The M.A. is offered either as a terminal degree or as part of an M.A./Ph.D. degree. In both cases, the M.A. curriculum is designed to offer a broad background in the study of art history and the theoretical orientations of the discipline. The M.A. degree culminates in a Master's thesis based on original research on a topic written in close consultation with faculty advisors.

The M.A. program offers courses in the following areas: African, American, Ancient Greek and Roman, Contemporary, East Asian, Islamic, Late Antique and Byzantine, Medieval, Modern European, and Renaissance and Baroque art of Europe.

Students benefit from graduate-only seminars on specialized topics, lectures on broader research areas, and an annual Robert E. and Avis Tarrant Burke Lecture Series that brings art historians from other institutions to our campus to meet with graduate students and lecture on their area of expertise. The Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art’s collections and those of the Lilly Library, the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Moving Image Archive, and the Kinsey Institute provide unique classroom and research opportunities.