Department of Art & Art History

Art History, BA

Coordinator: Lois Fichner-Rathus

The Art History Program offers a BA in Art History to majors and also serves as part of the foundation program for other Department of Art and Art History majors. It also provides a popular minor for students from a variety of majors across campus. Art history is a scholarly, academic discipline, and its study sharpens critical thinking and strengthens both writing and analytical skills. The program offers a list of varied and exciting courses that include topics from ancient through contemporary art, covering European, Asian, American, and Islamic cultures, and investigating issues such as gender in art. As a 10-course major, it serves as a popular and useful second major to students in a variety of disciplines, from English to History. Students in majors from around the campus may also use selected art history courses to fulfill general education requirements. Students in the Honors Program further have the opportunity to mix the history of art with other disciplines such as history or literature in dynamic courses such as Paris Between the Wars, Cities and Sanctuaries of Greece and Rome, and the Holocaust in Art and Literature.
The major provides students with the general tools, including the latest theory and methodology pertinent to the discipline, to analyze art as well as specialized geographical and chronological knowledge. The curriculum is designed to provide both a well-rounded foundation and advanced study in the discipline. The program utilizes the varied resources of museums and collections in the area through field trips and specialized object research. In order to promote cross-cultural exchange, first-hand experience with art, and practical experience for future careers in the arts, students enrolled in the Art History major are required to either study abroad or complete an internship at a museum, gallery, or other art-related institution. Some popular study abroad destinations are Paris, Athens, Rome, and Florence. TCNJ Art History majors have interned at institutions such as the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Newark Museum, the Frick Collection, and the New Jersey State Museum. The curriculum culminates in a senior capstone experience that allows Art History majors to develop an original research project and to demonstrate their critical thinking skills.
Our majors have gone onto graduate programs at the University of Chicago, Tufts, Pratt, American University, Rutgers, Christies, and Sotheby’s, among others. Recent majors are pursuing careers in art dealership, university administration, librarian science, museum work, and teaching.

Download a comprehensive undergraduate bulletin

student presentation
Art History Majors present their final research, 2012

Art History Recommended Program of Study

Fall Freshman

Spring Freshman

Fall Sophomore

Spring Sophomore

Fall Junior

Spring Junior

Fall Senior

Spring Senior