Major in Arts Studies

Degree Requirements

Students complete a total of 33 credit hours. The arts studies major has four components: foundation courses, linking courses, an advised elective and a capstone course. At least 15 of these credit hours must be at the 300-level or higher.

Students must also meet basic requirements for the B.A. degree set by the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.

Search through Registration and Records to find related arts studies courses. Make sure to select ARS when searching for subject. Other options include ENG (film studies), MUS (music), THE (theater), and HA (history of art).

Foundational Courses

After choosing an area of study, you will complete 21 hours of courses in that area. These courses must:

• Be in one of the same arts areas listed below:
  • Film Studies
  • Music
  • Visual Arts
  • Theater

• Include 15 hours of history or analysis courses and six hours of performance, production or studio courses.

Linking Courses

Depending on your interests, you’ll choose six credit hours from courses that link the arts to other areas such as:

• ARS 257: Technology in the Arts
• ARS 259: Arts and Politics
• ARS 351: Arts, Ideas and Values
• ARS 353: Arts and Cross-Culture Contacts
  

Capstone Course

Near the end of your program, you’ll work with students in other disciplines to deepen your knowledge of art and to better understand its connection to the humanities.

The work you do in your capstone course will unite all types of knowledge you’ve acquired during the program. Previous capstone topics include:

• The Narrative Arts
• Arts of Multicultural Traditions
• Biography and Autobiography in the Arts
• Arts and Endings
• Arts and the Everyday
• Art about Art
• Adaptations
• Outsider Art
• The Collaborative Process

In addition to carrying forward the objectives of the linking courses, this course provides students an opportunity to integrate many of the strands of the degree program as a whole. Moreover, students use their knowledge of one art form, gained in their foundation courses, to acquire an introductory knowledge of other arts areas.