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about the ph.d. program

 

The 5 requirements for the Ph.D. degree include the following:

Satisfaction of language requirements (minimum 2, or more depending on area of study).
Completion of 8 graduate & upper-division courses (or 32 units)
Written comprehensive exams
Dissertation prospectus and oral qualifying exam
Doctoral dissertation

 

The normative time to degree is seven years from the term of admission.  For students entering at the Ph.D. level (ie: with an M.A in hand), the normative time to degree is five years from the term of admission.

 

Fields of Study in the Ph.D. Program

1. American

8. African

2. Contemporary Europe & America (post 1945)

9. Chinese

3. Greek and Roman

10. Islamic

4. Latin American

11. Japanese

5. Medieval & Byzantine

12. Korean

6. Modern Europe & America (19th and 20th Century)

13. Pre-Columbian

7. Renaissance & Baroque

14. South & Southeast Asian

 

Ph.D. Advising

  • At the time of application to the Ph.D. program the student selects a major field of study within art history; by the end of the second quarter of residence they also select a minor.  The major and minor advisors are responsible for the student's course of study and completion of requirements within the selected field. A change of advisor, and of either the major or minor field, must be approved by the Graduate Review Committee.

  • The role of the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) is to offer intellectual guidance, approve any exceptions to the program requirements, and adjudicate disputes between a student and advisor. The DGS further serves as chair of the Graduate Review Committee, which also governs the admissions process.

  • The role of the Student Affairs Officer (SAO) is to assist with all the administrative aspects of moving through the program.

 

Coursework

  • Ph.D. students are required to complete a Major field of study (5 courses in one field), and a Minor (3 courses in a field other than the major field). A Minor can also be from an outside department (e.g. 3 courses in History, Anthropology, Comparative Literature, Archaeology, etc.)

  • A total of eight graduate and upper division courses are required, of which at least four must be art history courses at the graduate level (200 and 596).
  • Students entering the Ph.D. program deficient in Art History 200 (Art Historical Theories and Methodologies) or its equivalent must add this to the total requirements. And, in some cases, Art History 201 (Topics in the Historiography of Art History) may be required by faculty/advisor recommendation. Deficiencies must be made up during the first two quarters of residence and will not count toward the minimum course requirements for either the M.A. or Ph.D. degree. 

 

Written Comprehensive Examinations

  • Upon completion of course work and language study, the student takes the Ph.D. written comprehensive examination in the major field of study, designed and evaluated by the student's major advisor, and a minor examination in the minor field of study, designed and evaluated by the minor advisor.

  • The purpose of the examination is to test the student's breadth and depth of knowledge in his/her fields of study. If a student fails to pass the examination or part thereof, any failed portion may be repeated no later than the subsequent quarter of residence. No further repetition will be allowed. The comprehensive examination may be taken during any two-week period of the Fall, Winter and Spring quarters.

  • The specific format and dates for the major and minor exams must be submitted to the Student Affairs Officer at least three weeks in advance using the appropriate departmental form.

 

Doctoral Committee

  • Upon passing the written comprehensive examination, the student selects a dissertation topic in consultation with their advisor, and nominates the members of his/her Doctoral Committee.

  • This committee minimally consists of the major advisor, now serving as committee chair, two additional members of the art history faculty (normally, but not necessarily, including the student's minor advisor(s)), and one member from another UCLA department. For details on the acceptable status of these members, see the publication, Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA, available in the Graduate Division, Student and Academic Affairs Office, 1255 Murphy Hall.

  • The student and committee chair must agree on all committee members. Any changes in committee constitution after formal nomination must be reported to and approved by the Graduate Division; replacing the committee chair can only occur by consent or if the faculty member leaves UCLA.

  • Please note that the Graduate Division generally approves Committee nominations within 2-3 weeks, and the oral qualifying exam may not be taken before official approval has been received.

Dissertation Prospectus and Oral Qualifying Examination

  • Once the Doctoral Committee has been officially approved by the Graduate Division, and after having conducted considerable exploratory research and preparation for his/her dissertation, the student submits to each committee member a formal proposal of about ten pages indicating the problem being dealt with, the state of research as evident in an annotated bibliography, the availability of resources, the intended methods and procedures being employed, and his/her tentative conclusions regarding the problem and a tentative schedule for completion. The formal proposal should not be distributed to the full committee without the approval of the student’s committee chair.

  • Students should submit their prospectus to committee members 4 weeks before the oral examination to allow sufficient time for the proposal to be read, discussed with the student, and revised if necessary.

  • Students must consult with committee members regarding a date for the exam well in advance to ensure the availability of each faculty member.

  • The purpose of the oral examination is to assess the validity and feasibility of the proposed topic and its methodologies, as well as the soundness of the student’s tentative conclusions.

  • At the end of the examination, each committee member reports the examination as "passed" or "not passed." A student may not pass and may not be advanced to candidacy if more than one member votes "not passed" regardless of the size of the committee, or if the major advisor so votes. Upon majority vote of the committee, the oral qualifying examination may be repeated once. Students who pass the examination are formally advanced to candidacy by the Graduate Division.

  • At the time of the exam, the Doctoral Committee decides, by unanimous agreement, whether or not to waive the final oral examination (not normally required) and selects, again by unanimous agreement, a minimum of three members, two from the art history faculty and one from an outside department, who will read, approve, and certify the final draft of the dissertation. For details regarding the acceptable status of these certifying members, consult the publication, Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Dissertation and Final Oral Examination (if required)

  • The student completes the dissertation in consultation with his/her Doctoral Committee certifying members and according to the rules laid out in the above named publication. Upon completion of the dissertation or individual chapters thereof, and with the consent of the committee chair, the student circulates a copy of the dissertation for comments and suggestions from the certifying members of the Doctoral Committee. This draft should be circulated sufficiently in advance of the deadline for filing the dissertation so that each reader is allowed at least six weeks in which to read it and make corrections, and the student is allowed at least two weeks in which to rewrite and retype it. Again, committee members must be consulted as each reader may require more time.

  • After incorporating into the final draft of the dissertation the recommended changes, the student again circulates the dissertation among the certifying members of the Doctoral Committee. This draft should be circulated sufficiently in advance of the deadline for filing the dissertation so that each reader is allowed at least two weeks in which to reread it (see quarterly Schedule of Classes for filing deadlines).

  • Each certifying member of the committee then decides whether or not to approve the dissertation. In cases where less than the entire committee acts as certifying members, approval of the dissertation must be unanimous. If the entire committee acts as certifying members, the dissertation is considered approved with one negative decision so long as that negative decision is not that of the committee chair. After final approval by the Dean of the Graduate Division, the student files the required number of copies of the dissertation with the Manuscript Advisor of the Office of University Archives. Deadlines for filing the dissertation fall approximately two weeks before the date the degree is to be awarded.

  • Note:  A final oral examination is not normally required for Art History, but in some cases, it may be requested by the student's committee (determined at the oral qualifying exam), and is held prior to filing the dissertation. All members of the committee must attend and vote. A student may pass with one negative vote so long as that vote is not that of the committee chair. In case of failure, the Doctoral Committee decides, by unanimous agreement, whether or not the candidate may be re-examined.