Admission and Financial Aid
Admission to the graduate program is selective. Students are expected to have had substantial undergraduate work in the history of art. A minimum of 12 credit hours of undergraduate art history above the survey level or equivalent is required before a student may begin to accumulate hours for graduate credit. Students who have been admitted without adequate undergraduate preparation will be expected to take the requisite number of undergraduate hours before or during their first term at SMU. The applicant should have a reading knowledge of one world language. Applicants must take the GRE graduate school admission test or, in the case of non-U.S. citizens who are residents outside the U.S., have a previous degree from an English-speaking university. An interview with the art history graduate adviser is desirable.
Outstanding students are awarded tuition grants and teaching/research assistantships. These awards are based on merit. Students accepting the offer of a scholarship may not decline the accompanying assistantship. In addition, the division has funds available so that graduate students may travel to conduct research on their thesis topic.
Application for admission with financial aid must be filed in full by January 1 for the fall term. A graduate application for admission and information concerning assistantships, fellowships, scholarships and degree programs are available online at https://www.smu.edu/Meadows/AreasofStudy/ArtHistory/GraduateStudies/Admissions.
Degree Requirements
This is a 36-credit hour program. Thirty credit hours are required in coursework; each course is worth three credit hours. Twenty-one of the 30 credit hours must be of seminar standing – that is, ARHS 6329 plus six additional seminars. During the first term of graduate study, a student must enroll in at least two seminar courses. The final six credits must be taken in the form of a major research paper. This thesis must be approved by a committee of three faculty members at the conclusion of the student’s M.A. work. Prior to enrollment in thesis hours, all students must pass a translation exam in a language related to the field of study and their graduate colloquium, which is generally scheduled at the beginning of their third term. If a student does not pass the colloquium, they have the opportunity to represent the work one final time. If unable to pass the second colloquium, they will be dropped from the program.
Each student will consult with the department’s director of graduate studies upon arrival. Subsequently, students will select a permanent adviser and committee in their fields of special interest. Courses numbered 6000 or higher are graduate courses.
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