back to students

How to apply for the art major

It is advisable that students declare a major before the beginning of the junior year. Application forms for the art major can be obtained in the Registrar’s office. These should be filled out and returned to the Department Chair. Each application will be carefully considered by the entire Department at the time of application. While it is College policy that no department may decline a major, the Art Department considers it very beneficial to advise prospective majors of the suitability of its program for their needs. Upon declaring a major, students should choose an advisory within the Department and carefully structure their course of study with the help of their advisor. Guidelines for course selection and a complete description of requirements for studio majors are available at the Art Department Office.

Advice for Art Studio Majors

Declare your major as soon as you are relatively certain of it. Select an advisor in the Art Department -- consult him or her frequently.

Art History (4 units required)

Whenever possible:

Take the art history survey in your first or second year.
Take the survey course prior to specialized courses.
Try to complete all art history requirements prior to the senior year, as these courses help to prepare you for the senior seminars.
Avoid transfering credit from other programs, if possible. Our art historians appreciate studio majors, and are outstanding scholars.

Foreign Study (optional)

Try to get into a program that is scheduled for your sophomore year, or fall semester junior year. Foreign study can be a disadvantage for students who are off campus in the spring semester of their junior year, but don’t rule it out if it is the only time possible. Keep in mind that some courses and programs aimed at preparing you for the senior year are offered in the spring of your junior year. Remember only three art studio courses taken off campus can be counted towards the major.

All College Requirements

Try to have these completed prior to your senior year. In particular, finish the scientific inquiry requirement. Note that the art history survey fulfills the West in Time, and several other art history courses fulfill the Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.

Language Requirement

The Art Department no longer has a foreign language requirement beyond the all-college requirement; however, the departmental language requirement still applies to former students who took senior seminar in the fall of 2004 and in earlier years.

Studio - 10 units required

Take a range of art studio courses from all permanent faculty in the first three years. A selection should be made to cover basic studio, a color course (painting, printmaking), drawing, a three-dimensional course, and a course in new media (such as video).

Avoid taking more than one basic studio, and too many courses taught by visiting faculty, unless they are in areas of special interest (i.e., a photography course only offered by a visiting professor).

Your senior year will be most productive and satisfying if you can devote it primarily to art. Schedule your courses so that you have at least five blocks for this during your senior year. Two units will be taken up by Senior Seminar (Block 2, and Blocks 1-8, extended format). Having open blocks and/or independent study is desirable in your senior year. The extended format senior seminar is an advantage in this regard, as it can be taken as an overload, or you may elect to keep one block open and still receive eight (8) units of credit for the school year.

Involve yourself in Art Department activities: lectures, field trips, workshops, student organizations, and life drawing. Work on your art, above and beyond your class assignments.

The most challenging and rewarding requirement for the majority of studio majors is the senior exhibit. Preparation for this will test your ability to work independently on a subject that you have identified as being personally significant. The final installation may take a number of forms, ranging from traditional subject matter and presentation to mixed media environments. Your progress will be critiqued on a regular basis throughout the senior year. Although some elements of the show may reflect class projects, you are expected to produce a coherent individual statement, rather than a survey of prior course work. Before declaring your major, you should think carefully about this requirement, and discuss it in greater detail with a faculty member in the Department.

Advice for Art History Majors

Declare your major as soon as you are relatively certain of it. Select an advisor in the Art Department -- consult her or him frequently.

Art Studio (4 units required)

Whenever possible:

Take basic studio or introduction to drawing in your first or second year.

Foreign Study

If at all possible participate in a foreign study program. Investigate the possibilities early. You may wish to study in a country whose language and/or art you are particularly interested in. Many study abroad programs offer art history courses. Remember only three art history courses taken off campus can be counted towards the major.

Distribution Requirements

Try to have these completed prior to your senior year. In particular, finish the Scientific Inquiry requirement. Note that the art history survey fulfills the West in Time, and several other art history courses fulfill the Diverse Cultures and Critiques requirement.

Language Requirement

The Art Department no longer has a foreign language requirement beyond the all-college requirement; however, the departmental language requirement still applies to former students who took senior seminar in the fall of 2004 and in earlier years. Students who are considering graduate studies in art history should study at least one foreign language.

Art History

Take a range of art history courses from all permanent faculty in the first three years. A selection should be made to meet the departmental distribution requirements. Be sure and take coursework in areas in which you may wish to write a thesis as you must have a basic course in the area of your thesis topic.

The art history concentration consists of four units of art studio, a two block introductory survey (111, 112, 113, or 114), 412 and 415 and six additional art history courses, five of which must be at the 200 level or above. One course must be taken from each of four areas:


(1) Ancient and Medieval Art: 205, 207, 208, 210, 211, or their equivalent;
(2) Renaissance and Baroque Art: 221, 223, 228, 231, 232, or their equivalent;
(3) Modern and American Art: 241, 242, 243, 245, 248, 342, or their equivalent;
(4) Asian Art: 155, 255, 265, or their equivalent.

Avoid taking more than three units at the 100 level, and too many courses taught by visiting faculty, unless they are in areas of special interest.

Involve yourself in Art Department activities: lectures, field trips, workshops, student organizations,