StudyQA — Bachelor: History of Art — Courtauld Institute of Art

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Description

All programmes of study offered by The Courtauld Institute of Art aim to give students access to the best available research-led teaching, and world-class learning resources. The Institute offers one undergraduate degree programme: BA (Hons) History of Art.

Our BA programme is designed to:

equip students with a detailed knowledge and systematic, historical understanding of art from antiquity to the present
produce graduates with the skills and critical curiosity necessary for participation in a range of employment opportunities
provide a preparation for further academic study

A graduate of The Courtaulds BA in the History of Art will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of major developments and issues in the history of art. S/he will be aware of and be able to position their own analysis in relation to a range of established interpretative methods employed in the discipline.

This will involve:

familiarity with major monuments and key texts
appreciation of the historical processes of change in art and architecture from antiquity to the present
a sophisticated and in-depth grasp of specific periods or fields of art history, and the intellectual issues raised by their study
an awareness of the role of different physical settings in determining how works of art are viewed and understood
first-hand experience of a range of objects, which facilitates understanding of the processes by which works of art have been made and altered.

Assessment

Each year you will complete a number of essays and formal exams, which are designed to measure your level of achievement and understanding of the subject matter:

First Year

You will submit two essays in each of the autumn and spring terms, and take three formal examinations at the end of the academic year.

Second Year

You will take four formal examinations relating to each of your four courses at the end of the academic year and submit one 4,000-word essay which should address interests arising directly from your courses.

Third Year

Assessment is based on four formal examinations at the end of the academic year relating to the Special Option Courses and one 5,000-word essay on a topic of particular interest.

In addition to formal assessments, you will be assessed informally on an ongoing basis, which may include:

Contribution to class discussion
Class presentations
Written work

At the end of each course, you will have a tutorial session with your personal tutor to discuss your progress and performance.

Detailed Course Facts

Application deadline 15 January 2015 Tuition fee

GBP 9000 Year (EEA)
GBP 15250 Year (Non-EEA)

Start date September 2015 Duration full-time 36 months Languages Take an IELTS test

English

Delivery mode On Campus Educational variant Full-time More information Go To The Course Website

Course Content

The BA History of Art is a full-time, three-year course which is designed to prepare you for a career in the arts or for further academic study.

You will be assigned a personal tutor who will help you put together a structured and progressive set of course choices in each successive year of the degree. Personal tutors can also discuss assessment procedures with you and provide the first point of contact for academic and personal problems.

The undergraduate degree at The Courtauld Institute of Art is a course unit degree, that is to say, a degree which aims to be responsive to the particular choices of individual students without losing its identity as a qualification in the study of the history of art.

Detailed information about the aims and objectives of the course can be found in the programme specification below:

BA First Year - Topic Course

Taken in the Autumn term, the Topic course provides detailed examination of one particular form or period of art, for which there are excellent resources in London. The options offered change annually but recently have included:

Ancient Sculpture in London Collections
From Late Antiquity to Byzantium through London Collections
Hogarth in London Collections
Neoclassical Architecture and Design in London
Sculpture in the City: Modern Sculpture in London 1850-1939
Taking Shape: Italian Altarpieces of the Late Middle Ages and Renaissance
The Graphic Image: Exploring Early Modern Northern Works in London Collections

BA First Year - The Foundations Lecture Course

The Foundations Lecture Series run throughout the year in conjunction with focused study. Courses are desinged to offer you a broad coverage of periods, regions, materials and approaches to art and architecture from antiquity to the present.

Foundations

BA Second Year - Frameworks

This course offers an introduction to some of the key methodologies (biography, taxonomy, formalism, iconology, psychoanalysis, and others) that inform art historical interpretation. You will be expected to develop and articulate a critical understanding of the methodologies discussed as they bear on the discourse of art history. The lectures will explore a selection of methodologies and debates within the discipline of art history and provide a detailed critique in relation to key texts and objects of study. Discussion classes will be an opportunity for students to explore the issues raised by the lectures with reference to assigned readings.

Architecture in Fifteenth-Century Italy
Cold War Cultures: Art in a Divided World 1945-1991
Narrative Histories of Nineteenth-Century Art: Art in France c.1840-1900
Object Lessons: Investigating the Making of Art in Late Medieval Europe
Painting in Britain c.1714-1832
Seventeenth-Century Art in the Courts of Prague, Rome, Paris and Madrid
The Virgin's Places, 1220-1350

BA Second Year - Period Course

The Period Course presents the art from one particular historical period. It aims to investigate the various historical contexts within which art can be studied as well as the different approaches scholars have taken to the study of this material. The options offered change annually but recently have included:

Art in France 1900-39: Nationhood and Tradition
History of New Media
Looking for the Ancient Artist
Monuments and Memory
Queer Perspectives on Nineteenth-Century Art
Re-presenting the Past: Uses of History in Dress, Fashion and Art

BA Second Year - The Foundations Lecture Course

Classicisms in Modernity
Frameworks for Interpretation

BA Third Year - Special Option

In the final year of the degree, you will take two courses, one in the Autumn term and one in the Spring term (for which you will be asked to submit preferences) from a list of approximately ten Special Options. These Special Option courses are designed to enable you to engage with materials and methods at an advanced level and to equip you for further study or research. You will be able to become familiar with current methods and research techniques in art history. The options offered change annually but recently have included:

American Japanism: A Case Study in Cross-Cultural Aesthetics
Body and Gender in the Art of the French Revolution
Medieval Reliquaries and the Construction of Sanctity
Power, Piety and Prestige: Art at the Courts of France, c. 1340-1420
Versailles: From Hunting Lodge to National Museum

English Language Requirements

IELTS band : 7

To study at this university, you have to speak English. We advice you to

take an IELTS test.

Requirements

English Proficiency Certificate

All applicants are expected to have an effective knowledge of English, both spoken or written. For applicants whose first language is not English, we require proof of English proficiency.

If you hold a qualification from outside of the UK, please feel free to contact the Academic Registry; however, please be aware that our staff are unable to confirm whether you will be invited to interview, as candidates are judged on the strength of their applications as a whole.

Other Requirements

All applicants are expected to have an effective knowledge of English, both spoken or written. For applicants whose first language is not English, we require proof of English proficiency.

We will accept:

International English Language Testing System (IELTS) with an overall bandwidth of 7.0 or above, with no less than 6.5 in Reading and Writing.
Cambridge Advanced English (CAE) with a minimum grade of B
IGCSE with a minimum grade of B
Pearson Test for English (PTE) Academic with a score of 75 or above
CPE (Cambridge English: Proficiency) with minimum grade of C

** Due to a recent change in policy UK Immigration & Visa no longer accepts TOEFL exams. If you have previously taken a TOEFL exam to April 2014, we will accept you exam results. If you have any questions, please contact ugadmissions@courtauld.ac.uk

Please note that we will not accept institutional test results.

You may be exempt from providing proof of proficiency if either of the following applies to you:

You are a national of a majority English speaking country*
You have an academic qualification (not a professional or vocational qualification), which is equivalent to a UK Bachelors degree and the qualification is from an education provider in a majority English speaking country, including the UK and Republic of Ireland but not Canada.

*For a list of countries considered majority English -speaking countries by the UK Border Agency for purposes of English language proficiency, please see the 'Instructions' pages of our programme application forms.

If you are unable to book a test at a centre in advance of the application deadline, you may submit your application without an English proficiency result and it will be passed on for consideration. You should send your test result when it becomes available to you.

Non traditional backgrounds

The Institute is committed to admitting a diverse student body and welcomes applications from those with a non-traditional educational background. All applications are considered on their merits and due recognition is given to the attributes of each case.

We also welcome mature students (25 years of age or older at the time of application). Applicants who do not have A-Levels, or whose A-Levels were taken some time ago, should provide evidence of recent study. There is a range of courses that could satisfy our entrance requirements, for example an access course with a strong humanities component, or the History of Art and Architecture Diploma from Birkbeck (University of London), or the Open University Introduction to the Humanities course.

Whatever your route to The Courtauld, a good level of achievement is expected for entry. It is often very helpful if mature candidates forward their CV to the Academic Registry in addition to completing the UCAS application form.

Widening Participation

We are committed to widening participation at the Institute and to higher education in general. We therefore reserve the right to make differential offers to applicants from socio-economic groups that are under-represented in Higher Education.

United Kingdom A-Levels

AAB excluding General Studies
Admissions tutors are flexible on subjects studied; however, where a student is completing two A-Levels in practical art subjects, a fourth A-Level is required to accommodate for overlap of course content.

A GCSE/O-Level (grade A-C) or equivalent in a European language would be an advantage.

Scottish Highers

AAAAB or AAABB, usually supplemented by two or more Advanced Highers

Offers made to candidates on the basis of the Advanced Higher subjects are likely to be set at AA for two subjects, and AAB for three subjects.

Welsh Baccalaureate

Advanced Diploma with two A grades at A-Level alongside the Core Certificate at Level 3

Cambridge Pre-U

D3, D3, M2

Non traditional backgrounds

Widening Participation

Other Requirements

All applicants are expected to have an effective knowledge of English, both spoken or written. For applicants whose first language is not English, we require proof of English proficiency.

We will accept:

International English Language Testing System (IELTS) with an overall bandwidth of 7.0 or above, with no less than 6.5 in Reading and Writing.
Cambridge Advanced English (CAE) with a minimum grade of B
IGCSE with a minimum grade of B
Pearson Test for English (PTE) Academic with a score of 75 or above
CPE (Cambridge English: Proficiency) with minimum grade of C

Please note that we will not accept institutional test results.

You may be exempt from providing proof of proficiency if either of the following applies to you:

You are a national of a majority English speaking country*
You have an academic qualification (not a professional or vocational qualification), which is equivalent to a UK Bachelors degree and the qualification is from an education provider in a majority English speaking country, including the UK and Republic of Ireland but not Canada.

Work Experience

No work experience is required.

Related Scholarships*

Academic Excellence Scholarship
"The Academic Excellence Scholarship can provide up to a 50 % reduction in tuition per semester. These scholarships will be renewed if the student maintains superior academic performance during each semester of their 3-year Bachelor programme. The scholarship will be directly applied to the student’s tuition fees."
Access Bursary
Bursary for UK students all subjects where the variable tuition fee rate is payable.
Alumni Bursary
Alumni Bursary for UK Undergraduate students

* The scholarships shown on this page are suggestions first and foremost. They could be offered by other organisations than The Courtauld Institute of Art.