Minor in History of Art and Visual Culture

Đại học California Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, CA

The history of art and visual culture (HAVC) minor works well when combined with other programs offered at UC Santa Cruz. Many students choose to combine HAVC with other major/minor programs including but not limited to anthropology, art, business management economics, classical studies, critical race and ethnic studies, education, history, legal studies, literature, politics, psychology, and sociology.


For the minor, a student may transfer up to three lower-division art history courses taken from other institutions. Each course must satisfy a different geographic regional requirement. Refer to the articulation agreements at www.assist.org for approved lower-division courses offered at California community colleges. Transfer credit for courses from four-year institutions or for community college courses not included in the ASSIST system is evaluated on a case-by-case basis. To petition for transfer credit, submit a comprehensive syllabus and any supporting documentation (reading lists, papers written, etc.) to the HAVC undergraduate advisor by email to havc@ucsc.edu and specify the requirement you are petitioning to satisfy.


Learning Experience

HAVC students at UCSC investigate complex questions concerning the social, political, economic, religious, and psychological impact of images from the perspective of their producers, users, and viewers. Visual objects play a central role in the formation of values and beliefs, including the perception of gender, sexuality, ethnicity, race, and class. Through attentive historical study and close analysis, students are taught to recognize and assess these systems of value, and are introduced to theoretical and methodological frameworks for future research.

Study and Research Opportunities

✔ B.A. in History of Art and Visual Culture

✔ Concentration in Curation, Heritage, and Museums

✔ Undergraduate Minor in History of Art and Visual Culture

✔ Ph.D. in Visual Studies

✔ The UCSC Global Learning Program provides undergraduate students with many opportunities to study university-level academic programs abroad

Course Requirements

The HAVC minor requires three lower-division and six upper-division courses for a total of nine courses.

✔ For course offerings that satisfy specific geographic regional requirements, please see the Course List by Geographic Region.

✔ For a tentative list of courses offered during the current academic year, please visit the HAVC website.

✔ For a comprehensive list of all HAVC courses, please see the 'Courses' section of the general catalog.