Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
Art history (B.A.) (two
subjects)
Programme name: Art history (B.A.) (two subjects)
Degree: Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)
Duration: 6 semesters
Starting semester: Only winter semester
Language of the programme: German
Admission to the summer semester 2017:
- 1st subject semester: start of
studies in the winter semester only
- 2nd to 6th subject semester: open
admission (enrolment without previous application)
- International applicants
(non-EU): limited admission (application to International Student Office)
Description of the courses and degrees offered:
Subject of study
The subject of study in
Art History is the historical development of objects in European and Western
cultural history from the Early Middle Ages to the present. The objects of art
history are divided into various specific categories: architecture, sculpture, painting, graphic arts and applied arts,
as well as photography, film and the
digitally created images of the new media. Art History examines the
function, distribution and perception of images and the cultural processes by
which they have acquired their status as works of art. The degree programme
conveys various ways of viewing objects, working methods and ways to handle and
examine the objects. The sources of art history, art criticism and art theory
are also studied, as well as the history of the subject itself and its
institutions.
A
speciality of the institute in Göttingen is curatorial
training with the institute's art collection, ranging from use of the objects
in teaching to training students to organise their own exhibitions. The courses
offered include regular excursions inside and outside Germany and periods of
study abroad at European partner universities. The art history department in Göttingen is a member of interdisciplinary
centres, degree programmes and research associations. It also cooperates closely with the disciplines of archaeology, history and cultural sciences at
Göttingen University.
Recommended prior knowledge and language requirements
The subject area and
related occupational demands require
the command of several foreign languages, in order to understand and
critically analyse the basic meaning of source texts and secondary literature
texts. A sufficient working knowledge of English and of at least one more
modern foreign language, as well as a basic knowledge of Latin, are strongly
recommended. These language skills should be further developed and expanded
during the degree programme as part of the acquisition of key competencies, or
by a facultative semester abroad. Since history of art constantly practises the
translation of visual impressions into language, the student should in
particular also be skilled in oral and written expression in German.
Language requirements (to be acquired during study)
For admission to the
Master's thesis, evidence of knowledge in Latin must be submitted, at least
equivalent to the intermediate Latin certificate.
Structure of the degree programme
The programme of studies
in the B.A. subject Art History conveys to students comprehensive, fundamental
knowledge of major works, categories, subject-related terminology, artistic
techniques, theories and methods of European art history from post-antiquity to
the global present, including elementary knowledge of subject-related
occupational fields. Following a methodology- and terminology-oriented
introductory phase during the first year, the 2nd to 5th semesters serve to
acquire knowledge and skills by way of exemplary learning. In the 5th semester,
students can choose between a practical profile and an explicitly scientific
profile. The former focuses mainly on practical skills to prepare students for
professional work; a mandatory internship of at least three weeks serves to
develop the practical skills acquired during study and helps students to make
contacts at an early stage. The scientific profile offers students the
opportunity to choose more freely than before from the range of courses available
and thus define their own thematic and epoch-oriented areas of specialisation.
This ensures qualified preparation for a more scientifically oriented Master's
degree programme.
In addition, students
can expand their foreign language skills and learn new languages in courses
offered by the language centre. It is also possible to study for one or two
semesters at one of our foreign partner universities, for example in Venice or
Barcelona. In planning a period of study abroad, students will receive advice
and support from the department.
Art collection
The art
collection of Göttingen University is the oldest
university art collection in Germany explicitly created as a teaching
collection. Its history dates back to the earliest years of Georgia Augusta,
which means that this collection is also one of the city's oldest cultural
institutions. The art collection is used intensively as an integral part of
research and teaching. Already during the B.A. degree programme, art history
students are given an opportunity to work directly with the objects and gather
important experience of practical museum work in planning and organising
exhibitions.
Goal of study
The graduates have
mastered the fundamental questions and methodology discussions of the subject
from both systematic and historic perspectives, including expert description of
objects and their material attributes, analysis of form and content, and placement
of such objects in the art historical, political, social and ideological
context of a certain period. They are able to describe, analyse and categorise
works of different media and categories together with their relevant sources
using expert terminology, and also qualified to identify, focus on and deal
with scientific questions, and develop new perspectives of research. Moreover,
they have mastered the most important subject-related types of text and are
able to present results and research questions in writing as well as orally,
and contribute such presentations to subject-related discourse. They have also
acquired the ability for independent methodological reflection.
Recommended combinations of subjects
Combinations with almost
all subjects of the Faculty of Humanities can be recommended. Classical and
Christian archaeology as well as prehistory and early history examine cultural
aspects from periods dating back to before those analysed by art history, but
are still relevant as sources of tradition right up to modern times. Since
extensive language skills are required for adequate study of this subject and
its representation later on, the choice of a European foreign language as a
subsidiary subject may be useful, but with a view to the private sector of art
also business administration, law or subjects offered by the Faculty of Social
Sciences.
Occupational fields
The
occupational fields for art history include employment in museums, in the
preservation of monuments or at a university, but also in galleries, the art
trade, tourism, the publishing industry, newspapers and magazines, media
institutions, insurance companies and all areas of cultural administration. A
degree in Art History is intended to qualify graduates for all of these
occupational fields and requires on the one hand a wide range of courses, but
on the other hand targeted setting of priorities towards the end of the degree
programme. To strengthen the competitiveness of our students on the
international labour market, the proportion of practice-oriented modules is
significantly increased during the academic year preceding graduation. Here we
make use of our specific locational advantages in Göttingen:
the subject-related orientation of our own teaching staff, the neighbouring
disciplines and, as a special asset, the University's own art collection.
The B.A.
degree covers the core areas of the subject and enables graduates to study for
a Master's degree either in Göttingen or at other
German or international universities. The Master's degree programme qualifies
graduates in particular for a scientific career at universities or
non-university, subject-related research institutions, museums and classical
and modern art collections in Germany and abroad and preservation of monuments,
and beyond the occupational fields named, it is also a prerequisite for
admission to the doctoral degree course programme in Art History.