BA Archaeology, Anthropology and Art History

This course combines archaeological, anthropological and art historical approaches to art. It allows you to study a wide range of material, from the prehistoric through to the present day, and also equips you to study diverse cultures and societies. In combination with introductions to archaeology, anthropology and material culture studies, you will be given the opportunity to develop your own interests in particular areas.



Modules address the visual and material cultures of all continents, and consider topics such as pre-Columbian art in the Andes, Buddhist and Hindu temple architecture in India, and shamanistic performances in African societies. Throughout the degree, you will be encouraged to explore a wide range of cultures and cultural forms, and to consider art as a cross-cultural practice. This course will familiarise you with the varied yet related ways in which human creativity has been approached by art historians, archaeologists and anthropologists. The Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts houses a world-famous collection of artworks from Asia, Africa, the Pacific and the Americas, as well as Europe. You will therefore be able to study objects relevant to your course freely and at first-hand, whilst also learning about the processes of collecting which have led such objects to enter museums. The course also provides opportunities to develop your practical skills of archaeological and anthropological fieldwork through participation in excavations and projects, in the UK and overseas (most recently, Cyprus, Cordoba and Peru).

The Course Structure

The degree combines teaching in small seminar groups with lecture modules, giving great flexibility and allowing you to put together a programme of study which reflects your own particular interests. A spine of core modules running through the first and second years is designed to develop your understanding of archaeology, anthropology and art history, and to introduce you to key issues and debates in each discipline.

The first year of the degree will equip you with key skills in these three subject areas. Alongside the core lecture modules examining the techniques, materials and identities associated with art around the world, seminar modules introduce you to the university-level study of archaeology and anthropology.

The second-year lecture modules focus on art’s relationship to performance and display, before exploring different methodological and theoretical approaches to analysing art. Dedicated seminar modules also familiarise you with the latest approaches to anthropological analysis, as well as skills of archaeological fieldwork. Optional modules in the second year also allow you to develop your pre-existing interests, or to engage with cultures and art forms which may be new to you.

Third-year teaching is entirely through small-group seminar modules which involve the advanced and in-depth study of particular cultures and art forms. As in the first and second years, modules can be chosen according to your own interests. The 9,000-word dissertation, on a topic of your own choice and supervised by at least one member of the faculty, represents an important part of the final year and introduces you to the skills of academic enquiry, research and writing needed for postgraduate study.

Assessment

Key skills, issues and ideas are introduced in lectures given by all members of faculty, including art historians, anthropologists and archaeologists. More specialist study is undertaken in small group seminars.

These are chosen from a range offered within the School and across the University. You will also spend time studying and researching in the library or carrying out practical work or projects. In most subject areas, you are assessed at the end of each year on the basis of coursework and, in some cases, project and examination results.

In your final year, you will write a dissertation on a topic of your choice and with the advice of tutors. There is no final examination. Your final degree result is determined by the marks you receive in years two and three.

Course Organiser:Dr. Joanne Clarke

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Entry Requirements A Level: AAB-BBB including at least one humanities essay-based subject International Baccalaureate: 33-31 points including at least one Higher Level humanities essay-based subject Scottish Highers: At least one Advanced Higher preferred in addition to Highers Scottish Advanced Highers: AAB-BBB including at least one humanities essay-based subject Irish Leaving Certificate: AAAABB-BBBBBB including at least one humanities essay-based subject Access Course: Please contact the university for further information HND: Please contact the university for further information European Baccalaureate: 80%-70% including at least one humanities essay-based subject Students for whom English is a Foreign language

We welcome applications from students from all academic backgrounds. We require evidence of proficiency in English (including writing, speaking, listening and reading). Recognised English Language qualifications include:

• IELTS: 6.5 overall (minimum 6.0 in Reading and Writing with no less than 5.5 in any component)
• TOEFL: Internet-based score of 88 overall (minimum 20 in Reading and Speaking components, 19 in Writing component and 17 in Listening components.
• PTE: 62 overall (minimum 55 in Reading and Writing components with no less than 51 in any component).

If you do not meet the University's entry requirements, our INTO Language Learning Centre offers a range of university preparation courses to help you develop the high level of academic and English skills necessary for successful undergraduate study.

Interviews

The majority of candidates will not be called for an interview. However, for some students an interview will be requested. These are normally quite informal and generally cover topics such as your current studies, reasons for choosing the course and your personal interests and extra-curricular activities.

Students will have the opportunity to meet with an academic individually on a Visit Day in order to gain a deeper insight into the course(s) you have applied for.

Gap Year

We welcome applications from students who have already taken or intend to take a gap year.

We also welcome applications for deferred entry, believing that a year between school and university can be of substantial benefit. You are advised to indicate your reason for wishing to defer entry and may wish to contact the appropriate Admissions Office directly to discuss this further.

Intakes

The School's annual intake is in September of each year.

Alternative Qualifications

If you have alternative qualifications that have not been mentioned above, then please contact university directly for further information.

GCSE Offer

Students are required to have GCSE Mathematics and GCSE English Language at Grade C or above.

Assessment

For the majority of candidates the most important factors in assessing the application will be past and future achievement in examinations, academic interest in the subject being applied for, personal interest and extra-curricular activities and the confidential reference.

We consider applicants as individuals and accept students from a very wide range of educational backgrounds and spend time considering your application in order to reach an informed decision relating your application. Typical offers are indicated above. Please note, there may be additional subject entry requirements specific to individual degree courses.

Our teaching received a 96% satisfaction rate in both the 2012 National Student Survey and the 2013 Guardian University Guide league table.

Our students are able to study a wider range of artistic cultures, periods and forms than in any other art history department in the UK. The School is particularly renowned for its broad approach to art, encompassing ancient, medieval, Renaissance, baroque, modern and contemporary European art, American art, African art, Asian art and Pacific art. Staff, students and researchers in the School are interested in the history of art, as well as archaeology, anthropology, cultural heritage, and museum studies.We engage with all forms of visual and material creativity from oil painting, sculpture and drawing through to architecture, photography, video and installation art. We teach small groups of students in a friendly, supportive and open environment, supported by great facilities. This is why the Guardian University Guide consistently ranks us among the top departments in the UK for student satisfaction with teaching and feedback, for staff-student ratio and for the quality of student resources.

The School has a long-standing international reputation for excellence; ranked 1st in the UK for world-leading research in the latest Research Assessment Exercise, we are one of the most important and highly-rated History of Art departments in the UK. Our graduates go on to high profile posts in such prestigious institutions as the British Museum, V&A, Tate and Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, as well as leading History of Art departments, publishers and the commercial art world.

The School of Art History and World Art Studies is based in Norman Foster’s world-famous Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, an icon of modern design, which contains an astounding art collection with major internationally-renowned works by artists such as Francis Bacon, Edgar Degas, Jacob Epstein, Henry Moore and Pablo Picasso. Students work in close proximity to this collection, “perhaps the greatest resource of its type on any British campus” according to the Times Good University Guide.

• 95% of our History of Art graduates (and 88% of the School’s BA graduates overall) go on to work and/or postgraduate study within 6 months of graduating. We are therefore the highest-rated department in England (and joint first in the UK) for History of Art graduate prospects
• 100% of our History of Art graduates (and 97% of the School’s BA graduates overall) said they thought staff had made the subject interesting. This figure was matched by just one other History of Art department in England
• Almost 90% of the School’s BA graduates said that they had received the advice and support they needed to do well in their studies, a figure exceeded by just two other History of Art departments in the UK. This is probably because – as the survey reveals – our students get more lectures, seminars, tutorials and general contact time with academic staff than students at many other leading History of Art departments in the UK
• 96% of our History of Art graduates said they had been provided with the IT resources they needed for their studies, a figure matched by just one other History of Art department in the UK
• Finally, 94% of the School’s BA graduates overall said they were highly satisfied with the quality of their degree course, continuing our tradition of providing a first-class university education in History of Art as well as Archaeology, Anthropology, and Museum and Gallery Studies.

UniStats Information Fees and Funding University Fees and Financial Support: UK/EU Students

Further information on fees and funding for 2012 can be found here

University Fees and Financial Support: International Students

The University will be charging International students £11,700.00 for all full time School of World Art Studies and Museology undergraduate programmes which start in 2012.

Please click to access further information about fees and funding for International students