PhD Art History

• UIC’s PhD program in Art History is an internationally recognized, interdisciplinary center for the study of art and architectural history, theory and criticism housed at a public research University situated in the dynamic city of Chicago. We offer a rigorous and innovative academic education in critical and analytic thinking, research, writing, and visual literacy. Students leave the program with the necessary skills to enter the academic job market or to work as professionals in an array of settings.
• The program in Art History takes a global, interdisciplinary approach to research and education. Our faculty is committed to critical theory, historiographical inquiry and interdisciplinary work drawing from literary studies, political philosophy, anthropology, archaeology, and histories of technology and religion, and translation studies. Faculty work collaboratively with other academics and institutions around the world to investigate the local and intertwined visual cultures of the United States, the Ancient Americas, Europe, the Middle East and the Mediterranean, and West and South Asia. We are also invested in interrogating the changing place of art in a rapidly globalizing capitalist economy.
• Cross-disciplinary work with UIC’s distinguished programs in languages and literature, philosophy, film studies, women’s studies, history, and the social sciences is strongly encouraged. A student may also opt for a more formal relationship with other departments through the Interdepartmental Concentrations in Gender and Women’s Studies and Violence Studies.
• We also take advantage of the fact that we are located in Chicago, a city with world-renowned libraries, museums and institutions for art and architecture, including the Art Institute, Museum of Contemporary Art, Graham Foundation for Architecture, Chicago Architecture Foundation, Newberry Library, Field Museum, Renaissance Society, and UIC’s Gallery 400 and the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum. Our students have the opportunity to take classes from Northwestern University and the University of Chicago as part of their coursework, and to draw on faculty from other universities for their advisory committees.
• Approximately four students are accepted each year to the PhD program with full funding for four years (tuition and stipend). These fellowships, dependent on students’ good academic standing, often involve teaching or other types of departmental service. Our students have also been successful in obtaining further support from various university fellowships and positions in Gallery 400 and the Hull-House Museum. The department also supports travel for research and archival work, and conference presentations.

General Requirements

In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, students must meet the following program requirements:

• Minimum Semester Hours Required: 96 semester hours beyond the baccalaureate degree.
• Foreign Language Requirements: Students must present evidence of advanced knowledge of a language other than English as it relates to the student’s chosen area of research. Evidence of the ability to pursue research in additional languages may be necessary, depending on the availability of literature in the field selected, and the selection of those languages must be approved by the student’s advisor.
• Course Work: Candidates must complete at least 64 semester hours of course work beyond the master’s degree. Of this amount, 32 semester hours must be in graduate seminars, of which 16 semester hours must be taken in the department. At least 32 semester hours of credit beyond the MA degree must be at the 500-level. Of the 64 semester hours required beyond the master’s degree, a maximum of 24 semester hours of dissertation research are allowed.
• Required Core Courses: AH 510 and 511. Students who have taken equivalent course work as part of an MA degree may petition the director of graduate studies for a waiver of specific requirements; no course credit is given for a waived course.
• Grade Requirement: Because Art History is a competitive professional field, doctoral students are expected to earn As in their courses. Students should earn no more than one B during their tenure in the Art History PhD program at UIC, and no credit will be given for a course taken as part of the doctoral program in which the grade earned was less than a B. With the second B, or any grade below B, the student will be placed on departmental probation, requiring the student to demonstrate improvement by earning As during the next semester in which they take courses. The third B will be considered grounds for dismissal from the program, at the discretion of the faculty.
• Students who have taken equivalent course work as part of an MA degree may petition the director of graduate studies for a waiver of specific requirements; no course credit is given for a waived course.
• Preliminary Examination Required: written and oral, to be taken upon completion of the course work and satisfaction of the language requirement. The written examination will cover the student’s two areas of focus; the oral examination will be based on the written sections.
• Dissertation Required: the dissertation will make a contribution to knowledge in art history and will be publicly defended before the scholarly community.

Coursework

• Semester Hours Required: The candidate must complete 96 semester hours beyond the baccalaureate degree, and 64 credits beyond the MA degree. Of this amount, 32 semester hours must be in graduate seminars, of which 16 semester hours must be taken in the department. At least 32 semester hours of credit beyond the MA degree must be at the 500-level. Of the 64 semester hours required beyond the master’s degree, a maximum of 24 semester hours of dissertation research is allowed.
• Transfer Credit: Students may petition to receive credit for courses taken at other universities.
• Required Core Courses: AH 510 and 511
• Students may also pursue topics that cross both areas of focus or expand beyond them. Each student will select 16 hours from seminars AH 441, 460, 463, 464, 465, 470, 471, 513, 522, 530, 540, 550, 560, 561, 562, 563, 570, and directed readings courses in the area of focus, as approved by the director of graduate studies.
• Students who have taken equivalent course work as part of an MA degree may petition the director of graduate studies for a waiver of specific requirements; no course credit is given for a waived course.
• Dissertation Research: AH 599. Ph.D. Thesis Research. May be taken for 0–16 hours on pass/fail option only. Prerequisites: Consent of advisor and the DGS.

Language Requirement

• Students must present evidence of advanced knowledge of a language other than English as it relates to the student’s chosen area of research. Evidence of the ability to pursue research in additional languages may be necessary, depending on the availability of literature in the field selected, and the selection of those languages must be approved by the student’s advisor or the DGS if the student does not have an advisor.
• Selection of Language: Reading knowledge of a foreign language relevant to the student’s plan of study is required. The Director of Graduate Studies or faculty advisor will approve the selection of a language. French and German are the languages most frequently selected for those pursuing the degree, but the study of any language important to the student’s area of research interest willbe considered.
• Proof of Language Competence: The student must do one of the following:
  • Receive a grade of B or better in a UIC foreign language reading course for graduate students (or its equivalent at another institution, with the approval of the DGS). These courses will not count toward the 36 credit hours required for the MA or PhD degree.
  • Pass a language exam administered by a language department at UIC. The department recommends that students take the language exam during their first year of graduate study. In case of failure, the student may repeat the examination until it is passed. The foreign language requirement must be satisfied before the student registers for thesis research.
  • A test administered by or through the Department of Art History of no more than two hours. The language test usually consists of a translation of a passage into English with the aid of a dictionary.
  • 4 semesters of college/university language study, with a grade of B or better. Courses where readings are in translation may not be used. The last semester of study can be no more than 5 years prior to the student’s first year of graduate study.
  • The equivalent of the above (determined by the Director of Graduate Studies) in workshops, summer programs, fieldwork or research in a foreign language, or other language-learning activities.
  • A degree from a foreign university where English is not the primary language of instruction. In cases of languages, such as some Native American languages, where there is not a significant body of written material in the language, courses focusing on grammar and conversation, or spoken fluency as demonstrated by testing, may be used.
  • Native speakers with advanced reading skills as determined by the Director of Graduate Studies are exempt from the language requirement as are those students who have completed: 1) study in a foreign language at a foreign university, 2) field work conducted in a second language, or 3) summer intensive second language programs at an advanced level.
  • A test of language proficiency from the MA degree (must be noted on transcript).

Prospectus

• Effective Fall 2019, it is recommended that students complete their dissertation prospectus in the fall semester of their third year,  during which they should register for AH 596—an independent study, geared toward meeting this objective, to be supervised by the dissertation advisor. The prospectus, submitted to the student’s dissertation committee (see committee guidelines below) and defended by semester’s end, should be approximately ten pages long and include the following:
  • a clear statement of the problem to be investigated in the dissertation and a working thesis.
  • a critical review of the state of the research on the topic.
  • the initial expected archival sources.
  • an outline showing how the topic will be developed.
  • a working bibliography.

Prospectus Defense

• The student will meet with the advisor and at least two members of the Dissertation Committee to discuss and defend the prospectus. The prospectus defense provides an opportunity for the committee and the student to discuss the intellectual and methodological aspects of the dissertation and to formulate research plans and strategies. If the committee deems the defense has been satisfactory, the student will file a copy of the approved prospectus with the DGS within two weeks. If the defense is deemed unsatisfactory, the student may petition to have another defense.
• NOTE: This process is internal to the department and does not require filing with the Graduate College.

Preliminary Examination

• The purpose of the doctoral exam is to determine the candidate’s readiness to undertake dissertation research and passing it constitutes formal Admission to Candidacy. Effective Fall 2019, students should plan to complete their exams by the end of their third year so that they can begin the work of applying for external funding in the fall of their fourth year.
• Examination Committee: The student forms an Examination Committee when coursework and the language requirement are completed. The committee will be composed of at least five members of whom at least three are UIC graduate faculty with full membership, and two of whom must be tenured. It is recommended but not required that one member be from outside the Department of Art History, either from another UIC department or from outside the university. For all administrative purposes, the chair of the committee must be a full member of the UIC graduate faculty and must be a tenured or tenure-track faculty member in the Department of Art History. For the purposes of research guidance a student may also work with a scholar outside the department (or outside UIC) who effectively functions as a co-chair. Committee members must be approved by the Dean of the Graduate College who will appoint them. The committee recommendation form is located here.
• Exam Areas of Specialization: Each student will propose two areas of specialization for the preliminary examination. In most cases, one will be chronological or geographic such as Renaissance art, or American art, and one will be thematic such as gender and art, or landscape or furniture design. The student will also give an indication of the proposed dissertation subject matter. The suggested areas of specialization and subject matter for the dissertation will be submitted to the Examination Committee at least three months prior to the potential date of the preliminary exam so that the committee and the student can negotiate the areas to be covered by the exam.
  • The Examination Committee will meet (part of the time with the student), elect a chair, set up the test schedule and approve the two fields of concentration and the reading list. Students are expected to prepare for the exam on their own and cannot assume that courses taken in the department will necessarily prepare them for it. They are strongly encouraged to consult those members of the graduate faculty who are responsible for their examination fields in order to become familiar with the expectations of those individuals. They are also encouraged to consult previous doctoral exams, which are available from the DGS. Doctoral candidates are expected to have a reading period of three to six months to prepare for the examination.
• Written Exam: Prepared by the Examination Committee, the Ph.D. exam format is a 72 hour take home-exam. Questions and answers can be delivered by e-mail with the consent of both faculty and student. Candidates will answer two questions in total, with one question pertaining to each of their subject areas. The committee will provide the student with at least two, but not more than three questions per subject area. Questions in both subject areas are distributed at the same time, however, to allow for flexibility and planning on the part of the student.
• Oral Exam: The written exam will be followed by an oral defense of the exam one to two weeks later. The oral component is intended to address issues/weaknesses in the exam that could cause complications for candidates as they approach the dissertation process.
• Exam Grading: The committee shall meet approximately half an hour before the oral exam to determine a “pass” or “fail” grade for the written component of the exam, and to briefly discuss each member’s questions for the student. After the oral exam, each member will assign a final grade of “pass” or “fail”, and the chair will inform the student of the committee’s decision immediately after the oral exam. A candidate cannot be passed with more than one “fail” vote. The examination report must be signed by all members of the committee. The results of the examination must be submitted to the Graduate College within two weeks of the completion of the exam.
• Admission to Candidacy: Students who have passed the exam will be notified of their Admission to Candidacy by the Dean of the Graduate College.
• Retaking the Exam: If the student does not pass the exam, on the recommendation of the committee, the chair may permit a second examination, which must be taken within one year. A third examination is not permitted. Students who do not complete the degree requirements within five years of passing the preliminary examination must retake the examination.

Doctoral Dissertation

• The dissertation should be a book-length study in which the candidate demonstrates a full range of scholarly skills. It should show insight and originality in the questions it proposes to answer. It should also present evidence of thorough research in primary and secondary sources. Arguments should be clear, well-written and persuasive both to specialists and to other scholars outside the field. The dissertation will make a contribution to knowledge in art history and will be publicly defended before the scholarly community.
• Advisor: The advisor will be the candidate’s dissertation director. He or she must be a member of the UIC graduate faculty and is considered the primary reader of the dissertation. The student will submit the name of the proposed advisor at the time he or she submits the prospectus.
• Dissertation Committee: The student forms a Dissertation Committee after Admission to Candidacy (the committee recommendation form is located here). The committee will be composed of at least five members of whom at least three are UIC graduate faculty with full membership and two of whom must be tenured. At least one member must be from outside the Department of Art History, either from another UIC department or from outside the university. The chair of the committee, who will be elected by the committee members, must be a full member of the UIC graduate faculty. Committee members must be approved by the Dean of the Graduate College who will appoint them.
  • Members of the Dissertation Committee may or may not be the same as those on the Examination Committee, depending on the student’s choice. If, as the work progresses, the chair or any committee member no longer wishes to supervise a candidate’s dissertation, he or she must inform both the candidate and the DGS in writing. If the advisor or a member of the committee is, for any reason, unable to supervise the candidate, the candidate, in consultation with the DGS, will suggest an appropriate alternate. Candidates who wish to change chairpersons or committee members must secure the consent of another member of the graduate faculty to join the committee, notify the current chair, and submit the name to the DGS in writing. In all cases, any changes in committee membership must be approved by the Dean of the Graduate College.
• Change of Plans: If any substantive changes are made to the plans for the dissertation as outlined in the approved prospectus (which might include a change in direction, focus, methodology, or material covered), the candidate must write a revised prospectus and arrange a further defense.
• Monitoring the Dissertation: It is the advisor’s responsibility to decide when the candidate needs to submit all or part of the work-in-progress to other members of the committee for review. The committee members will give comments to the advisor who will convey them to the candidate. The director may call a meeting of the committee at any time that he or she deems appropriate.
• Dissertation Defense: A defense is scheduled after the Dissertation Committee members have tentatively approved the dissertation. The committee may accept the dissertation as it stands, accept it conditionally pending certain revisions, or reject it. Revisions can range from minor editorial changes to a major recasting of a substantial portion of the text. Normally the committee delegates to the chairperson of the committee the responsibility for ensuring that these revisions are made. All dissertations must meet the format and stylistic requirements of the Graduate College. There will be an oral defense of the dissertation attended by the doctoral candidate and the members of the dissertation committee, advertised and open to the academic community of the university and announced at least one week prior to its occurrence. The committee vote is pass or fail. A candidate cannot be passed if more than one vote of fail is reported.

• Deanna Ledezma, “The Fecundity of Family Photography: Histories, Identities, Archival Relations,” Spring 2022. Advisors: Ömür Harmanşah and Jonathan Mekinda
• Ionit Behar, “Intimate Space and the Public Sphere: Margarita Paksa in Argentina’s Military Dictatorship” Fall 2021. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Christopher Reeves, “Playing Music Badly in Public: Brian Eno and the Limits of the Non-Musician” Spring 2021. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Karen Greenwalt, “An Aesthetics of Resistance: Rasheed Araeen, Bani Abidi, and Hamra Abbas” Summer 2020. Advisor: Catherine Becker
• Simon Hinman Wan, “Intertwined Genealogies: Dutch, Chinese, and Colonial Indonesian Architecture of Philanthropy, 1640-1740” Spring 2020. Advisor: Martha Pollak. [UIC Graduate College Outstanding Dissertation Award]
• Deepthi Murali “Transculturality, Sensoriality, and Politics of Decorative Arts of Kerala, India” Summer 2020. Advisor: Catherine Becker. [UIC Graduate College Outstanding Dissertation Award]
• Georgina Elizabeth Ruff, “A Medium to Transform the Power of the Sun: Light, Space and the Technological Apparatus.” Fall 2020. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Alice Maggie Hazard, ““Weird Copies of Carnage:” Marketing Civil War Photographs and the Public Experience of Death” Spring 2019. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Pınar Üner Yılmaz, “An Analysis of Global Curatorial Methods: The Emergence and Crystallization of Istanbul Biennials.”Spring 2018. Co-Advisors: ​Ömür Harmanşah and Esra Akcan
• Robyn Rene Mericle, “Before the Endless Miles of Wind and Sand and Empty Far Off Sky: Deserts in Hollywood’s Silent Era.” Spring 2018. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Khristin Landry-Montes, “The Sacred Landscape of Mayapán, A Postclassic Maya Center” Spring 2018. Advisor: Virginia E. Miller
• Alyssa Greenberg, “Arts Awareness at the Metropolitan Museum of Art: Art Museum Education as Artistic and Political Practice” Spring 2017. Advisor: Therese Quinn
• Tiffany Funk, “Zen and the Art of Software Performance: John Cage and Lejaren A. Hiller Jr.’s HPSCHD (1967-1969)” Fall 2016. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Margot K Berrill, “The Host and the Roast: Kitchen Humor in Feminist Video Art and Pop Culture” Fall 2016. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Cara A. Smulevitz: “Girl, if you make the movie, I promise you somebody will see it” DIY, Grrl Power and Miranda July” Spring 2016. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Juan Carlos Arias Herrera, “Transformations of a Hungry Cinema: Images and Visibility of Hunger in Brazilian Cinema 1960s-2000s” Fall 2015. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Jean Guarino: “Urban Renewal in the Interwar Era: The Remaking of Chicago’s Loop, 1918 to 1942” Fall 2015. Advisor: Robert Bruegmann.
• Juan C. Arias Herrera: “Transformations of a Hungry Cinema: Images and Visibility of Hunger in Brazilian Cinema 1960s-2000s” Spring 2015. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Sarah M Dreller: “Architectural Forum, 1932-64: A Time Inc. Experiment in American Architecture and Journalism” Summer 2015. Co-advisors: Peter B. Hales and Robert Bruegmann
• Monica Obniski: “Accumulating Things: Folk Art and Modern Design in the Postwar American Projects of Alexander H. Girard” Summer 2015. Advisor: Robert Bruegmann.
• Brandon Ruud: “Beneath the Surface: The Aesthetic and Ideological Appropriation of Native American Artwork” Summer 2015. Advisor: Ellen T. Baird
• Mirela R. Tanta: “State Art or Sites of Resistance: Socialist Realism in Romania: 1945-1989” Summer 2014. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins.
• Aleksander Najda: “Apocalypse According to Vasily Kandinsky” Spring 2014. Advisor: Peter B. Hales
• SooJin Lee: “The Art of Artists’ Personae: Yayoi Kusama, Yoko Ono, and Mariko Mori” Spring 2014. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins
• Sarita K. Heer: “Re-Imaging Indian Womanhood: The Multiple Mythologies of Phoolan Devi” Spring 2014. Advisor: Catherine Becker
• Erica N. Morawski, “Designing Destinations: Hotel Architecture, Urbanism, and American Tourism in Puerto Rico and Cuba” Summer 2014. Advisor: Robert Bruegmann.
• Gökhan Ersan: “Building the Modern Turkish Household: Koç Industries” Summer 2012. Advisor: Peter B. Hales
• Amy K. Galpin: “A Spiritual Manifestation of Mexican Muralism: Works by Jean Charlot and Alfredo Ramos Martinez” Spring 2012. Advisor: Hannah B. Higgins
• Margaret H. Denny: “From commerce to art: American women photographers 1850–1900” Summer 2010. Advisor: Peter B. Hales
• Catherine E. Burdick: “Text and image in classic Maya sculpture: A.D. 600–900.” Summer 2010. Advisor: Virginia E. Miller [UIC Graduate College Outstanding Dissertation Award]
• Roberta Gray Katz: “The Literary Paintings of Thomas Cole: Image and Text”  Spring 2009. Advisor: David M. Sokol
• Vincent Leszczynski Michael: “Preserving the Future: Historic Districts in New York City and Chicago in the Late 20th Century” Summer 2007. Advisor: Robert Bruegmann.

• The Ph.D. program in art history is the responsibility of the Graduate Program Committee (GPC) and is administered by the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS). All questions or problems should first be directed to the DGS. If there are unresolved problems these may be taken to the chairperson of the department.

• Graduate students taking courses must meet with their advisor before registering each semester to discuss the available offerings and their progress toward the degree. Students are also encouraged to consult with other members of the department.

• Students normally register continuously until all course requirements for the degree have been completed. Those students on full-time status must register for 9 semester hours or more each semester.

• Required GPA: 3.00/4.00 or higher. Students whose GPA drops below this average must meet this requirement in the following semester of enrollment or be placed on academic probation. While on probation, students will not receive financial aid or fellowships. After two semesters on probation, the student will be dismissed from the program.

• Students admitted to the PhD program with an approved MA, must complete the requirements for the degree within 7 consecutive years after initial registration as a doctoral student. Students entering the program with a BA must complete the requirements for the degree within 9 years after the initial registration. Exceptions to this requirement will be granted only upon application and then only if the justification is sufficient in the judgment of the GPC, the DGS, and the Graduate College.

• Except for international students whose visas require continuous registration and doctoral students who have passed their preliminary exams, graduate degree-seeking students may take one semester (fall or spring) plus the summer session off without formal leave approval from the Graduate College. Degree students who desire to take an additional consecutive semester off, for a total maximum of 3 consecutive terms, must file a Graduate Petition for Leave of Absence by the tenth day of the third term for which leave is requested. For exceptions to this policy, please consult the Graduate College catalog.
• Time spent on leave formally approved by the department and the Graduate College does not count towards the time to complete the degree.

Below are requirements for students in the PhD program who wish to pick up a MA degree. It puts them on a pathway to complete their exams either in the third or fourth year of the program, depending on their rate of progress.

• Minimum Semester Hours Required: 36.
• Course Work: A minimum of 16 hours at the 400/500-level in art history courses. All students are required to take courses from at least four different tenured and tenure-track UIC Art History faculty members.
• Required Courses: AH 510 and 511. Of the remaining coursework selected with an advisor, all students are required to take at least one course in each of the following areas: Ancient/Medieval/Early Modern (before 1800); Modern/Contemporary (after 1800); and Africa/Asia/Indigenous Americas.
• Thesis or two-paper option.

• The Art History Department expects doctoral students to seek external support beginning in their fourth year of the program, after which no department support is guaranteed. Students entering the program beginning in the Fall of 2019 are required, at the start of their fourth year, to submit to their advisor a list of fellowships they are planning to apply for. After the fourth year, it is required that students requesting department support are also applying for external support.
• Students who complete their prospectuses and exams by the end of their third year and apply for fellowships in their fourth year and who wish to teach their own class will be given priority by the faculty when teaching assignments are made.

Art History Teaching Assistant Policy

The department seeks to support all graduate student research and professional activity to the best of our ability but can only do so to the extent that funds are available. We encourage students to apply for all relevant research and travel funding needs.

The review and selection will be conducted by a faculty committee, who will recommend a slate of awardees to the department for approval based on the following criteria:

• cohesiveness of the study or research plan and the clarity with which it is conveyed to the non-specialist
• direct impact travel will have on the research and/or professional standing
• strength of the overall academic record
• soundness of the budget request
• timeliness of progress toward the degree
• previous departmental awards may be considered

Please limit your research statement to 500 words or less. A typical budget generally includes transportation, lodging, and expenses for fieldwork. Please indicate if you have funding toward the travel from other sources and/or if such funding is pending.

The form can be found here. Applications will be considered annually on October 15th and March 15th.

TAs can take a personal day and a set amount of sick leave if they are unable to work.

The Resource Guide provides this information on page 15:

• Paid Sick leave is based on the percentage of appointment (FTE). A maximum of 13 non-cumulative days and non-compensable work days of leave are accrued based on the percentage of the appointment for each appointment year. Sick time is accrued and earned based on FTE. Six and one half days at percentage FTE for a semester appointment are accrued.Days are equal to your “work day,” not set at eight hours of sick leave at the percentage of their ap-pointment.
• 0.25 FTE : 2.89 Earned Sick Time per Pay Period (hours)
• 0.50 FTE : 5.78 Earned Sick Time per Pay Period (hours)

Also consult the GEO contract policies on sick and leave policy.

Beyond that, TAs are meant to take a personal leave if they are no longer able to do their jobs. The Resource Guide provides this information on page 15:

• Leaves – Personal (unpaid)
• Personal Leave of Absence
• Graduate Assistants may be granted unpaid leave of absence during the term of their appointment, upon request to and at the discretion of the University and subject to such terms and conditions as the University may establish. Written request should be made to the department head or supervisor as soon as needed for leave is identified by the assistant. The request must include the start date and end date of the leave.

PROCEDURE FOR REQUESTING SICK/PERSONAL LEAVE

TAs should inform their supervisors immediately if they are unable to complete assignments by the agreed-upon deadline.

DEPARTMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY

The Department of Art History wholeheartedly agrees to the recommendations to Provost Poser from the UIC GEO-Faculty Taskforce to formulate guidelines for appointments, reappointments and assignments for assistants dated March 31, 2020, the department will do the following:

• Post these guidelines to its website.
• Solicit the advice of graduate student employees when developing or revising appointment and reappointment guidelines.
• Communicate which factors enhance assistants’ eligibility for appointment or specific course assignments.
• Not make appointments and assignments in an arbitrary or capricious manner.
• Issue letters of appointment no later than 45 days before the start of the appointment (in the case of appointments made less than 45 days before or 45 days after the beginning of the semester, the letter of appointment shall be issued as soon as practicable).

APPOINTMENT CRITERIA

In general, PhD students in the Department of Art History receive financial support for their first four years in the program (though in many cases we are able to support students beyond their fourth year). This support most typically consists of a teaching or research appointment accompanied by a tuition waiver. The majority of these consist of appointments to the position of teaching assistantship for the department’s year-long survey course, AH 110 and 111.

The department will make every effort to make all appointments and reappointments according to the policy outlined here. The governing criteria are:

• Advancement of the Graduate Student Employee’s educational and professional goals through appropriate TA and RA appointments and, when possible, grant support for a semester or year devoted to dissertation completion.
• Even distribution of workload across TA and RA appointments. Typically the expected workload is 20 hours per week.
• Excellent TA and RA training, mentoring and orientation within the department.
• S/U evaluation of all TA and RA appointments which can affect future appointments.

To the extent possible, the Department seeks to make teaching appointments according to this sequence:

• TA for AH110 & 111, teach 2 discussion sections
• Teach a 100-level general survey course that you have previously TA’d for.
• Teach a 100- or 200-level GenEd course directly within your research area.
• RAship appointments will be assigned based on availability and need.

Students specializing in modern/contemporary art, interested in the curatorial track and who want to be considered for a Gallery 400 assistantship in the upcoming academic year are encouraged to speak with the DGS at the start of the spring semester.

Following the 4th year, positions will be offered to Graduate Student Employees according to departmental staffing needs. When funds are available, students may be offered a Dissertation Completion Grant to support their completion of the program.

APPOINTMENT COMPENSATION

Assistantships receive a tuition waiver and a stipend set by the university. See the Graduate College’s guidelines here.

APPOINTMENT GENERAL DESCRIPTIONS

All appointments are only guaranteed after an appointment letter is received and signed. All assistantship holders are encouraged to approach the Chair, DGS or their faculty advisor should any concerns arise.

Graduate Teaching Assistantship (TA)

The Art History department employs Teaching Assistants to help faculty members provide a rich and meaningful educational experience for our students and as a mentoring opportunity for the Assistants themselves.

Expectations

• Newly appointed TAs are required to attend the TA orientation offered by the University shortly before the start of the Fall semester. See the 2019 TA Orientation slides here.
• TAs must attend all meetings of the course to which they are assigned and to do all the required readings for the class in addition to whatever auxiliary preparation the professor deems reasonable.
• This may take the form of additional readings, the preparation of lecture notes, or the leading of group discussions of the course material.
• TAs may also be asked to run regular discussion sections and be responsible for developing material from the class lectures to facilitate discussion, for administering, and grading, course exams, for assigning and grading written assignments, for conducting review sessions, and for performing other relevant duties that the instructor might require.
• TAs are also asked to make themselves available for extra-class consultation with their students by maintaining regular office hours (usually one fixed hour and one or two by arrangement).

Survey of World History of Art (AH 110 and 111)

Most of the department’s Teaching Assistants are involved in the Survey of World History of Art (AH 110 and 111). For these classes:

• TAs are required to attend a weekly meeting (usually on Friday afternoons) at which the professor will discuss the content of each review session and other subjects related to the class.
• While this meeting normally takes from one to two hours, students are expected to keep their schedules sufficiently open following this meeting to be able to address unanticipated issues.
• The TAs are also expected to aid in the development of the writing and research skills of their students that are necessary for written assignments, as well as the development of student study skills in preparation for quizzes and exams.
• Finally, TAs are required to grade their students’ written assignments and exams in a timely manner.

Accountability and Evaluation

• Ultimate authority on all matters of teaching resides in the professor and any serious course-related problems relating to students’ academic performance, or ethical or personal issues should be brought to his or her attention.
• TAs will be evaluated every semester by the supervising professor and a short written statement summarizing that evaluation will be submitted to the Faculty.

Graduate Research Assistantship (RA)

Research Assistantships support the research, teaching and administrative needs of faculty members, while also providing students with the benefits both of a flexible working schedule and of taking on responsibilities that (ideally) complement their own academic interests.

Research Assistantships are twenty-hour-a-week appointments that are ultimately designed at the discretion of the faculty member, in consideration of such factors as the scheduling and other constraints, particular skill set, and scholarly interests of the student. They may include off-site research.

Graduate Teaching Assistantship (Instructor)

It is the department’s goal to give academic track students the opportunity to teach their own classes both at the introductory 100 level and at the more specialized 200 level. Please bear the following criteria in mind:

• PhD students must be ABD before they teach their own courses at the 200 level.
• Acceptable course numbers drawn from the list in the UIC undergraduate catalog are limited to:
  • AH 100 (only if you have been a TA or taught it before)
  • AH 180
  • Any other 100 or 200-level course in your research area that fulfills at least one GE category
• While courses with general titles can often be tweaked to fit specific intellectual priorities, your proposed curriculum must also satisfy the parameters of the course description as it is laid out in the course catalogue.
• Please review sample syllabi from past 100-200 level courses taught by students and faculty.

In order to equitably and productively distribute teaching opportunities, we will consider the following:

• Whether or not applicants have previously had a chance to develop their own courses.
• How the proposed course might support the applicant’s progress through the program.
• The suitability of the proposed course in the context of other offerings within the department.

See the repository of past syllabi here.

See the special Summer Appointment guidelines below.

Expectations

• In consultation with faculty and drawing on past syllabi, graduate student instructors will design their own syllabi–including lecture topics, readings, assignments, and course policies.
• Graduate student instructors are expected to be in residence for the duration of the semester during which they are teaching. When an occasional absence might be expected, the instructor should inform the chair of Art History and make appropriate arrangements for their students, including a guest lecture or alternate assignment. (In the case of online courses, graduate student instructors need not physically be on campus, but should meet with their students according to the schedule outlined on the syllabus.)
• Courses taught by graduate student instructors will have enrollments capped at 40 to allow the student instructor to balance the demands of teaching (preparing lectures and grading) with their own research.
•  Graduate student instructors will be expected to grade all assignments and exams and will be responsible for assigning their students’ final grades.

Accountability and Evaluation

• In the week before the semester begins, graduate student instructors will submit their syllabi to the chair of the Department for review and suggested revisions if needed.
• First-time graduate student instructors will be evaluated through a classroom visit and teaching evaluation written by a faculty member in the Department.
• Concerns regarding students (wellness issues, academic dishonesty, or other challenges) should be discussed with the chair of the Department.

APPOINTMENT PROCEDURES

Academic year appointments

Each spring, students are asked to complete a two-part form (see a sample form here), which includes a self-assessment (i.e. a review of progress made toward the degree) and, if appropriate, a request for funding for the following academic year. Students should carefully consider the appointments that are available as listed on the form (keeping in mind that this list is a working document and thus somewhat provisional). Requests for appointments should be made in consultation with students’ advisors.

Guidelines adopted by faculty when making appointment decisions include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Eligibility;
• Academic record and evidence of timely progress toward degree;
• Previous relevant experience;
• Previous success as a TA and/or RA;
• Likelihood of success in proposed position;
• Factors that may be relevant for specific appointment timeframes;
• Relationship between a given funding opportunity and the student’s dissertation research;
• Evidence of having pursued external support (in the case of students in their fourth year and beyond);
• Factors related to the academic mission of the department

Summer appointments

It is the department’s goal to grow our summer session offerings so that we can better support graduate students and serve undergraduates. To that end, we are looking to offer courses that will attract a robust enrollment and are taught by experienced, knowledgeable instructors. Please bear the following criteria in mind when preparing an application:

• PhD students must be ABD before they teach their own summer courses.
• Acceptable course numbers drawn from the list in the UIC undergraduate catalog are limited to:
  • AH 100 (only if you have taught it before)
  • AH 180
  • Any other 100 or 200-level course in your research area that fulfills at least one GE category
• While courses with general titles can often be tweaked to fit specific intellectual priorities, your proposed curriculum must also satisfy the parameters of the course description as it is laid out in the course catalogue.
• Please review sample syllabi from past 100-200 level courses taught by students and faculty.

In order to equitably and productively distribute teaching opportunities, we will consider the following:

• Whether or not the applicant has previously had a chance to develop her own course.
• How the proposed course might support the applicant’s progress through the program.
• The suitability of the proposed course in the context of other offerings during the summer and the spring semester before and fall semester after.

The Art History faculty will review the proposals, suggest changes and propose alternative course numbers to applicants as needed before deciding on a shortlist to give to the summer sessions office.

As you are preparing your proposal, please bear in mind that our course offerings are, in the end, determined by the CADA Dean’s office and summer sessions. We will vigorously present the final selection of proposals to them, but they have in the past significantly limited our offerings. We are actively seeking to lessen those limitations and provide more summer teaching opportunities for graduate students and more summer learning opportunities for undergraduates.

Your proposal should include the following:

• A paragraph describing the proposed course (perhaps include how you might envision using resources in the city).
• A sentence about how this course relates to your research interests or professional goals.
• A sentence describing why this course will be effective at drawing enrollments from UIC undergraduates.
• A list of courses for which you have previously served as the instructor of record (either at UIC or another institution).
• The term during which you would prefer to teach (four-week or eight-week).

The deadline for summer course proposals is September 15 each year. Please send your proposal to the Chair by email with “Summer Session Proposal” in the subject line. Your proposals will then be reviewed by the faculty of the Department of Art History.