Art History, MA-PhD

Course Requirements

Students pursuing the MA-PhD in art history must take a minimum of 50 graduate credits. The course of study must include:

• Eleven graduate courses (44 credits) including at least ten art history seminars, the latter taken with at least four different faculty members in the Art History Department
• ARTH 500 : Theories and Methods (4 credits; required in the first year; ordinarily taught in the spring semester)
• ARTH 501 : Professionalization (1 credit; required in the first year; ordinarily taught in the spring semester)
• ARTH 699 : Dissertation (at least 1 credit as required to maintain registration after admission to candidacy)

In addition to the work completed for their courses, students are expected to pursue a coherent program of readings in preparation for their comprehensive examinations.

If a student wishes to take either a course outside the department or an independent study with an Art History Department faculty member for credit, the student must submit a petition to the director of graduate studies who then brings the petition to the full faculty for consideration.

MA Comprehensive Examination and Qualifying Paper

Students may take one of two examination and assessment paths.

Path A:

Students following Path A take a written examination and submit a professional portfolio.

The comprehensive examination is a three-hour, in-person written exam in the student’s field of specialization administered by a committee of two faculty members (advisor and second reader) in the Art History Department, selected by the student. Examinations are offered once each semester and should be taken during the semester in which the student completes all other degree requirements. The committee assesses the exam on a pass/fail basis. In the case of a failed exam, a student may retake the exam once. 

The portfolio comprises two components: a writing sample and a professional curriculum vitae. For the writing sample, students revise and (if needed) expand one of their own term papers to the length of a typical journal article (c. 25 pages), in consultation with the advisor. If the faculty member to whom the paper was initially submitted is not a member of the committee (i.e., advisor or second reader), that faculty member may collaborate with the committee in assessing the revision. The original paper (with original instructor feedback, if available) should be submitted to the committee along with the revised version. The format of the professional curriculum vitae should align with disciplinary expectations, and should be submitted for assessment alongside the writing sample. The committee assesses both components on a pass/fail basis.

Unless exceptional circumstances arise, the comprehensive examination and portfolio submission should both be completed within four semesters of commencing the program. Students must arrange with their advisor the semester before anticipated completion to create a timeline for completion, taking into account Graduate School and Harpur College deadlines for degree petitioning and graduation. This timeline should be submitted in writing to the director of graduate studies no later than the last day of the third semester of the program.

Path B:

Students following Path B take a written examination and complete a thesis.

The comprehensive examination is a three-hour, in-person written exam in the student’s field of specialization administered by a committee of two faculty members (advisor and second reader) in the Art History Department, selected by the student. Examinations are offered once each semester and should be taken during the semester in which the student completes all other degree requirements. The committee assesses the exam on a pass/fail basis. In the case of a failed exam, a student may retake the exam once. 

The thesis should be approximately 30 pages in length and finished to a professional academic standard. The thesis will be supervised by an advisor in the Art History Department, selected by the student. Once the advisor has approved a finished draft, the thesis should then be submitted to and refereed by the second reader. Once the advisor and second reader agree that the thesis meets departmental standards, the student should submit the thesis to the Graduate School and apply for the degree.

Unless exceptional circumstances arise, the comprehensive examination and portfolio submission should both be completed within four semesters of commencing the program. Students must arrange with their advisor the semester before anticipated completion to create a timeline for completion, taking into account Graduate School and Harpur College deadlines for degree petitioning and graduation. This timeline should be submitted in writing to the director of graduate studies no later than the last day of the third semester of the program.

PhD Comprehensive Examination and Timeline to Degree

The comprehensive examination comprises one written exam and one oral exam. The written exam is six hours in length and in person, covering the student’s field of specialization and administered and assessed by a committee of three faculty members (including the advisor) in the Art History Department, selected by the student. (This three-person committee may or may not overlap with the two-person committee convened to assess the MA portion of the MA-PhD program.) The oral exam is two hours in length and in person, focusing on both answers to the written exam and the student’s dissertation proposal, circulated to the committee at least three weeks in advance of the oral exam. The committee assesses both parts of the exam on a pass/fail basis. In the case of a failed exam, a student may retake the exam once.

Unless exceptional circumstances arise, the comprehensive examination should be completed within four semesters of entering the doctoral program (i.e., after the MA degree is completed). Students who do not complete the examination within five semesters of commencing the program 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.

Students are officially admitted to candidacy for the doctoral degree upon satisfactory completion of the comprehensive examination. Candidates for the doctoral degree must maintain registration continuously until all degree requirements are completed. While the Graduate School allows a maximum of five academic years following admission to candidacy for the completion and defense of the dissertation and conferral of degree, the department assumes most students will take considerably less time to complete the degree. To facilitate efficient movement through the program, the student will submit a proposed timeline to degree as part of the dissertation prospectus. This timeline to degree will be used by the student and the committee as a framework to ensure effective use of time to degree.

Foreign Language Requirement

Students will demonstrate facility with at least one foreign language through the citation of relevant texts in that language in the doctoral dissertation, in consultation with the thesis advisor.

Dissertation Committee

The student must select a dissertation advisor no later than the last day of the second semester of enrollment in the doctoral program (i.e., after the MA degree is completed). In conjunction with the advisor, who chairs the committee, the student must select two additional committee members from the Binghamton University graduate faculty, at least one of whom must be a faculty member in the Art History Department. 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. Upon constitution of the committee, the student notifies the director of graduate studies, who records the committee composition in department files in conjunction with the department administrator.

Dissertation Proposal

The dissertation proposal details the proposed research project and 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 scholarly problem the project will address, the method of inquiry to be conducted, and the relevant literature on the subject. The dissertation committee must accept this proposal, which the student defends during the oral portion of the comprehensive examination. A copy of the approved proposal must be submitted to the director of graduate studies after successful completion of the comprehensive examination, who will then coordinate with the department administrator to place the proposal on file in the department. 

Dissertation Defense

A successful 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 meaningful contribution to the discipline. Once the dissertation committee has accepted the final draft of the dissertation, the student defends it in an oral examination that is open to the public. The dissertation defense is conducted by the student’s dissertation committee along with an outside examiner, recommended by the advisor to the Graduate School and, if approved, appointed by the dean of the Graduate School. The final dissertation must be submitted electronically in accordance with Graduate School regulations, while a bound hard copy must be provided by the student to the department.