Art History

Art History is a discipline that seeks to understand different cultures and epochs through the study and analysis of art and architecture as a means of  communication.  We exist in an environment that is filled with the artifacts of human history, architecture, painting, and sculpture. Art History offers the tools to recognize and to understand these forms, and thus is a vital part of any serious liberal arts education.  Art History provides knowledge and understanding of the past, and through it, of the present.  The discipline encourages humanity and sympathy by teaching about other individuals and societies through their visual expression.  Art History provides intellectual confidence gained through learning how to recognize, order, and interpret facts.  In so doing, it  trains one to think and write clearly and to read carefully.  Art History instruction at the secondary school level is sporadic, but common enough for the Educational Testing Service to offer an Advanced Placement exam in the discipline.  Nevertheless most students have not been exposed to Art History in high school.  Take some introductory courses before deciding to major in Art History.  Even if you select another major, do not neglect to add upper level Art History electives that will augment and broaden your major program.

Departmental advisors are often asked about the usefulness of the degree in terms of employment, i.e. is it possible to get jobs in the field?  The more obvious employment applications of a degree in Art History are as a college/university professor or as a museum curator.  Both these occupations require advanced degrees, usually the Ph.D.  To this end, students intending to go on to graduate school would be wise to acquire a reading knowledge of at least German and French.  A reading knowledge of other foreign languages may also be necessary depending on the student's intended area of specialization.  Once a graduate school-bound student has determined which area of the discipline most interests her/him, that student would be well-advised to take related history and literature courses in the appropriate departments.

Rutgers students interested in teaching in secondary schools major in Art History and either simultaneously take courses in the School of Education or go on to do so after graduation, thus allowing them to teach Art History in the limited number of public high schools in which it is offered. (Art History is more commonly taught in private secondary schools.)  For positions in private schools, a B.A. is often sufficient.

Rutgers students with Bachelor's degrees and Master's degrees in Art History have often gone on to law school and found employment in the burgeoning field of art litigation.

Most museum jobs are not curatorial.  Nevertheless, a B.A. in Art History is a desirable qualification for any museum job and is a prerequisite for attending graduate school in  Curatorial Studies.  For majors contemplating employment at a museum, the department affords the opportunity of earning as many as six elective credits as a museum intern (see the section on Internships).  Museums for which the Department of Art History regularly provides interns include not only the Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers, but also the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum, the Guggenheim Museum (both in New York and in Venice), the Frick Collection,  the J. Pierpont Morgan Library, and the Freer and Sackler Galleries of the Smithsonian Institution.  Students wanting to serve as museum interns should consult with the departmental undergraduate advisor.

Conservation is another avenue for using a B.A. in Art History.  There are graduate schools, including the Institute of Fine Arts of New York University, that have conservation programs.  Students contemplating this career should be aware that there are scientific prerequisites, often including Organic Chemistry. They are advised to study these subjects, too, at the undergraduate level.

Another direct application of a degree in Art History, and one requiring no graduate training, is to work in a gallery, in the business side of the art world.  Again the Department of Art History sends interns for as many as six elective credits to many of the galleries in the Northeast including the great auction houses like Sotheby's and Christie's, as well as to many smaller, more specialized galleries (see the section on Internships ).  In consultation with the departmental undergraduate advisor, every attempt is made to tailor an internship to the career goals of the individual student.

• 105    Intro. Art History                              
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 106    Intro. Art History    
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 111    Honors Seminar: Intro Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 112    Honors Seminar: Intro Art History      
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 250    Intro. African, Oceanic, Pre-Columbian
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 251    Survey of Russian Art
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 252    East Asian Art
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 276    Great Works Modern Architecture
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 291    Topics In Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 292    Topics In Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 293    Topics In Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 294    Topics In Art History- Symbolism 
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 300    History of Modern Crafts Design
•                Modern
• 301    Ancient Architecture
•                Ancient
• 302    Intro. to Contemporary Art 
•                Modern
• 303    Art of Egypt & Ancient Near East
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American  orAncient
• 304    Architecture & Soc. in England
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 305    Women and Art
•                 Modern
• 306    Roman Art  
•                Ancient
• 307    Painting 19th & 20th Century
•                Modern
• 308    Age of Giotto
•                  Renaissance/Baroque
• 309   Masaccio and Contemporaries
•                 Renaissance/Baroque
• 310   High Renaissance in Italy
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 311   Egyptian Art
•                Ancient
• 312   Byzantine Art
•                Medieval
• 313   Renaissance Northern Europe
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 314   Etruscan Art 
•                Ancient
• 315   17th Century Art in Europe
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 316   Anglo-Saxon Art
•                Medieval
• 317   Ancient Painting
•                Ancient
• 318    Myth & Legend in Art 
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 319   Celtic & Early Irish Art
•                Medieval
• 320   Islamic Art & Architecture
•                Medieval or  African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 321   Art of Early China 
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 322   Survey of Japanese Art
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 323   Buddhist Art of Asia
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 324   Japanese Painting 
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 325   Chinese Painting
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 326   Chinese Sculpture
•                  African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 331   Intro. to African & Oceanic Art
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 332   African American Art
•                Modern
• 333   Pre-Columbian Art 
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 334   Blacks in Western Art 
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 335    Painting in England
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 339   Rome: From Ancient Capital to Modern Metropolis - I
•                  Study Abroad
• 340   Rome: From Ancient Capital to Modern Metropolis - II
•                Study Abroad                          
• 341   Venice
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 342   Early Greek Art
•                Ancient
• 343   Later Greek Art
•                Ancient
• 344   French Renaissance Art
•                 Renaissance/Baroque
• 345   Field Study
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 346  French 17th-century Art 
•                 Renaissance/Baroque
• 347  Early Northern European Painting
•                 Renaissance/Baroque
• 348  North European. Ptg. 17th Century
•                 Renaissance/Baroque
• 349  Rubens & the Baroque - in Flanders
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 350  Rembrandt & Followers
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 352  Art in the 18th Century
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 353  Netherlandish Genre Painting 
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 354  Italian Renaissance Sculpture
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 356   Landscapes in Russian Art & Literature
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 357   Nonconformist Soviet Art & Literature 
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 358   Special Topics in Russian Art
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 358   Internship in Russian Art
•                 Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 359   Internship in Russian Art
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 360   Internship in Russian Art
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 361   20th-century Russian/Soviet Art
•                  Modern
• 362   Native Arts of North America
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 363   Bernini and Baroque
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 364   Arts in Baroque Rome
•                 Renaissance/Baroque
• 365   Italian Baroque Painting & Sculp.
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 366   Spanish Painting
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 367   Modern American Art
•                 Modern
• 367 American Art 1585-1876
•                 Modern
• 369   Art Criticism to 1800
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 370   Art Criticism 1800-Present
•                Modern
• 371   Arts of West Africa
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 372   History of the Print
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 373   Early Medieval Art
•                Medieval
• 374   Romanesque & Gothic Art
•                Medieval
• 375   Renaissance & Baroque Architecture
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 376   Arts of Central Africa
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 378   Nineteenth Century Arch. in Europe
•                Modern
• 379   Architecture and Imagery of Medieval Rome
•                Medieval
• 380   Jewish Experience in Modern Art
•                Modern
• 382   History of Photography
•                Modern
• 383   History of Photography
•                Modern
• 384   Romanesque and Gothic Art and Architecture in Germany
•                Medieval
• 385   Renaissance to Modern Art and Architecture in Germany
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 386   Sculpture 20th Century
•                Modern
• 387   Realism
•                Modern
• 388   The City of Rome
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 389   Modern Art, 19th Century
•                Modern
• 390   Modern Art, 20th Century
•                Modern
• 391   19th Century Architecture
•                Modern
• 392   20th Century Architecture
•                Modern
• 393   Arch. & Society in Latin America
•                Modern
• 394   Spaces & Places: Art in Paris
•                Study Abroad
• 395   Spaces & Places: Art in Paris
•                Study Abroad
• 396   Impressionism
•                Modern
• 397   Medieval Architecture
•                Medieval
• 398   19th Century French Prints
•                Modern
• 399   Classical Architecture, Ancient to Modern
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 400   Post-Impressionism
•                Modern
• 401   Art of The Netherlands I
•                Study Abroad
• 402   Art of The Netherlands II
•                Study Abroad
• 403   Approaches to Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 417   Cubism & Abstract Art
•                Modern
• 420   African Architecture
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 421   Contemporary American Arch.
•                Modern
• 423   American Landscape Painting
•                Modern
• 428   Modern City
•                Modern
• 430   Seminar in Cultural Heritage Preservation
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 431   Theories and Methods of Architectural Preservation
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 441   Special Topics in Historic Preservation
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 442   Special Topics in Historic Preservation
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 444   Studies in Architectural Preservation
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 445   Studies in the Art and Architecture of New Jersey
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 446   Studies in American Architecture
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 447/448   Studies in American Architecture
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 449   Early Christian Art
•                Medieval
• 450   Sem. Major Italian Ren. Artists
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 451   Public Monuments Seminar - Historic Preservation
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 452   American Interiors from Colonial to Modern Era
•                Modern
• 454   Special Topics in Baroque
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 462   Workshop in Curatorial Practice
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 473   Illuminated Manuscripts
•                Medieval
• 480   Buddhist Cave Temples of China
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 481   Buddhism & Art in China
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 482   German Express. & Eur. Dada
•                Modern
• 483   Text & Image in Japanese Art
•                African, Asian, Islamic, South America, or Native American
• 484   Seminar in Ancient Art
•                Ancient
• 485   Surrealism
•                Modern
• 486   Special Topics Medieval Art
•                Medieval
• 487   Special Topics in Modern Art
•                Modern
• 488   Special Topics in American Art
•                Modern
• 489   Public Policy and the Arts
•                Modern
• 491   Capstone Seminar in Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 492   Capstone Seminar in Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 493   Individual Study Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 494   Individual Study Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 495/496   Internship in Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 497/498   Honors in Art History
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 499   Advanced Seminar
•                Varies - depends on subject matter
•  
• INTERDISCIPLINARY
• 556:309,310   Art, Music and Literature
•                Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• SUMMER PROGRAMS
• 309   Masaccio & Contemporaries
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 310   High Renaissance in Italy
•                Renaissance/Baroque
• 384   Romanesque and Gothic Art and Architecture in Germany
•                Medieval
• 385 Renaissance to Modern Art and Architecture in Germany
•                 Does Not Fulfill Area Requirement
• 394   Spaces & Places: Art in Paris
•                 Study Abroad
• 395   Spaces & Places: Art in Paris
•                 Study Abroad

CURRENT HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS SHOULD PROVIDE:

1. Online Application for Undergraduate Admission
2. Nonrefundable $70 application fee, payable online by credit card
3. Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR)
   • You may start the SRAR any time
   • You may submit it after submitting an application for undergraduate admission
4. SAT or ACT (with writing) scores submitted directly from the testing agency
5. If you took any college courses at any two- or four-year colleges, please submit official transcripts

STUDENTS WHO HAVE ALREADY GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL SHOULD PROVIDE:

1. Online Application for Undergraduate Admission
2. Nonrefundable $70 application fee, payable online by credit card
3. Final official high school transcript showing all courses with final grades in grades 9-12:
   • Transcripts must show a date of graduation; or
   • GED or equivalency diploma holders must submit test results or equivalent as well as transcripts from any high school attended
4. College transcripts if you took any college courses at a two- or four-year college
5. SAT or ACT scores (with writing) only if you graduated from high school less than two years ago and will not have at least 12 college credits completed by the application due date
6. Pharmacy College Admissions Test (PCAT) for transfer applicants to the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy.

STUDENTS WHO ARE ATTENDING OR HAVE ATTENDED SCHOOL OUTSIDE THE USA must submit the appropriate credentials listed above, plus the following:

• Official academic credentials/examination results specific to the education system of your high school
• English Proficiency Exam scores when your secondary schooling has been in a country where English is not the principal language of instruction

Want to improve your English level for admission?

Prepare for the program requirements with English Online by the British Council.

• ✔️ Flexible study schedule
• ✔️ Experienced teachers
• ✔️ Certificate upon completion

📘 Recommended for students with an IELTS level of 6.0 or below.

Enroll in the course

Scholarships

• Merit-based awards
• National Merit Scholarships/College Sponsored Merit Award