MFA in Dance: Returning Professional
The MFA in Dance: Returning Professional program at Florida State University supports experienced dancers, choreographers, and creative practitioners who are ready to re‑engage, expand, and reimagine their artistic trajectories. Designed for artists returning to graduate study with a wealth of professional experience, the program centers sustained research, critical inquiry, and the evolution of a mature creative voice. Returning Professionals work within a deeply mentored environment that encourages rigorous exploration, interdisciplinary curiosity, and boundary‑pushing artistic development. The program welcomes applicants representing diverse movement traditions, aesthetic lineages, and career pathways—inviting artists who seek to deepen their practice, challenge conventions, and generate impactful work in dialogue with contemporary culture. Ideal candidates meet the following characteristics:
- Proven Experience: A substantial professional dance career at the national or international level.
- Artistic Acumen: Demonstrated experience in choreography and/or restaging dance repertory.
- Dedication & Commitment: A clear passion and maturity within the field of dance.
- Staying Current: Continued engagement and active participation in the dance world.
The program, which can be completed in an accelerated 2-year format or a 3-year format, provides additional flexibility compared to the standard MFA and requires 6 fewer credits. This increases the ability to shape and customize the curriculum to each candidate’s areas of interest.
Interested in our other programs?
Applicants that do not meet the characteristics of the Returning Professional program may wish to consider the standard MFA in Dance program.
Applicants interested in Dance Science, Dance Technology, Dance Studies, or other fields related to dance may wish to consider the MA in Dance program.
Let’s chat! Book a Zoom info session with our Graduate Program Director.
Faculty
Our esteemed faculty isn’t just accomplished in the classroom—they’re celebrated on the world stage. They’ve received prestigious honors like Guggenheim Fellowships, the MacArthur Fellowship, the Gish Prize, Fulbright fellowships, Bessie Awards, the Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, Bogliasco Foundation Fellowships, Dance Magazine Awards, Dance USA Honors, and recognition from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, The Kennedy Center Honors, and the National Medal of the Arts. In addition, our faculty have made films screened at prestigious festivals like Dancing for the Camera at the American Dance Festival and ScreenDance Miami.
Many of our faculty have graced the stages of renowned companies such as New York City Ballet, Houston Ballet, Oakland Ballet, Sacramento Ballet, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Nikolais & Murray Louis Dance Company, Alonzo King LINES Ballet, Ballethnic Dance Company, Harambee, Umoja, and more. They also collaborate extensively, serving as active participants in organizations like CORPS de Ballet International, American Culture Association, PoP Moves, World Dance Alliance, Alliance of Community Artists, and Dance USA.
Their creative influence extends far beyond the stage and screen. Some have founded groundbreaking companies, like Jawole Willa Jo Zollar’s Urban Bush Women. They are also accomplished authors, publishing a wide range of books that span the dance world, from in-depth guides on dance conditioning to leading textbooks that explore dance’s role in popular culture. This multifaceted approach to dance allows our faculty to bring not just theoretical knowledge but also real-world experience and innovation into the classroom.
Student Resources
The School of Dance’s home is Montgomery Hall, one of the nation’s preeminent dance training facilities. Having recently received a $2 million enhancement renovation, it boasts more than 94,000 square feet of cutting-edge dance spaces, including six studios, a movement training lab, numerous technology rooms, a costume shop, a photography lab, a recording studio, a green room, a black box theatre, and the Nancy Smith Fichter Dance Theatre.
Dance in Paris is an optional add-on to all our degree programs. It is a month-long immersive and curated study abroad program designed to explore dance in Paris and the broader French culture. Participants have ample opportunities to explore the language and other notable Parisian art forms such as painting, sculpture, architecture, fashion, and gastronomy.
ARTS in NYC is an optional add-on to our MFA, BFA, and BFA/MA combined pathway degree programs. This semester-long experience introduces students to the professional dance world, not as tourists but as working members of the inner community. The program offers a supportive way to study for a semester in NYC while figuring out how to negotiate the city and the arts.
MANCC
The School of Dance is the home of the internationally recognized dance research center the Maggie Allesee National Center for Choreography (MANCC). MANCC has hosted residencies at FSU for more than a thousand dance artists and collaborators. Dance students interact with these professional artists, observing first-hand the creation of the next great contemporary dance works.
Alumni
Our alumni enjoy a wide range of professional pathways across the field of dance, a testament to the program’s strength in preparing artists for dynamic careers. Graduates work as choreographers and performers in major dance companies and ensembles across the nation and abroad. Many alumni hold faculty and leadership positions in university dance departments.
School of Dance alumni have founded nationally prominent dance companies, presented work at notable national and international festivals and venues, and created dance films that have screened at prominent international festivals. Others extend their work into artistic research, performance production, and outreach initiatives that intersect with opera, multimedia performance, and curriculum development in higher education and community arts settings. This wide spectrum of engagement across professional companies, academic institutions, and artistic platforms provides a rich, connected network of support.
Financial Aid
We believe that a student’s financial situation should not be an impediment to accessing a great education. In that spirit, many of our graduate students are provided robust financial support, often including full tuition waivers, assistantship stipends, scholarships, fellowships, and health insurance subsidies. For more details, please contact the Graduate Program Director (Daniel.Smith@fsu.edu) who will walk you through your specific financial support opportunities.
