Graduate Admissions

Spring admission is available for the following programs:

• Graduate Certificate in Arts Administration
• Graduate Certificate in Cultural Entrepreneurship
• Graduate Certificate in Experience Design
• Graduate Certificate in Game Experience Design
• Graduate Certificate in Game Science
• Graduate Certificate in Information Design and Visualization
• MS in Arts Administration and Cultural Entrepreneurship
• MS in Media Innovation and Data Communication

Please contact the program coordinator  for details regarding the modified course sequence for students enrolling in the spring.

October 1

Final deadline for international applicants

November 1

Final deadline for master’s programs (domestic applicants)

December 1

Final deadline for certificate and special student/non-degree programs (domestic applicants)

December 1

Final deadline for the PhD in Interdisciplinary Design and Media

January 15

Final deadline for the Master of Architecture and MDes for Sustainable Urban Environments programs

February 1

Priority deadline for all other master’s programs:

• MS in Arts Administration and Cultural Entrepreneurship
• MS in Creative Practice Leadership
• MFA/MS in Experience Design
• MS in Game Science and Design
• MFA/MS in Information Design and Data Visualization
• MA in Journalism
• MS in Media Advocacy
• MS in Media Innovation and Data Communication

Applicants who submit completed applications by February 1 will receive priority consideration for scholarships and other funding.

May 1

Final deadline for international applicants (master’s and certificate programs)

August 1

Final deadline for domestic applicants (master’s, certificate and special student/non-degree programs)

Submit your application form and non-refundable $75 application fee through the online portal:

• Spring 2023 Application Portal
• Fall 2023 Application Portal

Submit a current resume detailing your academic credentials, professional/volunteer experience, skills, and achievements.

Submit a personal essay detailing your interest in the CAMD graduate program. Please use your statement as an opportunity to explain your goals and how the program will help you achieve them. Personal statements are generally 500–1000 words.

Submit transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate schools you have attended.

To be eligible for graduate study, applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited U.S. institution or the equivalent of a U.S. bachelor’s degree from an accredited international institution. Students applying during completion of their bachelor’s degree program must submit transcripts of all undergraduate work to date. Transcripts can be uploaded to the online portal and must include both the name of the applicant and the name of the institution.

Please review the International Requirements section below for information about international degree equivalency and required documents.

Enrolling students must submit official transcripts and degree confirmations within 30 days from the start of their first academic term. Failure to complete this requirement will result in a registration hold being placed on the student’s account preventing future term course registration. Further details are available via the CAMD Getting Started page under Official Transcripts + Degree Evaluations.

Please submit three letters of recommendation. Letters can be academic or professional and should be written by people who know you well and can speak to your potential for graduate study in your chosen field. Letters can be submitted directly by your references through the online portal. Your references will receive instructions for uploading their letters to the portal once you enter their contact information in the system. You will need to list an email address for each reference.

Some CAMD graduate programs require the submission of additional application materials, such as a portfolio of relevant work. International graduate applicants must submit proof of English proficiency. Please see the sections below for additional application requirements.

The admission committee may also wish to conduct an interview as part of the review process. If so, applicants will be contacted by the program coordinator.

We do not accept recommendations and other documents from Interfolio.

Current Northeastern BS in Architecture Seniors:
Submit your completed Internal Application by January 15*.
*Only students transitioning directly from the BS program may apply in this manner.

Northeastern BS in Architecture Alumni:
Students who have taken time off after graduating from the BS program must submit all of the application materials listed above. Please note that your personal statement should not exceed one page and that two of your three reference letters should be academic.

Additionally, students who graduated prior to 2018 are required to provide work samples that demonstrate proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite, AutoCAD and SketchUp. PDFs of one student project and one professional project should be sent to [email protected].

External Candidates:
Portfolio is required to be considered for placement in the 2-year program. Portfolio is optional for applicants to the 3-year program.

Applicants may be required to submit evidence of course equivalencies prior to matriculation for course placement.

Applicants must have taken one semester of college-level physics and one semester of college-level calculus. Students who enter the program without physics and calculus have one year from the date of matriculation to complete and pass these courses, which can be taken outside Northeastern (failure to do so may impede progress in the program).

Portfolio Guidelines

The committee will be reviewing your portfolio not only for technical proficiencies but equally importantly for evidence of your depth of thinking and approach to problem solving. Please be sure to show projects that are most representative of your abilities and interests.

The portfolio should be one PDF file and must include the following (approximately 25 pages):

• A cover page with your name, most recent degree (and any architectural degrees if they pre-date your terminal degree), and the college/university where the degree(s) was received.
• A one-page resume summary that includes a list of relevant software skills (for example: SketchUp, AutoCAD, Adobe CS, etc.) and a list of your past architecture design studio courses that includes year, level, credit hours and subject focus (for example: introductory design or urban housing).
• Academic projects in reverse chronological order. Include course name and a brief synopsis of the design problem.
• Optional: Any visual work/models from tectonics, structures, environmental systems, etc.
• Optional: Professional projects. They should be in a separate section of the portfolio and list project name, firm, a synopsis of your role, and a synopsis of the project brief.
• Optional: Any non-architectural creative work, such as painting, drawing, photography, etc. should be included in the last section of the portfolio. Labels for the work should follow the same format as architectural design work.

Portfolios must be submitted via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service. The submission fee is $6.00 (USD).  Technical guidelines are available at SlideRoom.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission.

Applicants to the graduate programs in Arts Administration and Cultural Entrepreneurship are required to submit all application documents detailed above. Two letters of recommendation are required for the MS program and only one letter of recommendation is required for the certificate programs.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission.

The MS in Creative Practice Leadership program welcomes applications from motivated individuals whose previous education and other accomplishments demonstrate curiosity in and potential for leadership and creative problem solving. Candidates from diverse fields, including music, theatre, education, communication studies, business, media studies, and other liberal arts programs are encouraged to apply.

In addition to the required general application materials detailed above, you have the option also to submit an academic or professional writing sample, or a portfolio of work samples from an academic or professional project.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission.

Personal Statement

In your personal statement, be sure to explain your motivation for pursuing an MFA in Experience Design. Please provide insights about your work to date and how it could inform your graduate studies and/or thesis work. This statement can include a discussion of particular areas and projects that you are interested in researching further. Statements are generally 500–1000 words.

Portfolio

Additionally, applicants to the MFA in Experience Design must submit a portfolio via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service. The submission fee is $12.00 (USD). Technical guidelines are available at SlideRoom.

Master of Fine Arts (MFA):  Minimum of 7 documents required

The application portfolio should consist of recent original work that demonstrates design or other relevant project-based experience. Your portfolio should, if possible, include work that is focused primarily in the area in which you will focus your graduate study; however, related work is acceptable. Portfolios can include, but are not limited to:

• Graphic, product or spatial design projects
• Ethnographic research projects
• Data visualizations, infographics, maps
• Concept sketches and images
• Strategy blueprints and systems diagrams
• Interactive design projects, storytelling projects and/or analytical projects

Provide authorship information, year, title and other relevant information (such as course name and instructor) for each project. Documents can be a single-page image/pdf file or a multi-page pdf file. As part of the required documents you can include multiple aspects of the same project.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission. 

In addition to the general requirements, applicants to the MS in Experience Design must submit a portfolio via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service. The submission fee is $12.00 (USD). Technical guidelines are available at SlideRoom.

Master of Science (MS):  Minimum of 5 documents required

The application portfolio should consist of recent original work that demonstrates design or other relevant project-based experience. Your portfolio should, if possible, include work that is focused primarily in the area in which you will focus your graduate study; however, related work is acceptable. Portfolios can include, but are not limited to:

• Graphic, product or spatial design projects
• Ethnographic research projects
• Data visualizations, infographics, maps
• Concept sketches and images
• Strategy blueprints and systems diagrams
• Interactive design projects, storytelling projects and/or analytical projects

Provide authorship information, year, title and other relevant information (such as course name and instructor) for each project. Documents can be a single-page image/pdf file or a multi-page pdf file. As part of the required documents you can include multiple aspects of the same project.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission. 

In addition to the general requirements, applicants to the Graduate Certificate in Experience Design have the option to submit work samples via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service. The submission fee is $12.00 (USD). Technical guidelines are available at SlideRoom.

Graduate Certificate:  1 – 3 documents, optional

The work samples should consist of recent original work that demonstrates design or other relevant project-based experience.  Work samples can include, but are not limited to:

• Graphic, product or spatial design projects
• Ethnographic research projects
• Data visualizations, infographics, maps
• Concept sketches and images
• Strategy blueprints and systems diagrams
• Interactive design projects, storytelling projects and/or analytical projects

Provide authorship information, year, title and other relevant information (such as course name and instructor) for each project. Documents can be a single-page image/pdf file or a multi-page pdf file. As part of the required documents you can include multiple aspects of the same project.

Please note that applicants to the graduate certificate program must only provide one letter of recommendation, not three.

Additionally, the GRE is NOT required for admission.

Applicants to the graduate certificate programs in Game Experience Design and Game Science are required to submit all application documents detailed above. Additionally, you are encouraged to include a description of any experience you have in the games field in your personal statement.

Please note that applicants to the graduate certificates must only provide one letter of recommendation, not three.

Additionally, the GRE is NOT required for admission.

In addition to the general application requirements, applicants to the MS in Game Science and Design program are encouraged to submit a portfolio of their work via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service. The submission fee is $6.00 (USD).

The application portfolio should consist of 1-5 pieces of recent original work that demonstrate design or other relevant project-based experience. Your portfolio should ideally include work that is focused on games; however, related work is acceptable. Portfolios can include, but are not limited to:

• Gameplay videos with a short description
• Graphic, product or spatial design projects
• Concept sketches and images
• Strategy blueprints and systems diagrams
• Interactive design projects, storytelling projects and/or analytical projects
• Coding/web design
• A brief introductory video highlighting your interest in the field of game science and design
• Creative work from other disciplines (photography, drawing, and other art forms)

Provide authorship information (including but not limited to the role you took on within any team project and a brief description of your contribution to it), year, title and other relevant information (such as course name and instructor) for each project. Materials can include video, a single-page image/pdf file or a multi-page pdf file.

The following item is optional:

• Official Graduate Record Exam (GRE) General Test scores (our institution code for score reporting purposes is 3682).

Candidates for the MS in Game Science and Design program come from various fields including, but not limited to, Computer Science, Information Science, Informatics, Engineering, Human Computer Interaction, Psychology, Social Science, Interaction Design, and Game Design.

MFA Statement

In addition to the personal statement, applicants to the MFA must submit a separate statement explaining their motivation for pursuing an MFA in Information Design and Data Visualization.  In the MFA statement, provide insights about your work to date and how it could inform your graduate studies and/or thesis work. This statement can include a discussion of particular areas and projects that you are interested in researching further. The MFA statement should be 300 – 500 words.

Portfolio

Additionally, applicants to the MFA  in Information Design and Data Visualization must submit a portfolio via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service. The submission fee is $12.00 (USD). Technical guidelines are available at SlideRoom.

Master of Fine Arts (MFA):  Minimum of 5 documents required

The application portfolio should consist of recent original work that demonstrates design or other relevant project-based experience. Please note that as part of the five required documents you can include multiple aspects of the same project. Portfolios typically include:

• Visualization work (infographics, maps, diagrams or charts)
• Screenshots from websites or interactive applications
• Data analyses
• Coding or software development documentation
• Design projects (idea sketches, prototypes or results)
• Professional projects
• Creative work from other disciplines (Art, Graphic Design, Architecture, Journalism, Photography or Film)
• Research projects (analytical: quantitative or qualitative; ethnographic)
• State of the art or position papers

Provide authorship information (including but not limited to the role you took on within any team project and a brief description of your contribution to it), year, title and other relevant information (such as course name and instructor) for each project. Documents can be a single-page image/pdf file or a multi-page pdf file.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission. 

In addition to the general application requirements, applicants to the MS in Information Design and Data Visualization must submit work samples via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service. The submission fee is $12.00 (USD). Technical guidelines are available at SlideRoom.

Master of Science (MS):  Minimum of 3 documents required

Applicants are required to submit a minimum of three work samples to document their previous experience . These work samples should match the background and expertise the applicant brings to the program.

Work samples can include, but are not limited to:

• Visualization work (infographics, maps, diagrams or charts)
• Screenshots from websites or interactive applications
• Data analyses
• Coding or software development documentation
• Design projects (idea sketches, prototypes or results)
• Professional projects
• Creative work from other disciplines (Art, Graphic Design, Architecture, Journalism, Photography or Film)
• Research projects (analytical: quantitative or qualitative; ethnographic)
• State of the art or position papers

Provide authorship information (including but not limited to the role you took on within any team project and a brief description of your contribution to it), year, title and other relevant information (such as course name and instructor) for each project. Documents can be a single-page image/pdf file or a multi-page pdf file.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission. 

In addition to the general application requirements, applicants to the Graduate Certificate in Information Design and Visualization have the option to submit work samples via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service. The submission fee is $12.00 (USD). Technical guidelines are available at SlideRoom.

Graduate Certificate:  1 – 3 documents, optional

Work samples can include, but are not limited to:

• Visualization work (infographics, maps, diagrams or charts)
• Screenshots from websites or interactive applications
• Data analyses
• Coding or software development documentation
• Design projects (idea sketches, prototypes or results)
• Professional projects
• Creative work from other disciplines (Art, Graphic Design, Architecture, Journalism, Photography or Film)
• Research projects (analytical: quantitative or qualitative; ethnographic)
• State of the art or position papers

Provide authorship information (including but not limited to the role you took on within any team project and a brief description of your contribution to it), year, title and other relevant information (such as course name and instructor) for each project. Documents can be a single-page image/pdf file or a multi-page pdf file.

Please note that applicants to the graduate certificate program must only provide one letter of recommendation, not three.

Additionally, the GRE is NOT required for admission.

In addition to the general application requirements, applicants to the PhD in Interdisciplinary Design and Media must submit 1-3 work samples. These can be publications, writing samples, portfolio and/or reel.

Work samples must be submitted via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for the PhD in Interdisciplinary Design and Media.

Applicants to the MA in Journalism program are required to submit the general application documents detailed above. On the application form, please indicate whether you are applying for the Media Innovation or Professional Journalism track.

Applications to Northeastern’s School of Journalism are judged on a number of factors. Although an applicant’s academic history is important, the School is also looking for evidence of commitment to journalism. Previous professional experience will be taken into consideration, as well as interesting life experiences and perspectives. In short, we want our students to be curious, engaged and eager to enter our profession with a sense of purpose.

An informative, smartly written, well-rounded, and interesting personal statement is critical to your application. It is your first writing sample. It should speak to who you are, what you plan to study and why you want to attend our program. You have the option also to submit an academic or professional writing sample, or a portfolio of work samples from an academic or professional project.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission.

Applicants to the MS in Media Advocacy program are required to submit the general application documents detailed above.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission.

Applicants to the MS in Media Innovation and Data Communication program are required to submit the general application documents detailed above. Applicants also have the option to submit an academic or professional writing sample, or a portfolio of work samples from an academic or professional project.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission.

In addition to the general requirements, applicants to the MDes for Sustainable Urban Environments one year track must also submit a portfolio (a portfolio is not required for applicants to the two year track).

Portfolios must be submitted via SlideRoom, an online portfolio submission service. The fee for this service is $6.00 (USD) and technical guidelines are available at Slideroom.

The portfolio is a critical aspect of your application. The committee will be reviewing it not only for technical proficiencies but equally importantly for evidence of your depth of thinking and approach to problem solving. Please be sure to show projects that are most representative of your abilities and interests.

Portfolios should be 10 – 15 pages in length and include examples of previous studio projects and professional design or planning work, if available.  Additionally, one or two examples of other types of creative work can be included such as photography, drawing, graphic and web design, horticultural design and other art forms. Include labels for each project indicating project title and date.

Please note that the GRE is NOT required for admission.

To be considered for admission to a CAMD graduate program, international applicants must show proof of English proficiency. This requirement can be met by submitting satisfactory results on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or the Duolingo English Test.

Please note that scores are valid for two years and scores must be valid at the time your application is received. Official score reports must be sent to Northeastern University directly from the testing agency.

Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)

We expect a minimum score of 100 on the Internet-Based TOEFL (iBT). You should plan to take the exam well in advance of our application deadline as it may take up to six weeks for your official score report to be sent to CAMD.

Our institution code for score reporting purposes is 3682.

International English Language Testing System (IELTS)

We expect a minimum overall band score of 7.0 on the IELTS.

Duolingo English Test

We expect a minimum score of 120 on the Duolingo English Test.

Exam Exemption

International applicants can waive the English proficiency testing requirement if they submit documentation that they have received a bachelor’s or master’s degree from a college or university in which English is the only language of instruction.

Applicants who have received or will be receiving a degree from an institution outside the United States are required to submit all transcripts, as well as certified English translations, with their application. Accepted students who plan to enroll at CAMD are further required to submit an official course-by-course transcript evaluation. Please see details below:

Online Application

Please upload copies of all undergraduate and graduate transcripts and diplomas (if available), as well as certified English translations of all documents, to the online portal.

Matriculating Students

If you are accepted and plan to enroll in a CAMD graduate program, you must submit an official course-by-course transcript evaluation indicating conferral of an undergraduate degree equivalent to a U.S. bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution. This evaluation is more than an English translation; it is a document provided by an accredited evaluation agency that shows all grades, course titles, credit hours, United States degree equivalency, grade point average (GPA), and date of degree conferral.

Your final, official transcript/mark sheets and degree certificate must accompany your evaluation. If your evaluation agency does not include these documents with their report, please send the documents to our office at:

CAMD Graduate Studies
Attn: Cathy Bright, Graduate Enrollment Manager
Northeastern University
360 Huntington Ave.
100 Meserve Hall
Boston MA 02115

Please request an official course-by-course transcript evaluation for all international institutions where a degree was conferred from one of the following agencies:

Enrolling students must submit these documents within 30 days from the start of their first academic term. Failure to complete this requirement will result in a registration hold being placed on the student’s account preventing future term course registration.

Accepted international applicants planning to enroll at CAMD must submit a completed I-20 Request Form at least 16 weeks prior to the start of classes. Students cannot receive visa application forms, required to register for courses, unless they file the e-form certifying that they have enough financial support to cover all educational and living expenses.

International applicants already in the United States must also submit a copy of their current SEVIS I-20 or DS-2019 form, current visa, I-94 card (front and back), identity page of a valid foreign passport, and an Office of Global Services Transfer-In Form. If you do not require an I-20 or DS-2019, please complete the Data Form.