ArtHistoryHopeful2018

Current: I'm just about to graduate from a state school with a BA in Art History, minor in Art, certificate in International Studies. Area: Renaissance and Baroque Experience: This is where I'm concerned - I'm working on some volunteer stuff at a local museum, but I haven't published anything or had an internship. I was, however, part of a very prestigious exchange/study abroad program where I worked mainly in my proposed area of focus, and one of my recommendations is someone from that program. I do however also a paid position at my school that allows me to present to classrooms and meet with/advise other students. GPA: 3.5 overall/3.9 in major GRE: Don't know just yet, will update that! (last minute, I know! I'm nervous about that too) Applying to: Harvard, Columbia, Emory, UGA, perhaps one or two others, I'll be settling on that within a week or two.

I'm trying to narrow down what topic to go with for my writing sample. I'm currently in a senior class where the purpose seems to be largely to produce to a writing sample for grad school applications. We are allowed to rework a previous paper or write something new. My main question is, would it be okay to submit a writing sample from a secondary field of interest (I will be applying for a focus in Renaissance and Baroque, the paper is on a topic in early modernism) if it is well-written and more unique. The main paper I'm considering re-working here is about an aspect of a popular artist's work that is not often discussed and how it affects and can be compared to their other work (it is an often flippantly referenced fact, but very rarely have people gone into detail). I have sources to use there, but very little making the same point I am with it. It seems to be new ground, but supported. Even if it's out of my main focus period, would something like this be better than a paper on a specific artwork that they have likely seen papers about before, or is familiar ground better?

I am unsure about the abstract (you've given me a question to ask my adviser!), but I know I've always been told Chicago is the proper citation format for Art History papers.

I'm currently in a bachelors program for Art History in the south. It's not a very well-known school yet, but I know others from my program have been admitted to very good grad schools. I'm trying to get a little ahead of the game with my research on grad schools, I likely won't be graduating until May 2018 due to having a minor as well. I've got a very good overall GPA, and an even higher GPA within my major, and I'm about to do a semester abroad at a very prestigious school so I feel pretty good about my ability to get into grad schools. My main worry, however, is funding. There are no schools close enough for me to commute that seem to have good Art History programs and I don't have anyone who can help me pay for school. I know that I will need to move for grad school, possibly quite far away from my family, so I'm very open about locations. My focus is Early Modern Europe, and if I have to get more specific, Baroque art, and I was wondering which programs you would recommend for this focus that have good funding? I am looking for a PhD program, as I would like to be a professor, but I would certainly be interested in looking to start with a funded masters program as well. However, I know that I would be happy staying in the south to teach and not teaching at one of the top schools, so being more likely to find work at a 'top' school is not a requirement for me.