The Graduate Art History Program
at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Graduate Program Director: Monika Schmitter
GUIDE to the MASTER OF ARTS PROGRAM in
ART HISTORY
 The
purpose of the Master of Arts Program in Art History is to provide
a course of study for advanced art history students that will
allow them to develop a high degree of professional competence
and a broad foundation for further work in the discipline.
Enrollment in the Program does not exceed 30 students.
There are presently 7 full-time art history faculty on the Amherst
campus. This small size and advantageous student/faculty ratio
give the Program many strengths. Founded in 1969, the M.A. Program
offers the only publicly-funded graduate art history degree in
New England. We prepare students for doctoral study and provide
professional training for many careers, including museum and historical
society work, governmental programs in the arts, the art market,
journalism, and teaching at all levels.
Acceptance in the Program
Applicants to the M.A. Program submit an application
form, two letters of recommendation, transcripts of academic work,
and GRE scores. A faculty committee evaluates this information,
giving priority to the candidate’s overall academic background
in the humanities, foreign language competency, letters of recommendation,
and motivation and interest.
All those admitted to the Program should complete
the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) in order
to determine eligibility for financial aid, including work study.
In their first semester students are not normally awarded departmental
assistance, but often receive it for their three subsequent semesters.
Eligible entering students may also receive support through the
Office of Minority Graduate Student Recruitment and Retention.
Degree Requirements and Guidelines
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A minimum of 30 credits are required for the
M.A. degree.
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At least 5 art history graduate seminars
(700-level) must be completed. One of these is the Graduate
Methods seminar (Art His 781), which is to be taken during
the first year of study in the Program. It is offered every
fall.
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A full-time course load as defined by the
Graduate School is 9 credits. If a student is holding a teaching
assistantship, auditing a number of courses, or studying for
the Comprehensive Exam, 6 credits may qualify as full-time.
The Graduate Program Director (GPD) must approve all proposed
courses of study.
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The Master’s Program requires students
to complete one graduate course in each of the following areas:
Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance/Baroque and Non-Western. Two
courses in Modern are also required, selected from 2 of 3
fields: American, European and Architecture. Among these courses
must be four lecture courses taken for credit from four different
areas. These areas are Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance/Baroque,
Non-Western and Modern. The other two distribution requirements
may be satisfied by audits or seminars.
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One course (3 credits) taken outside art
history may be counted toward the 30 hours for the degree.
This course may not be in a foreign language, except at the
literature level, or in studio art. Many graduate students
do take foreign language or studio art courses in addition
to their 30 degree credits. Students are encouraged to take
advantage of the many courses at the University and the Five
Colleges in related fields such as History, Philosophy, English,
and Classics.
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Students should note that while formal audits
may be used to satisfy 2 distribution requirements for the
M.A., ordinarily such an audit will not provide a level of
expertise adequate for answering essay questions in that area
of the comprehensive exam. The minimum standard for an audit
is regular attendance, with no absences. Official audits that
appear on the transcript are taken with the permission of
the instructor. Students should be sure to check with the
individual instructor to determine what constitutes an audit
in each case. Furthermore, while the graduate school allows
for a change from graded credit to an official audit up until
the last day of classes, the student must have the permission
of the instructor and be passing the course. Students holding
departmental assistantships must earn 6 credits. Audits do
not earn credit.
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No more than 6 credits of Independent Study
may be counted toward the 30 hours for the degree, although
students are encouraged to pursue individualized work.
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The University allows transfer of up to 6
credits of graduate work from another institution or 6 credits
done as a non-degree graduate stude nt on campus (provided
that the student registered for the course through the Graduate
School.) The individual petition to the GPD accomplishes the
transfer.
During Counseling Week each semester students consult
with the GPD about their schedule. The GPD will help students
to balance their level of preparation and interests with the general
requirements and pattern of offerings.
Foreign Language Requirement
For most careers in art history, a knowledge of foreign languages,
especially French and German, is extremely important and often
a fundamental requirement. Students in the M.A. Program are expected
to read in a foreign language in connection with their academic
work, especially in seminars.
A reading knowledge of French or German must be demonstrated
in order to receive the M.A. degree, and a language examination
must be passed before the student is eligible to take the M.A.
Comprehensive Examination. In special cases, students may petition
for recognition of another language, directly related to research
in their field of interest, in fulfillment of the requirement.
The written examination requires translating a selected passage
of art-historical writing from French or German into English.
The passage must be translated in one hour without the use of
a dictionary. The GPD administers the examination in French and
German once each semester on Registration Day. All students are
required to take the examination during their first semester and
subsequently until they have passed it. The faculty in making
teaching assistantship awards considers language proficiency.
Students who do not pass the exam at once are required to take
for credit or officially audit a language course during their
first semester. They must continue to take language courses or
other concrete steps toward learning a language until the requirement
is met.
Any student who has passed a graduate level literature course
in French or German at the University with a grade of B or above
will be exempt from the language examination. Faculty must approve
graduate literature courses taken at other institutions.
Comprehensive Examination for the M.A.
At the beginning of the semester during which a student plans
to take the Comprehensive Examination, the student must notify
the GPD in writing. At the same time, the student will declare
a major area of concentration and select three members from the
faculty as an examining committee with one serving as chairperson.
The major areas are:
Ancient
Medieval
15th-16th centuries throughout Europe
17th-18th centuries throughout Europe
14th-17th centuries in Northern Europe
15th-18th centuries in Italy
American (Colonial to World War II)
European, 1780 to the present
19th century in Europe and America
20th century in Europe and America
Islamic
Other areas may be selected with faculty consent
There is no thesis requirement for the M.A. in Art
History. Rather, there is a series of examinations offered twice
a year, beginning in the first week of November and April. (In 2006
and thereafter, the spring exam will begin the last week in March.)
The written examination is in two parts. The first part is the Comprehensive
Examination, with four sections: (1) a take-home Methodology essay;
(2) 30 slide identifications; (3) 2 slide attributions, chosen outside
the major field; (4) 3 essays outside the major field. A file of
sample examinations is available to students in the Art History
Office.
Please note: no portion of the exam can be rewritten, but a student
may retake the exam once. Students must earn a minimum of 240
points out of 300 (a grade of B) on the 30 slide identifications
and also a B on both attributions and all 3 essays to pass the
exam. We strongly counsel students not to respond to questions
for which their sole preparation is based on an undergraduate
course or an audit. This exam will be read by various faculty
committees.
The second part of the written examination is the major area
exam, composed and read by the student’s own committee.
This consists of two essay questions selected from a list of 4-6.
In exceptional cases, students who have carried a research project
to a sufficient state of completion may be nominated by a faculty
member to submit a “publishable paper” in place of
the written area examination. The art history faculty as a whole
must approve such a project.
Usually within a week after taking the written examination, the
student will arrange with the committee for the oral examination.
The oral examination normally consists of roughly 40 minutes of
questions from the general field and 20 minutes of questions in
the candidate’s area of concentration.
Library Resources
The University has arranged the 9th floor of the W.E.B. DuBois
Library as an Art Library. The collection is strong, containing
around 70,000 volumes. These books have limited circulation and
may also be set aside on the 9th floor for individual study and
easy reference. The libraries at Amherst, Mount Holyoke, and especially
Smith College compliment the University’s holdings. Delivery
of books not available at the University can be requested through
Five College Delivery (FCD). Graduate students at the University
have access to these libraries and other major art libraries in
New England, such as the Clark Art Institute Library in Williamstown,
Massachusetts. Since the University is part of a large Boston-based
consortium of Massachusetts schools, students have ready access
through interlibrary loan to great numbers of books in addition
to the over two million items on the Amherst campus. The excellent
University Interlibrary Loan Service is heavily subsidized so
the cost to the borrower is minimal.
Computer Facilities
The Art History Program has its own computer lab, open during
slide library hours. When not in use by a class, these computers
are available to graduate students for word processing or to access
the World Wide Web. The Office of Information and Technology (OIT)
must issue a password for access to the campus network of public
computer labs and printing facilities. There is a public computer
lab on the ground floor of Bartlett Hall, available for use by
OIT account holders on weekends and evenings, as well as additional
MAC and PC labs located in the W.E.B. DuBois Library. OIT also
staffs a Help Desk located in the Lederele low rise, specializing
in software problems, but they also provide other services such
as PC maintenance, upgrading RAM and solving various other hardware
problems.
Resources in the Five Colleges Consortium
Courses in art history or a related field taken at Amherst, Hampshire,
Mount Holyoke, and Smith Colleges can be included in a student’s
program and counted as the equivalent of a 600-level course at
the University, provided that they are above the introductory
level and the instructor verifies completion of graduate work
in writing. The Five College System allows an unusual breadth
of course offerings and areas of faculty specialization. Graduate
students are required to consult with the GPD before registering
for Five College courses.
Opportunities for Foreign Study
The University supports a number of foreign exchange programs
in which graduate students may participate. Particularly suitable
because of strong course offerings in art history or related areas
are the summer program at Oxford and the academic year exchange
available through the Freiburg/Baden-Württemberg Program.
The latter allows graduate study in art history at reasonable
cost at the universities of Freiburg, Karlsruhle, Stuttgart, and
Tübingen, among others. Many other opportunities are available
through the International Programs office on campus. Students
who expect to complete the M.A. Program in two years should not
consider foreign study.
Museum Studies and Internships
The Art History Program is committed to offering students special
opportunities in museum-related areas. A Museum Studies Seminar
is regularly offered, taking full advantage of the rich and varied
collections in New England. The University has internship arrangements
with the museums at Amherst, Mount Holyoke, and Smith Colleges;
these awards are competitive and carry both a stipend and tuition
waiver. The Museum of Fine Arts and George Walter Vincent Smith
Museum in Springfield, the Worcester Art Museum, and the Wadsworth
Athenaeum in Hartford also provide valuable internship possibilities.
Graduate students have also completed internships at Historic
Deerfield and other area historic sites, and have won places in
competitive summer internship programs at major museums in Boston,
New York, and Washington.
The University supports an art gallery with a permanent collection,
especially strong in 20th century works on paper. The Gallery
mounts a number of significant contemporary exhibitions during
the year, often composed of site-specific works. Several recent
M.A. candidates have served as research assistants in the Gallery.
Student-run galleries on campus provide opportunities for students
interested in producing exhibitions. From time to time, campus
galleries offer internships that carry a stipend and tuition waiver.
More than 40 percent of our graduates have successfully pursued
museum work after finishing the degree.
For more information on internships, see our FAQ
on internships.
Teaching Assistantships and Fellowships
Between 10 and 15 Art History Program teaching assistantships
are available to graduate students each semester. These are normally
awarded to students who have completed at least one semester.
Assistantships involve 10-15 hours of work per week and carry
stipends normally between $2,700 - $3,300 per semester, plus a
full tuition waiver, waiver of most other fees and partial payment
of the University health fee. Qualified students receive support
for three of their four semesters in the Program.
Assistants are normally assigned to the following courses:
Art History 100 and 110, a two-semester survey in which the TAs
lead discussion sections and grade written work.
Art History 115 – Introduction to the Visual Arts, for which
grading and advising are required.
Art History 322-Modern Art, in which assistants lead discussions
and grade written work.
Qualified graduate students also assist in Art History 370 - the
Junior Year Writing course.
Assistantships are available for the support of the undergraduate
General Education curriculum in the Dorothy Perkins Slide Library;
for these, computer skills are helpful. Additional teaching assistantships
are available in the University Writing Program and various foreign
language departments.
Duties of teaching assistants are specified at the beginning
of each semester (see the sample TA expectations form on page
11 of this booklet.) The TA Handbook for Art History was compiled
in 2001 as an aid for new TAs. Suggestions for subsequent editions
of the handbook should be directed to the GPD. A written report
on each teaching assistant is placed in the assistant’s
file at the end of each semester. A student who fails to complete
work for an incomplete grade within the following semester is
not allowed to hold an assistantship, since the faculty’s
policy is that assistantships are assigned to students making
satisfactory progress towards the degree. Students who fail the
language exam three times will not receive an assistantship for
the same reason.
Each year the Graduate School awards a limited number of fellowships.
These involve no teaching duties and include a tuition waiver
and stipend of approximately $6,000. They are highly competitive;
seven of the faculty’s nominees since 1989 have been recipients
of these award.
Review of Work Standards
The entire faculty reviews and evaluates the work of all graduate
students during the semester. University regulations specify that
to remain in good standing a 3.0 average (with no grade lower
than C in courses taken toward meeting the 30 credit requirement)
must be maintained. In the Art History Program a grade of BC or
below is considered an unsatisfactory performance.
The grade of INC (incomplete) is given when a student has failed
to complete all assigned work satisfactorily by the end of the
semester. This grade is given in limited circumstances, and only
for compelling reasons, either personal or academic. Once the
grade of INC is given, the student’s top academic priority
is to complete the work involved. Students with three or more
incompletes may not register for additional courses and may not
take the Comprehensive Examination until all INC’s are completed
and erased from the record.
Career Opportunities
Graduates of our program have gone on to careers
in many fields. Some have taken advanced degrees in art history
or conservation before teaching at a university level or working
in museums. Others have taught at the secondary and college levels.
Our graduates have also become art editors, art librarians, slide
curators, art dealers, and advocates of government programs.
Job opportunities are posted regularly, and faculty make a special
effort to inform students about appropriate positions and give
them suitable recommendations. The Graduate
Newsletter published annually gives a good idea of the
jobs and careers in which our alumni have excelled over the years.
From time to time, the Program sponsors lectures by alumni who
are happy to talk with current students about their career experiences.
Research Possibilities
The Graduate School has funded research travel by graduate students
whose applications are supported by the student’s department
or program. The Art History Program has two internal funds named
for two deceased Alumni: The Stephen Keye Fund for conference
travel, and the Maura Donohue fund for research travel.
Visual Collections
The Art History Program maintains significant collections of
visual materials. The Dorothy Perkins Slide Library, administered
by our slide librarian, Lee Bridegam, is a large and comprehensive
collection of slides for teaching. The program is also actively
engaged in a federally-funded grant using images on CD-Rom and
on the World Wide Web.
Graduate Student Life
While the primary efforts of graduate students focus on academic
activities, the Program, University and Five College community
provide enormous opportunities for social and cultural enrichment.
The University’s extensive programs are available to all
students at reduced cost. Departmental social events vary from
receptions following lectures to traditional potluck dinners held
once a semester. On campus, the Alumni Lounge in Bartlett Hall
forms the focus of social activities and serves as a lunch and
study room for both graduate students and faculty. The Graduate
Student Senate supports a wide variety of programs and activities
for graduate students. More information can be found in the pages
of the Graduate School Bulletin.
The Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst
publishes the Graduate Student Handbook. It is an invaluable guide
regarding the policies and procedures of the University Graduate
School. Containing key information regarding such topics as which
forms to file, statutes of limitations, committee information,
deadlines and timelines. It is provided to all students confirming
admission to the University’s graduate programs.
Teaching assistants are members of the Graduate Employee organization
(GEO), a union that publishes its own guide for members.
In addition to the tips in the Art History TA Handbook, you may
wish to consult the TA handbook produced by the Center for Teaching
on campus. The Center for Teaching also organizes an annual Teaching
Assistant Orientation every fall, which provides the opportunity
to meet key administrators, senior TAs and faculty to gain important
skills and to begin to feel a sense of membership within the larger
University community of scholars.
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