Division Coordinator Samuel A. Roberson

The Bachelor of Arts major in art history gives the undergraduate student an opportunity to study the visual culture of humankind from prehistoric times to the art of today and to understand the significant role played by visual communication in world societies. Art historians develop skills in visual analysis, criticism, research, and writing that enrich life experiences and can lead to a variety of rewarding professional careers.

Unlike the studio B.F.A. degrees at Herron, the art history major is a liberal arts program leading to the B.A. degree. Art history majors take 36 credit hours of surveys and seminars in their major field covering at least three of the following areas: ancient, medieval, Renaissance and Baroque, American, non-Western, modern, and art theory. Majors must take at least 6 credit hours of studio art as well as a variety of core requirement courses in the humanities and sciences, including at least one foreign language. Specific requirements for the art history major are outlined later in this section.

An art history minor enables students majoring in other areas to expand their knowledge of art history and gain valuable career-building experience. Minoring in art history will require 18 hours of art history credits from a variety of historical periods. H100 Art Appreciation and H103 Introduction to Contemporary Art do not count toward the required hours for either the major or minor in art history. They may, however, be used as general electives.

Art history can lead to a variety of careers, including the traditional professional paths of teaching and museum work as well as art conservation and restoration, historic preservation, architecture, art dealership, auctioneering and collecting, art criticism and journalism, advertising, filmmaking and photography, exhibition design and preparation, historical research and writing, interior and commercial design, librarianship, independent consulting, and publishing. Art history also enriches the life of the practicing artist. More information is available from the art history office in the Herron Main Building, or by calling the Art History Program at (317) 920-2460 or visiting our World Wide Web site at http://www.herron.iupui.edu/artHistory/

Academic Requirements for a B.A. in Art History

1. A minimum of 128 credit hours is required to complete the Bachelor of Arts in art history degree.

2. A minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.00 (C) is required for graduation.

3. Art history majors must fulfill the following general education requirements: 6 credit hours in English composition
   3 credit hours in speech communication
   10 credit hours in foreign language (8 in some languages)
   6 credit hours in analytic skills
   9 credit hours in natural science
   6 credit hours in history
   6 credit hours in arts and humanities
   6 credit hours in social and behavioral sciences
   15 credit hours in advanced courses.

4. A minimum of 36 credit hours of art history courses is required. Neither H100 Art Appreciation nor H103 Introduction to Contemporary Art may be counted for the art history major or minor requirements. No course in art history in which a student receives a grade below C (2.0) may be used to fulfill the 36 credit hour requirement.

5. A minimum of 6 credit hours in studio art is required.

6. A minimum of 19 credit hours of electives is required. Art Appreciation H100 may count toward elective credit in the major only if taken prior to H101 and/or H102.

7. A minimum of 26 credit hours of senior-year courses must be completed at Herron/IUPUI.

8. A maximum of 8 courses may be taken Pass/Fail but no more than two Pass/Fail courses may be taken in any one academic year. Pass/Fail courses can be used only as electives or non-major 300- or 400-level requirements.

9. A maximum of 12 credit hours may be taken by correspondence through the Indiana University Division of Extended Studies. Authorization from the Art History Program faculty and the Student Services Office at Herron School of Art is required prior to registration.

10. Once a course has been applied toward one requirement, it cannot be used again to satisfy a second requirement except where explicitly stated otherwise. In addition, except in cases of variable-title courses, internships, and other special courses, no course can be counted more than once toward graduation.

11. Credits in the following courses will not be accepted toward the art history degree: English W001, G010, G011, G012, or G013; MATH 130, 132, or any mathematics course lower than M118.

12. An application for a degree must be filed with the Student Services Office at Herron School of Art by October 15 for graduation in the following December, May, June, or August. Candidates for degrees in December, May, June, or August may participate in May IUPUI Commencement.

Distribution Requirement Details

English Composition W131/W132 (6 credits). This requirement may be satisfied in one of the following ways:

1. by completing W131 and W132 or Honors W140 and W150 with a grade of C (2.00) or higher; or

2. by testing out of W131 through the IUPUI English Credit by Exam and completing W132 with a grade of C (2.00) or higher; or

3. for transfer students, by completing course work equivalent to W131 and W132 with a grade of C (2.00) or higher at another campus or institution.

Communication Studies R110 (3 credits). Students with previously acquired competency in public speaking may be eligible for special credit and exemption from this requirement.

Foreign Language (10 credits). First-year competency is required, and second-year competency is strongly recommended. This requirement may be satisfied in one of the following ways:

1. by completing first-year courses (10 credit hours, 8 in some languages) with passing grades;

2. by completing a second-year course with a grade of C (2.00) or higher; or

3. by attaining a satisfactory score on a placement test.

Native speakers of languages other than English are not permitted to receive credit for 100- and 200-level courses in their native language. Similarly, native speakers of English who have achieved elementary or intermediate proficiency in a foreign language by living or studying in a country where the language is spoken ordinarily will not receive credit for 100- and 200-level courses in that foreign language by taking first- or second-year courses.

In all cases, individual foreign language departments are responsible for determining a student’s placement and for recommending a specific number of credit hours for prior work. Before registering for foreign language courses, native speakers of languages other than English should confer with the academic advisor in the relevant department.

Basic Courses 33 credits outside the major

Analytic Skills (6 credits). These courses provide the student with insight into processes of logical reasoning.

Mathematics M118 or above (3 credits)

Logic (Philosophy P262 or P265) or Mathematics or Computer Science or Computer Technology or Statistics (3 credits)

Natural Sciences (9 credits). This area allows for a choice of courses treating the ‘‘natural’’ phenomena of the world according to models of scientific thought. The 9 credits are to be selected from at least two of the following subjects:

Transfer students who have taken history courses other than those listed above should consult with the art history division coordinator about transfer credit.

Arts and Humanities (6 credits). Providing insight into the greatness of human aesthetic achievement, this area represents the artistic view of a vital way of structuring life. The 6 credits must be divided between two of the following four areas:

1. Subject to review and approval of the division coordinator, introductory courses in any of the arts and humanities shall count toward this requirement.

2. With approval of the division coordinator, where it seems appropriate to the breadth of the course, nonsurvey courses may count toward this requirement.

3. Other arts and humanities courses will be counted toward this requirement on a 2-for-1 basis (6 credit hours satisfying 3 credit hours of this requirement).

4. The following will not satisfy this requirement: creative writing, drawing, performance, or studio courses.

Social Sciences (6 credits). An examination of the complexities of human behavior, society, and human interaction, this area uses procedures and information developed in social and behavorial studies. The 6 credits must be divided between two of the following areas:

1. With the approval of the division coordinator, introductory survey courses in any of the social sciences shall count toward this requirement.

2. With approval of the division coordinator, where it seems appropriate to the breadth of the course, nonsurvey courses may count toward this requirement.

3. Other social science courses will be counted toward this requirement on a 2-for-1 basis (6 credit hours satisfying 3 credit hours of this requirement).

Advanced Courses (300-400 level)  15 credits outside art history

In addition to cultivating expertise in art history, the degree student should conduct in-depth study of other appropriate subject areas.

Offerings on the 300- and 400-levels of at least four departments or programs of the School of Liberal Arts, the School of Science, the School of Music, or the Herron School of Art may count toward satisfying this requirement. Advanced courses may include those that involve significant cross-disciplinary input, e.g., appropriately designed honors courses or specially designed liberal arts topics courses. Herron advanced studio courses may be counted toward satisfying the advanced courses requirement. Students wanting to take studio classes must submit examples of their artwork to the Office of the Assistant Dean for approval.

In order to register for any 300- or 400-level course, the student must satisfy the prerequisite requirements.

The 300- and 400-level courses in Afro-American studies, women’s studies, American studies, and the IUPUI Honors Program can also be counted.

The Herron School of Art programs from which advanced courses may be selected include the following:

Major Requirements (100-400 level)  36 credits Includes both H101-H102 History of Art I-II, no fewer than 12 credits at the 300 level, and no fewer than 12 credits at the 400 level. The 300- and 400-level courses should be distributed among at least three different areas of art history selected from the following: ancient, medieval, Renaissance and baroque, modern, non-Western art, or art theory. At least 3 credit hours must be taken in twentieth-century art.

At least 15 of the 30 credits must be completed in residence at IUPUI; of these 15 credits, two courses at the 300 level and two courses at the 400 level must normally be completed to fulfill this requirement.

Any course in which the student receives a grade below C may not be used to fulfill this requirement. However, courses in which D is received may be counted toward the total 128 credits required.

Studio Art 6 credits

Electives 19 credits

Elective subjects allow students to adjust their curricula to satisfy additional personal needs and interests. These subjects may be used to add an even greater diversity to a liberal arts program or provide opportunity for in-depth reinforcement of required studies. Art history and studio art courses not used to satisfy previously listed requirements may be counted as electives.

Suggested Plan of Study for the B.A. in Art History

Summary of Credit Required for the B.A. in Art History

Minor in Art History

H101-H102  Two semester introductory

  survey 6 cr.

Upper-level courses (200 optional, 300-and 400-level)

One 400-level course recommended.
The 9 credits must include courses in
at least two historical periods or subject categories (ancient, medieval, Renaissance/
Baroque, American, 19th/20th-century,
and art theory) 9 cr. Only courses completed with a grade of C (2.0) or better will count toward the minor.

Consult the bulletin and schedule of classes for regular and cross-listed courses. Art history courses not eligible to be counted toward the minor (or major) include H100 Art Appreciation and H103 Contemporary Art.

Procedure

Community Resource Faculty