doctorate in Fine Arts also includes other research-supporting activities. Practice-based studies can be completed also in art academies abroad, and theoretical studies in other universities in Finland. Credit compensation for studies completed outside the Academy must be approved by the head of the department.
Demonstration of knowledge and skill (150 CR)
The demonstration of knowledge and skill is an entity composed of a creative production part (or parts) and a reflective theoretical part (or parts). The production and theoretical parts must have an interdependent relationship to one another.
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The production part is created with demanding artistic productions, such as exhibitions, publications, events, or other accomplishments demonstrating artistic maturity. The works must be presented in public, as a whole or a several parts of the whole.
The theoretical part of the demonstration of knowledge and skill is an independently prepared work, published as a book or presented in public in other means. It must not be previously presented in public as a whole. In the theoretical part, the author analyses his/her own artistic work, and/or produces new information about the research topic in some other form. The approach in the theoretical part must bear a dialogical relationship to the production part. The theoretical part must include a summary of the research objectives set by the student for the work.
It is the student’s responsibility to carefully document the production and theoretical parts of the demonstration of knowledge and skill for both the final examination and the consequent archiving of the work.
The demonstration of knowledge and skill may also include joint productions in which the author's independent contribution must be clearly distinguishable. Joint productions need to be new, and their research parts suitable for publishing.