Williams College, in cooperation with the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, offers a two-year course of study leading to the degree of Master of Arts in the history of art.

Mission

The objective of the Program is to offer a thorough professional preparation for academic and museum careers, and to equip graduates of the Program to pursue further study and research, whether independently or at other institutions offering higher degrees.

Degree requirements

To qualify for the Master's Degree in art history, candidates must complete a minimum of eleven courses for graduate credit and two winter study periods, the latter consisting of a European study trip in the first year (ARTH 051) and a qualifying paper in the second (ARTH 052).  At least seven of the eleven courses must be graduate seminars, and all students are required to enroll in ARTH 504, "Methods of Art History and Criticism," during the first year and in ARTH 509, "Graduate Student Symposium," during the fourth semester.

With permission of the Director, up to four undergraduate courses at the 200, 300, or 400 level may be taken for graduate credit, with the understanding that research papers submitted in such courses would be expected to meet a standard commensurate with graduate status.

Foreign Languages

In addition to completing the required course work, every student must achieve reading proficiency in two foreign languages, one of which must be German.

Student Employment

Through the work/study program every student has access to opportunities for work in a curatorial department, as a teaching or research assistant, or in the Williamstown Art Conservation Center. Study-related employment is available for all students through assistantships at the Clark, the Williams College Museum of Art, the Chapin Rare Book Library, and MASS MoCA (Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art), and through teaching assistantships in undergraduate survey courses.

After the M.A.

In recent years, graduates of the Williams/Clark Program have pursued the doctorate at such institutions as Columbia University, Harvard University, MIT, New York University, Stanford University, University of California Berkeley, University of Chicago, University of Delaware, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University.

On graduation some students choose to spend a year or two in museum internship positions or seek curatorial positions. Recent Williams M.A. graduates have been awarded internships at the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Harvard University Art Museums, the National Gallery of Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Walker Art Center, and the Museum Ludwig in Cologne. Others have taken curatorial or administrative positions at such institutions as the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, The Art Institute of Chicago, the Clark, The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Indianapolis Museum of Art, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.