BA Art History and Arabic

Art History is known for its strong interdisciplinary character. Students explore subjects, objects and texts from different cultures and different historical periods. Students benefit from our strengths in Renaissance Studies, Romanticism, modern and contemporary art, as well the intersections of art and science.

This course has access to the collections held in The John Rylands Library and The Whitworth, which contain works by Bacon, Blake, Gauguin, Munch, Picasso, Rembrandt, Turner, Van Gogh and other major artists.

Learning Arabic is an integral part of the degree and many students start as beginners. Students also learn more broadly about the history, politics, literature, visual culture and music of the middle east. There is a thematic approach embedded in this area of study, looking at issues such as the environment, popular culture, gender, immigration and trans-nationalisms, and religion. In the third year, students undertake a residence abroad usually in Morocco and/or Jordan.

In their final year students have the option of taking a dissertation, which can be focused on art history, Arabic, or cover a cross-disciplinary topic.

Overseas opportunities

We offer two unique summer internships at the world-famous Venice Peggy Guggenheim Collection. In your second year you'll go on a five-day field trip to a European city, such as Paris, Rome, Barcelona or Berlin. The trip combines guided tours and talks with independent research and culminates in an extended essay on your return to the UK.

Residence abroad

Your year abroad will offer the opportunity to gain first-hand experience of life in an Arabic-speaking country, and further develop your language skills.

Societies

Join our student society, the Manchester Art Group, which curates events, talks, exhibitions and trips, and aims to link up with contemporary art practice in Manchester and across the North West.

You could also join Arts Emergency, which aims to encourage the production of a new generation of thinkers by highlighting the reversal of decades of social and educational access to arts and humanities, or the Whitworth Young Contemporaries Student Society, which brings together students who have an interest in the arts, culture and creativity to make the Whitworth part of students' academic, cultural and social life.

Teaching takes place in a variety of formats, including lectures, small seminar groups, workshops, gallery visits, and one-to-one tutorials. Our aim throughout is to support your interests and to help you to improve your skills and become confident independent learners.

Seminars are normally very interactive they are an opportunity for you to discuss readings and ideas in a supportive environment and to build your skills and confidence. Some course units feature group projects culminating in online content development or a physical exhibition/display.

Your learning will be supported by material on our virtual learning environment, Blackboard, including access to core texts and recorded lectures.

Where possible our courses include fieldwork visits to galleries or special exhibitions throughout the UK. This means regular classes in Manchester at places like HOME, the City Art Gallery and the University's own Whitworth Art Gallery.

We offer several travel bursaries through the Lady Chorley Fund to assist final-year students with their dissertation research.

You will be assessed in various ways, including:

• written and oral examinations;
• coursework essays;
• research reports;
• practical tests;
• learning logs;
• web contributions;
• seminar presentations and participation.

Many course units are assessed through a mixture of techniques.

In your final year, you can write a dissertation.

Written feedback is provided in the form of essay and exam cover sheets and, in the case of orally delivered seminar papers, a verbal report from the tutor. We provide feedback on both the content of your writing and the construction and clarity of the argument posed.

As a student here you'll gain both academic writing skills and insight into the development of arts-specific composition, such as catalogue entries, gallery interpretation, exhibition reviews and journalistic articles.

Course tutors are available without appointment in their office hours twice a week outside scheduled teaching hours, allowing you to gain advice and feedback on your work.

This course is perfect in its broad range of specialist tutors who focus on everything from the Middle Ages to contemporary art.

The trip abroad in the second year of the degree and the opportunity to apply for the Guggenheim internship in Venice were big draws for me.

Gemma Burns, History of Art BA

Studying History of Art in Manchester has been an amazing experience.

The University has a partnership with my university in China and when I heard about what the course offered, I just had to take part!

I have been exposed to various artists, works, stories and ideas. They have really changed my views of the world.

Now I understand art and artworks more.

They are full of fun and not that mysterious.

I found the lecturers to be super approachable, it's made studying at the University a superb experience.

Anran Zhao, History of Art BA

The rich cultural heritage and attractions of Manchester and the North-West are within easy reach.

The Manchester Museum and the Whitworth Art Gallery offer unique access to the environment of the working museum and art gallery, as well as to important works of art.

The Whitworth is a major resource, and its outstanding collections of paintings, prints, textiles and wallpapers are used extensively in our teaching.

You can also explore original art in the city's famous galleries, such as the Lowry, Manchester Art Gallery and the Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art.

The main library provision is the University Library, one of the UK's top university libraries with arguably the best access to electronic resources of any library in Europe. This is one of the largest academic libraries in Britain and houses a Special Collections Department (the John Rylands Library) on Deansgate which contains an internationally important and diverse collection of manuscripts, illustrated books and other material relevant to Art History.

Art History students also enjoy a discipline-specific library in the same building as our department providing a pleasant and quiet working environment for students.

Learn more on the Facilities page.

This joint honours programme equips you with intellectual and practical skills applicable to many spheres of employment.

We live in an image-saturated world where understanding the power of images and having the skills to interpret and analyse them can lead to a satisfying career in a variety of industries.

Studying Art History at Manchester will provide you with the chance to gain practical experience, and students are able to gain placements across Manchester, including at the Whitworth, the University's art gallery, and further afield.

Our surveys of recent graduates have revealed that our students also pursue a variety of careers in such fields as law, banking, fashion, advertising, accountancy, business management, commerce, new media, computing and archive studies.

Recent graduate career destinations include:

• Education Officer, De Morgan Collection;
• Royal Collections Exhibitions Curator;
• Archivist, Tate Liverpool;
• Art Officer, English Heritage

The creative economy accounts for 1 in 11 jobs across the UIK and employs 700,000 more people than the financial services industry (Creative Industries Federation).

The University of Manchester is the second most targeted university in the UK for top graduate employers (High Fliers Research, 2024).

Our award-winning careers service provides a wealth of tools, advice, development opportunities and industry links. You'll have access to dedicated, subject-specific support throughout your studies and for up to two years after graduation.

Our undergraduate courses are also designed to provide an easy transition into postgraduate study, if desired. We offer a wide range of specialist master's courses within the University and fast-tracked enrolment to high-achieving undergraduate students.

You can also take part in the University's Stellify programme alongside your degree, developing professional and leadership skills while contributing to local and global communities through volunteering.