MA Art History at University of Illinois Chicago

Programme overview

The Department of Art History and Museum and Exhibition Studies supports study and research leading to art history degrees at both the master’s and doctoral levels. The Master of Arts in Art History offers emphases in the history of architecture and art. The PhD in Art History is designed to promote intellectual inquiry and provide professional-level training in the discipline, in a program that provides both wide coverage and particular depth in areas of faculty strength, including, but not limited to, the History of Architecture, Design, and Urbanism; Global Art Histories; and the History of Modern and Contemporary Art.

Faculty: College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts | Study mode: full-time | Location: Chicago, IL, United States

What you will study

Minimum 36 semester hours required. Thesis or coursework only. Required courses include Historiography of the Visual Arts, 1750 to 1960; Toward New Histories of the Visual Arts, 1960 to the Present; Art History Teaching Seminar; and; , a maximum of 2 semester hours of; ). No more than 8 hours of.

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

Prior degree: No restrictions. GPA: At least 3.00/4.00 for the final 60 semester hours (90 quarter hours) of undergraduate study. Letters of recommendation: Three required from faculty members or others familiar with the applicant’s training, ability, and experience. Personal statement: Applicants must submit a short statement of purpose (1–2 pages).

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.

Graduate and professional programmes admit for Fall, Spring and Summer terms depending on the programme; applications for Fall 2027, Spring 2028 and Summer 2028 are expected to open on August 1, 2026.

Graduate and professional application deadlines are set per programme, with separate deadlines for domestic and international applicants for most non-online programmes; optional earlier priority, recommended or fellowship dates apply to both. Applications are made through the UIC graduate application or a centralized application service for some professional programmes.

Apply through the official page: https://grad.uic.edu/admissions/

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