





Major Requirements
Honors and Awards
Departmental and University Honors
Honors in Art History: Students with a 3.7 GPA in the major may complete and submit an honors thesis by enrolling in HA H195 (4 units, graded). A student whose thesis receives a grade of A- or better will receive Departmental Honors (Honors, High Honors, or Highest Honors). The Honors Thesis is a two-semester project conducted under faculty supervision, as follows: a seminar, directed research, or independent study course in the first semester, followed by HA H195 in the second. For specific details regarding the Honors Program, students should speak with a faculty undergraduate advisor and read the Guidelines for the Preparation of Theses below.
University Honors are awarded upon the recommendation of the Department to students on the basis of overall GPA as follows: Honors, High Honors and Highest Honors. Requisite GPAs for University Honors change each year.
The Maybelle M. Toombs Awards recognize the potential and achievement of students based upon their record in the major up to the beginning of the senior year. By that time, the students must have completed at least two semesters of coursework as a History of Art major at Berkeley. Criteria include grade point average in the major; grasp of the research techniques and methods of the discipline; and a curriculum notable for its breadth and depth.
Guidelines for the Preparation of Theses
The two semesters are usually consecutive, although they may precede and follow the Summer Session.
Advance planning is essential. Students considering the Honors Program should consult with an Undergraduate Advisor as soon as possible and begin to plan for the program by the mid point of their junior year; transfer students should begin to plan by the mid point of their second semester at Berkeley. Students are encouraged to apply for undergraduate research opportunities, including the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (http://surf.berkeley.edu) and the Institute of International Studies’ Undergraduate Merit Scholarship (http://iis.berkeley.edu/funding-opportunities/undergraduate-merit-scholarship), for example.
Students who complete the program will graduate with Honors, High Honors, or Highest Honors in the Major, depending upon the grade assigned to their thesis: A-, A, or A+. For more information, please review the Guidelines for the Preparation of Theses below.