McGill Art History Department

[Dia Alam]

Hi everyone!

I'm looking into M.A./Ph.D programs in Art History for Fall'13. Can anyone give me some information about the ArtHistory department at McGill? Has anyone completed an A.H. graduate programs there? I'm planning on specializing in Medieval/ Late Antique Art and it would be really helpful to know more about the department, it's rankings, admission process etc. etc.

Thanks!

[Shelley Burian]

I did my undergrad there and loved it, but I wouldn't say that their grad program or department is the strongest out there. First off, since McGill is a Canadian school, getting admitted for an MA/Phd is pretty rare (I'm not even sure that they allow those with bachelors to apply for the PhD). In Canada its still pretty much the rule that you do an MA and PhD separately, although I can't speak for all schools. The department's focus is very heavily modern/contemporary and Canadian art, and their graduate course selection reflects that. I'm assuming that you are interested in working with Cecily Hilsdale, since she is the only faculty member in your field. Her interest is heavily Byzantine, rather than Medieval so take a look at her research and publications. You could always compensate for the lack of courses in your field through the Classics department, or even History. For an MA, I would say that it would be great (I personally love Dr. Hilsdale), but don't really think that they have the strength in your area for a PhD. I would also REALLY check into the funding if you are not a Canadian citizen because most of their funding comes through SSHR, a federal funding program. I'm not sure about strict rankings, but in terms of general reputation the University of Toronto is more highly regarded for art history.

[Dia Alam]

Thanks Shelley! That was really informative, really appreciate all the help.

I don't know whether you'd know anything about this, but any information I can get will be helpful... I really want to study in Europe more than the States for my M.A.; do you know of any English taught graduate programs that are offered in Europe that I could look into?

Right now, these are the schools that I'm looking at that have a good medieval program: Courtauld Institute, University of York, University of Edinburgh, and University of Leiden.

Most of the other A.H. programs that I've found are instructed in other languages, it was nearly impossible for me to find one in English in Germany or France.

So, what do you think? Are there other places that I could look into? I'm so confused and flustered with all of this!

[Shelley Burian]

Well, most Canadians like to look to England for Masters programs, so I here's what I know. Courtauld seems to really get people places and there are scholarships for Americans (which I'm assuming that you are, sorry if I'm wrong) so that's definitely a good place to look. A lot of my friends ended up at University College London, so although I don't know their medieval strength it seemed a pretty popular choice. Have you considered Cambridge? I have another friend who went there although she was in Early Modern. I really don't know anything about York or Edinburgh (except that the latter has a very good all round reputation). I would leave France out of it, as I have never heard of anyone going to grad school there who wasn't a francophone or could study completely in French. Maybe some other people have better information on that though. Germany has several English schools like the Heidelburg and the Max Planck Institute but I believe that these are mostly for science/ social sciences but you could check (and please excuse my German spelling!) My graduate program has an exchange program with the University of Leiden and I have been told that it is excellent as well, but I know my school places priority on sending Ancient art folks there so I'm not sure about their Medieval (I can't think that we would have the program if the school wasn't really good in general though).

For me, the main considerations on studying abroad are the "usefullness" of the degree in getting you where you want to be and money. I did not really want to continue my education in the United States at first but for Pre-Columbian it is hands down the best place to be for that sub-discipline so here I am. I think that as a Medieval specialist Europe is probably a pretty smart move IF you can afford it and are willing to go through the extra hoops of being an international student. If you are aiming primarily at working in the US and are looking at careers that do not necessarily need a Ph.D. then it's also a good idea to check the acceptance of European degrees in those fields. However since your interest is Medieval I'm assuming you're curatorial/professorship bound so you will have NO problem with a European degree in those careers. Application processes for European schools tend to be different and may have due dates at different times so I would really start looking now and get familiar with the process at each of your schools.

Edited August 3, 2012 by Shelley Burian

[Shelley Burian]

Good luck!

[condivi]

I would agree with most of what Shelley has to say, but I would caution you NOT to get a PhD in Europe if you hope to land a job as a professor or curator in the US, regardless of your field (an MA is a different story). It's not a question of the quality of the programs, but the academic culture of European universities. European professors don't write the kind of letters of recommendation that American ones do, and that will put you at a distinct disadvantage come job-searching time. Fair or not, you will be an outsider coming from a European university, without the same contacts or networks as your American peers. Take a look at where faculties members at various American art history programs got their degrees, and they will be invariably be from American universities. Only the cream of the crop from Europe get jobs in the US, and that's usually only after working their through the system in Europe. Similarly, if you're an American citizen, you can forget getting a job in Europe, even with a European degree, unless your specialty is American art.

[TaraGreen89]

For funding you might want to look at the Marshall Scholarship website- they fund 1-2 years for American students looking to study for a graduate degree in the United Kingdom and I believe that most if not all of the schools you listed are eligible for that scholarship. The deadline is in November so you'd have to hustle- but from what I can tell it definitely sounds like an interesting and viable option.

Good luck!