Components of the Major

Expository English

Majors are encouraged to take advantage of the many opportunities to improve and practice their writing through writing-intensive classes, the Writing Fellows Program, and the Writing Center. Your progress in expository English will be closely monitored in art history papers and examinations. Note to majors admitted to the University before June 1996 (when the current General Education requirements were instated): your English competency will need to be certified by the professor who is most familiar with your work, usually the instructor of your proseminar. This requirement must be completed by the end of your senior year.

Honors Program

Students seeking a degree with Honors in the Liberal Arts or Comprehensive Honors should refer to the requirements detailed in the Undergraduate Catalog. Those interested in Honors in the Major or Comprehensive Honors should refer to the outline of requirements for art history.

Students who wish to continue graduate studies in art history or related fields, or who simply desire more advanced work in art history, are strongly encouraged to pursue honors in the major. Students should begin to plan honors work in art history with their honors advisors as early in their careers as possible.

Although the department offers few separate honors courses, you may take most of our courses for honors credit. Inform professors when you are taking courses for honors credit so that you may agree on the honors requirements at the beginning of the semester. In planning your program, speak regularly with the honors advisor as well as with the faculty supervisors of your honors courses and honors thesis.

For important guidelines on the Senior Honors Thesis, please read this document. Also, a set of guidelines for presenting the Senior Honors Thesis Colloquium is also available for download.

Courses in Other Fields

The Department has no language requirement beyond that of L&S (and we do require this of all majors regardless of degree program.) However, advanced language training in more than one language is a primary requirement for entrance into graduate school. Students who contemplate any further work in art history should start acquiring the major languages of their fields as undergraduates (German, French, and Italian for western art; Latin and Greek for ancient art; Latin for medieval and Renaissance art; German and Dutch or French for northern European art; and Asian and African languages for those areas). Feel free to speak with the experts in each field to determine which languages you should learn.

Other University Departments:

Every student has different needs and interests and we can advise you of courses in other departments that might be pertinent to your interests in art history. We can prescribe no single direction. As would be true of any program of studies in the College of Letters & Sciences, the best program for an art history major would include several courses that give you extensive experience in writing and expose you to a broad range of learning and disciplines. You must determine which courses sound important for your needs: feel free to discuss your choices with advisors in our department, in other departments, and in South Hall if you are unsure of exactly which courses to take.

Most art history majors find that courses in history, history of science, anthropology, English, comparative literature, and foreign languages complement their studies in art history. A student interested in modern art might want to take a course on German film in communication arts, a course on the Holocaust in theater, a course on Nietzsche in philosophy, or courses in contemporary literary theory in the foreign language departments. A student of Renaissance art might be attracted to a course on cartography in geography; a student of Northern European art might want a course in the history of Baroque music. Students in African and Asian art will be attracted to many different courses on the history and culture of those areas.

Many of our students have participated in the University's interdisciplinary programs, including Integrated Liberal Studies, Medieval Studies, and Women's Studies. Some have found relevant courses in the history of design and material culture in Environment, Textiles, and Design, in Landscape Architecture, and in Theatre and Drama. Many have taken courses in producing art in art and film and television. Several have found stimulus for their understanding of art history through courses in Sociology and Psychology.

Graduate programs in art history look for students with backgrounds rich in the humanities, history, languages, and other areas directly related to the chosen field of study. All professional degree programs and employers, on the other hand, are principally interested in mature candidates with strong, well-rounded undergraduate records, serious purpose, and excellent written and spoken English. If you think you might be interested in graduate studies, we would be happy to advise you on courses that would be important for your future..