BFA in Art
Degree Requirements
To earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art degree from UIC, students need to complete university, college, and school degree requirements. The Art Degree requirements are outlined below. Students should consult the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts section for additional degree requirements and college academic policies.
A portfolio review is required upon completion of the Art Foundations coursework.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Summary of Requirements | ||
| First Year Program | 24 | |
| General Education and Foundation Courses | 33 | |
| Art Major Requirements | 61 | |
| Electives outside the Department of Art | 10-11 | |
| DLG 120 | UIC First-Year Dialogue Seminar (Required of new freshmen only) a | 1 |
| Total Hours | 129 | |
- a
New freshmen are required to complete DLG 120 for one hour. These students will complete 10 hours of electives for the BFA in Art. All other students complete 11 hours of electives for the BFA in Art.
First Year Program
Students are required to take ART 101 and choose five 100-level, studio-based courses from the six that are offered for a total of 24 hours.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| ART 101 | Signifying Practices: Art and Visual Culture | 4 |
| Select five of the following: | 20 | |
| Introduction to Drawing | ||
| Introduction to Painting + Color | ||
| Introduction to Sculpture | ||
| Introduction to New Media Arts | ||
| Introduction to Digital Photography | ||
| Introduction to Filmmaking | ||
| Total Hours | 24 | |
General Education and Foundation Courses
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| ENGL 160 | Academic Writing I: Writing in Academic and Public Contexts | 3 |
| ENGL 161 | Academic Writing II: Writing for Inquiry and Research | 3 |
| Understanding the Individual and Society course a | 3 | |
| Understanding U.S. Society course a | 3 | |
| Analyzing the Natural World course a,b | 4 | |
| Understanding the Past course a | 3 | |
| Exploring World Cultures course a | 3 | |
| AH 110 | World History of Art and the Built Environment I c | 4 |
| AH 111 | World History of Art and the Built Environment II c | 4 |
| AH 160 | Trends in International Contemporary Art Since 1960 c | 3 |
| Total Hours | 33 | |
- a
Students should consult the General Education section of the catalog for a list of approved courses in this category. Students may choose a General Education course that falls below the recommended semester hour value for a particular category as long as the student reaches a total of 24 hours of General Education distributed across the six categories.
- b
Students who select a course worth less than 4 hours from the Analyzing the Natural World list will need to take an additional General Education Core course as part of their electives.
- c
This course is approved for the Understanding the Creative Arts General Education category.
Art Major Requirements
Students must consult with faculty advisors for approval of concentration and elective courses each semester.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| Art Concentration in one discipline (chosen from ART courses at 200-300 level) | 16 | |
| Art Electives (chosen from ART courses at 200-400 level) | 24 | |
| ART 401 | Senior Projects: Critique | 6 |
| ART 402 | Senior Projects: Thesis | 6 |
| AH 201 | Reading and Writing Art Criticism | 3 |
| Art History— Chosen from AH courses at 200 level and above | 6 | |
| Total Hours | 61 | |
Electives outside the Department of Art
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Electives | ||
| Electives outside the Department of Art a | 10-11 | |
| Total Hours | 10-11 | |
- a
New freshmen are required to complete DLG 120 for one hour. These students will complete 10 hours of electives for the BFA in Art. All other students complete 11 hours of electives for the BFA in Art.
UIC First Year Dialogue Seminar
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Course | ||
| DLG 120 | UIC First-Year Dialogue Seminar | 1 |
| Total Hours | 1 | |
Sample Course Schedule
| Freshman Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall Semester | Hours | |
| ENGL 160 | Academic Writing I: Writing in Academic and Public Contexts | 3 |
| ART 112 | Introduction to Drawing | 4 |
| ART 170 | Introduction to Filmmaking | 4 |
| ART 101 | Signifying Practices: Art and Visual Culture | 4 |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| ENGL 161 | Academic Writing II: Writing for Inquiry and Research | 3 |
| DLG 120 | UIC First-Year Dialogue Seminar (Required of new freshmen only) | 1 |
| ART 160 | Introduction to Digital Photography | 4 |
| ART 130 | Introduction to Painting + Color | 4 |
| ART 150 | Introduction to New Media Arts | 4 |
| Hours | 15-16 | |
| Sophomore Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| AH 110 | World History of Art and the Built Environment I | 4 |
| Concentration Course | 4 | |
| Concentration Course | 4 | |
| Understanding U.S. Society course | 3 | |
| Exploring World Cultures course | 3 | |
| Hours | 18 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| AH 111 | World History of Art and the Built Environment II | 4 |
| Art Elective | 4 | |
| Concentration Course | 4 | |
| Understanding the Individual and Society course | 3 | |
| Understanding the Past course | 3 | |
| Hours | 18 | |
| Junior Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| AH 160 | Trends in International Contemporary Art Since 1960 | 3 |
| Concentration Course | 4 | |
| Art Elective | 4 | |
| General Elective | 3 | |
| General Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 17 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| AH 201 | Reading and Writing Art Criticism | 3 |
| Art Elective | 4 | |
| Art Elective | 4 | |
| Analyzing Natural World course | 4 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Senior Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| ART 401 | Senior Projects: Critique | 6 |
| AH Elective | 3 | |
| General Elective | 3 | |
| General Elective | 2 | |
| Hours | 14 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| ART 402 | Senior Projects: Thesis | 6 |
| AH Elective | 3 | |
| Art Elective | 4 | |
| Art Elective | 4 | |
| Hours | 17 | |
| Total Hours | 129 | |