Course Requirements

Students pursuing the PhD in Art History must take a minimum of eight graduate-level courses (32 credits), which includes:

• Graduate courses in art history and related subjects at the 500 and 600 level
  • At least four courses (16 credits) must be taken with different faculty members in art history, including associated and visiting faculty
• ARTH 699 Dissertation registration as required to maintain registration after admission to candidacy

Students who have not taken the required graduate-level seminar ARTH 500 Theory and Methods as part of their master’s degree must also include this in their doctoral program. Others may be required to do so by the graduate committee, through the director of graduate studies. Students may petition the graduate committee for a waiver for this course.

For courses outside the department and all independent studies, students submit a petition to the graduate committee.

Foreign Language Requirements

Doctoral students must pass two examinations demonstrating an ability to read research literature in the student’s areas of interest in at least two appropriate languages of scholarship in addition to English. Work in certain fields may require additional languages.

Students may seek a waiver of one or more of the language requirements by petitioning the graduate committee in writing and providing appropriate documentation of their competency in the language(s) in question.

Dissertation Committee

The student must choose a dissertation supervisor by the beginning of the second year. In conjunction with the student’s supervisor, who chairs the committee, the student chooses two additional members from Binghamton University’s graduate faculty, at least one of whom must be a member of the art history faculty. In extremely rare cases, off-campus specialists in the subject area may be invited to serve, though no honorarium can be offered for such services. This committee is then appointed by the Art History Graduate Committee, who must also approve any subsequent changes.

Dissertation Proposal

The dissertation proposal is a description of the proposed research project that serves as the basis for the dissertation. The student must submit a formal, written proposal for dissertation research on an approved topic, outlining in detail the problem, method of inquiry and relevant literature on the subject. The three-member dissertation committee must accept this proposal. The committee must include the supervisor as chair, and at least one additional member from the art history faculty. A signed copy of the proposal must be deposited with the department after successful completion of the comprehensive examination.

Comprehensive Examination

Students must pass a comprehensive examination before a committee designated by the Art History Graduate Committee. This examination will focus on: 1) the circulated dissertation proposal; and 2) professional knowledge and practice, based on a familiarity with broad methodological and historiographical questions in the discipline, as demonstrated by syllabi and/or proposals in the student’s chosen professional field, as agreed with the chair of the examining committee.

Doctoral students are required to pass the PhD comprehensive examinations within 18 months of completing coursework. Students who do not meet this deadline will receive a grade of U (unsatisfactory) for ARTH 698 until the examination has been passed. In clear cases of extenuating circumstances, students may file a petition for an extension.

Dissertation and Defense

When the final draft has been accepted by the student’s supervisor and committee, the dissertation is defended in an oral examination that is open to the public and is conducted by the student’s dissertation committee and an outside examiner, appointed by the vice provost and dean of the Graduate School. The final dissertation must be submitted electronically in accordance with Graduate School regulations (with a hard copy required by the department). An acceptable dissertation demonstrates the student’s ability to handle significant problems in the history of art, architecture, visual culture or the built environment in a critical and scholarly manner and makes a contribution to the discipline.