Case Western Reserve University campus

Arts & Humanities

PhD Art History at Case Western Reserve University

Case Western Reserve University, United States

Programme overview

A highly selective doctoral programme founded in 1967 and offered with the Cleveland Museum of Art, providing object-grounded training for museum and academic careers. Doctoral students receive full funding for five years of tuition plus a yearly stipend and aim to finish in five to six years.

Faculty: College of Arts and Sciences  |  Department: Art History and Art  |  Duration: Five to six years (five years of funding)  |  Study mode: full-time  |  Location: Cleveland, OH, United States

What you will study

60 credit hours: Methodologies of Art History, Materials, Methods and Physical Examination of Works of Art, two advanced museum internships, six courses at 400-level or above, four 500-level seminars and 18 credit hours of dissertation. Students show reading ability in two languages other than English and pass an oral examination of major and minor fields plus a written research paper.

Career pathways

Museum and academic careers.

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

An MA in art history and reading knowledge of one approved foreign language (such as French, German, Italian, Japanese or Chinese) are prerequisites; very rarely a BA-only applicant is considered. Admission is based on academic record and scholarly promise, recommendations, experience and personal interviews. GRE scores and two art history research papers required. An MA older than five years may require a qualifying and/or foreign language exam. TOEFL required for applicants whose native language is not English or who lack a degree from an English-speaking university: minimum 5.0 for exams on or after January 21, 2026; 100 (online) for exams on or before January 20, 2026.

Tuition is charged per credit, so the total depends on the modules you register for each year. Current fees are listed in the official fee schedule.

Duration: Five to six years (five years of funding)

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