Chances for getting into an Art History PHD program?

I’m going to be applying to graduate schools this Fall and I’ve been doing a lot of research on schools that are both have good programs/staff in what I plan to study, and also that have good funding as I grew up in a poor family so there is no financial safety net for me. It seems like most of the schools that fit that bill are fairly difficult to get into. I’m looking mainly at Emory and Columbia, and pondering a back-up school/schools as well. I am just about to take the GRE, so no scores yet, but this is the info I do have:

My total GPA is 3.5, GPA in my major is 3.9. I’m involved with two different clubs at my school both related to my major/certificate. I have an Art minor, and an International Studies certificate. I have a paid position at my school with our international department. I studied abroad as an Oxford Visiting Student - I was actually accepted into Oxford University for this program, received top marks while there, and will have a recommendation from my main tutor. I have also done some volunteer work with a local museum. The school I am coming from is not a major school yet, but it does seem to be rising fast, especially our art department. My foreign language grades aren’t so great (they are the main reason for my lower overall GPA), but I am a little hard-of-hearing which made speaking/listening portions difficult, and my reading comprehension is much better (I know that is what graduate programs will actually test).

this should be a super-obvious thing, but just in case: are you an art history major? did you study art history at Oxford/ have you done any research (summer internship? capstone project? senior thesis?) in art history? is your reading comprehension in your target language strong enough to read an article about art history?

what matters in applying to a PhD program is your understanding of / ability for becoming an expert in your field.

You might find this forum helpful: https://forum.thegradcafe.com/forum/66-art-history/

Yes, I am an art history major, and I studied art history in Oxford. I’ve done a ton of research papers and am in the middle of my art history capstone now. My international studies capstone was last semester and it was heavily art history related as well. I’m pretty good at reading in my foreign language and working on improving it even more.

And thank you for the link! I’ve been lurking over there as well for a little bit too though.

That’s all great news- those are the things that really matter. Main grad school advice then is to spend the time on the websites of the programs that you are interested in to ID people who are doing research in areas that you are interested in- it’s slow work, but it really makes a difference. You want to be able to demonstrate why you are a good fit, esp how your research interests align with theirs. Also: apply to a bunch of places. Your advisor should be able to help you id where you are likely to land in terms of competitiveness. Ask your best teachers / advisor / Oxford tutor / etc. where they know people / what programs they like.

Good advice above. I think you sound like you have a good shot.

Definitely. Be sure to reach out to them before you apply. If they’re going on sabbatical, have too many students already, are planning to retire soon, etc., you need to know.

Adding to this, apply to at least a couple of MA programs. It’s harder to find funded MA programs in the humanities, but they definitely exist. Public universities, especially directional state universities, are a good place to look.

One note is that this is actually less important in humanities programs like art history than it is in physical/natural/social science programs. While humanities students do have an adviser, and that adviser usually does work that’s relatively similar to what the humanities student wants to do, they don’t have to align as closely as a science student’s would. Also, for jobs, the reputation of the entire department takes a more prominent role (rather than mostly the advisor, like in the sciences). So it doesn’t matter as much if one particular professor is going on sabbatical for a year or planning to retire or whatever. In fact, really what you want to do is pick a department where there are several professors who do work that’s interesting to you.

Most good art history PhD programs will have good funding.

You sound like a relatively competitive student. It’s difficult to predict chances, but you sound like you could compete with other doctoral applicants. Have you discussed with your art history professors yet? They will help you the most.

My total GPA is 3.5, GPA in my major is 3.9. I’m involved with two different clubs at my school both related to my major/certificate. I have an Art minor, and an International Studies certificate. I have a paid position at my school with our international department. I studied abroad as an Oxford Visiting Student - I was actually accepted into Oxford University for this program, received top marks while there, and will have a recommendation from my main tutor. I have also done some volunteer work with a local museum. The school I am coming from is not a major school yet, but it does seem to be rising fast, especially our art department. My foreign language grades aren’t so great (they are the main reason for my lower overall GPA), but I am a little hard-of-hearing which made speaking/listening portions difficult, and my reading comprehension is much better (I know that is what graduate programs will actually test).