History of Art

The history of art, meanwhile, is a vastly different degree in almost every way you can think of It's a valuable inter-disciplinary course that studies how visual art and expression have changed through history, developing a high degree of visual literacy and an awareness of the close relationship between art and its wider historical context. Students use a wide range of historical, theoretical and critical approaches, developing the skills involved in critical analysis and the critical reading of texts.

But there is no doubt that the history of art as a choice suffers from an image problem as the course of choice for toffs - Prince William made it his original choice for study at St Andrews, for example (although he switched).

And to some extent it is true: the last report by teaching quality inspectors highlighted a lack of students from ethnic minority communities on courses made up of up to 80% women, often from, shall we say, white society's upper brackets (imagine a room full of people called Tara).

But things are changing, and for the better. Institutions have recognised these issues and are broadening their recruitment strategies and looking to open up the scope of the course to wider influences than the narrow white Euro-centric view of (often painted) art - the "Giotto to Cezanne" stereotype - that has traditionally dominated the subject. Not only that, but there is a growing move away from seeing the subject as connoisseurship towards a more inter-disciplinary and academically rigorous approach.

Teaching will usually be a mixture of classes and lectures, and assessment is nearly always conducted on the basis of analytical essays - either in an exam or as part of coursework. A dissertation or some kind of longer project is also likely to form part of the course, sometimes optional, sometimes not.

After graduation you will be ripe for careers in writing, publishing, arts administration and conservation or teaching. Civilised professions each and every one.