Art History, B.A.: 120 units

Offered by: College of Environmental Design, Art Department

Major Required
Major Electives

Unrestricted Electives
General Education Requirements

The curriculum matrix for the degree program may be found here. The curriculum matrix is the alignment of courses (curriculum) with the desired goals and student learning outcomes of the program. It shows what is taught and how these outcomes are achieved through the completion of the degree program.

The Art History Major includes global art from antiquity to the present. Students develop skills in visual analysis, analysis of cultural context, and in scholarly research.

Program Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)

Students obtaining the B.A. in Art History should be able to:

Identify important works of art and design, artistic movements and trends;
Analyze works of art and design using art historical tools of visual analysis and discipline-appropriate vocabulary;
Explain how works of art and design relate to their contexts of production and reception;
Demonstrate critical thinking about art historical, critical, or theoretical texts;
Demonstrate skills of research and proper use of scholarly documentation.

Major Required: 36 units

All major required courses must be passed with a grade of “C-” or better to receive major credit.

AH 2301 - World Art: Prehistory through Medieval Europe (3) (C1)
AH 2302 - World Art: Renaissance through Modern Europe and the United States (3) (C1)
AH 2303 - World Art: Asia (Prehistory to 12th Century) (3) (C1)
AH 2305 - World Art: Africa, Oceania, and Native America (3) (C1)
AH 4610 - Senior Seminar (3)
CLS 1101 - Freshman Experience (2) (E)
CLS 1101A - Freshman Experience (1) (E)
HST 1101 - World Civilizations to 1500 (3) (C2)
HST 1102 - World Civilizations from 1500 (3) (C2)
HST 3300 - Theory and Practice of History (3)
VCD 1XXX/2XXX - A Lower Division Studio Course (3)
Foreign Language: 6 units - At least two semesters of a single foreign language of the student’s choice (C2).

Major Electives: 33 units

All major electives and approved electives courses must be passed with a grade of “C-” or better to receive major credit.

Groups A, B, and C: 21 units

Choose at least two courses from each group below (A, B, and C) for a total of 7 courses or 21 units.

Upper Division Group A

Upper Division Group B

Upper Division Group C

Approved Electives: 12 units

Select four upper-division courses (3000- and 4000-level) from among the following subject areas for a total of 12 units: AH (Art History), ANT (Anthropology), CHN (Chinese), COM (Communications), ENG (English), FRE (French), FRL (Finance, Real Estate, and Law), GER (German), HST (History), IBM (International Business and Marketing), MHR (Management and Human Resources), PHL (Philosophy), PLS (Political Science), SPN (Spanish), and TH (Theatre).

Note: AH 4410 Art History Internship can be counted as an Approved Elective if a minimum of 3 units is taken.

Unrestricted Electives: 3-15 units

Select a sufficient number of courses so that the total from “Major Required”, “Major Electives”, “GE”, and “Unrestricted Electives” is at least 120 units.

General Education Requirements: 48 units

Students should view their Degree Progress Report (DPR) for information regarding their General Education requirements. Unless specific GE courses are required for their major, please refer to the list of approved courses in the General Education Program in the University Catalog, https://catalog.cpp.edu. When viewing the catalog, students should select the catalog year associated with the GE requirements listed in their Degree Progress Report.

Area A. English Language Communication and Critical Thinking (9 units)

At least 3 units from each sub-area
1. Oral Communication
2. Written Communication
3. Critical Thinking

Area B. Scientific Inquiry and Quantitative Reasoning (12 units)

At least 3 units from each sub-area
1. Physical Sciences
2. Life Sciences
3. Laboratory Activity
4. Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning
5. Science and Technology Synthesis

Area C. Arts and Humanities (12 units)

At least 3 units from each sub-area and 3 additional units from sub-areas 1 and/or 2
1. Visual and Performing Arts
2. Literature, Modern Languages, Philosophy and Civilization
3. Arts and Humanities Synthesis

Area D. Social Sciences (9 units)

At least 3 units from each sub-area
1. U.S. History and American Ideals
2. U.S. Constitution and California Government
4. Social Science Synthesis

Area E. Lifelong Learning and Self-Development (3 units)

Area F. Ethnic Studies (3 units)

For an alternative and interdisciplinary way to complete some of their GE requirements, students may choose the Interdisciplinary General Education program, see below.

Interdisciplinary General Education: 18 units

An alternate pattern for partial fulfillment of GE Areas A, C, and D available for students is the Interdisciplinary General Education (IGE) program. Students should see an advisor for specific GE coursework required by their major. Please refer to the University Catalog General Education Program section for additional information.

How IGE fulfills General Education Requirements:

GE Area	Courses
A2	IGE 1100 and IGE 1200 Category II students are eligible to enroll in IGE 1100 (Fall) and IGE 1200 (Spring) as a two-course sequence to fulfill GE Area A2. Students who choose this sequence will also satisfy GE Area C2. Category III and IV students need to enroll in English composition courses in the A2 GE course list.
C1	IGE 2350
C2	IGE 1100 , IGE 1200 , IGE 2150 , or IGE 2250
C3	IGE 3100
D1	IGE 2150 or IGE 2250 Also satisfy American Institutions Part A
D4	IGE 3100

A single course cannot be double-counted across multiple GE Areas.

revised 07/12/2024

American Institutions: 6 units

Courses that satisfy this requirement may also satisfy GE Areas D1 and D2.

Graduation Writing Test

The Graduation Writing Test (GWT) is suspended until Fall 2025. Students entering Cal Poly Pomona before Fall 2025 are not required to take the Graduation Writing Test.

Summer Sponsored Experience: 0 unit

CPU 3003 - Cal Poly Pomona Undergraduate Summer Experience (0)