skip to content
Visual Studies Courses
University of california, Irvine

< Return to Courses

Course Work

Since this is a small Ph.D. program, the academic plans of students can be tailored to address their individual backgrounds and to enhance their specific research interests. In consultation with the Director of Visual Studies and/or their principal advisor(s), students will develop their programs of study, taking classes of the following types:

Graduate Courses with Visual Studies Numbers:

  • The program is built on the foundation of a three-quarter Core Series. We require all students to take the complete Core, for two purposes. First, the courses provide access to a set of readings and ideas that the faculty regards as crucial for the formation and practice of the discipline of Visual Studies. Second, we would hope that the graduate students, by working closely together in a number of classes over an extended period of time, will develop the sort of collegial relationships that will last over a lifetime of scholarship. The Core consists of:
    • VS291, Theories of Vision and Visuality. This introductory seminar will survey the key theoretical texts that have, over the past several decades, enabled the emergence of the hybrid discipline of Visual Studies. Generally, this course will be offered every other year, alternating with VS292. It cannot be repeated for credit.
    • VS292, Visual Studies and Historiography. This course will examine the history of both Art History and Film Studies up to about 1980, looking at the ways in which the visual has been constructed over time and placing these constructions in their institutional and cultural contexts. Generally, this course will be offered every other year, alternating with VS291. It cannot be repeated for credit.
    • VS293A, Visual Studies Practicum. This seminar is designed to apply theoretical and methodological insights (explored in VS291, VS292) to a research paper on a specific topic in Visual Studies. VS291 or VS292 is a prerequisite for this course.
  • VS295, Graduate Seminar in Visual Studies. This is the “bread and butter” course number for elective graduate seminars offered by the program. Students can expect to enroll under the number repeatedly during their period of class work, studying with a number of different professors.
  • VS296, Directed Reading. A student can propose to a specific professor a certain subject of study, either an in-depth research topic, or a theme for reading through a given body of scholarly literature. The student will meet with the professor regularly through the quarter and submit some paper or similar document at the end of the term. Students should keep in mind that they must take the lead when embarking on a Directed Reading; rather than the professor presenting material to the student, the student should plan to present material to the professor for his/her comment and evaluation. The value of such Directed Readings corresponds directly to the initiative and responsibility taken by the student in organizing them.
    Students entering with a B.A. may also enroll in VS296 during the fall or winter quarter of their second year for the sake of revising a previously written paper up to the length and quality expected for a Master’s qualifying paper (see below).

Courses Outside the Program in Visual Studies:

  • Graduate Courses offered by UCI certificate programs, such as the Critical Theory Emphasis (CTE), Women’s Studies, and Asian-American Studies. Students interested in these certificate programs should learn of their requirements, either from the offices on campus that administer them or from the Director of Visual Studies.
  • Graduate Courses in other departments. All students are strongly encouraged to explore the graduate offerings of other departments at UC Irvine, where they can benefit from the exceptional faculties in a number of departments across campus.
  • Graduate Courses at other universities. The program can arrange for its students to earn credit by taking graduate courses offered at other campuses of the University of California (and, of course, for graduate students from other campuses to earn credit for our seminars). In addition to facilitating students’ programs of study, the program hopes thereby to encourage a high level of intellectual exchange among the students and faculty of the various UC campuses.
  • Note that, save in exceptional circumstances and only with the approval of both the instructor and the Director of Visual Studies, graduate students will not be allowed to take undergraduate seminars. In those rare cases where an exception is warranted, the graduate student will normally enroll in a Directed Reading (VS296) with the instructor, and treat participation in the undergraduate seminar as just one part of a larger program of study developed by the instructor and student around the specific topic of the course.

Beyond the Core Series, students admitted with a B.A. will be required to complete an additional 11 courses for a total of 14 courses. Out of this total, typically 10-12 courses (including the Core Series) are to be within the Program in Visual Studies, and 2-4 courses are to be from outside the discipline of Visual Studies.

Students admitted with an M.A. or M.F.A. in Film Studies, Art History, or (with the approval of the graduate committee) in a related discipline, must complete an additional 5 courses beyond the required Core Series, for a total of 8 courses. While students may accrue units both for University Teaching (AH399 or FS399) and Reading for the Qualifying Examination (VS298), these units do not count toward the required number of courses.

Faculty members submit a brief written evaluation of each graduate student they have taught to the student and Graduate Advisor at the conclusion of each quarter. These evaluations will be part of the student’s ongoing file.

At least once a quarter, all students should meet with the Director of Visual Studies or their principal advisor(s) to ascertain that they are making reasonable progress in satisfying these requirements and, more generally, to review their progress through the program. All students must also satisfy certain minimal residency requirements; these should be fulfilled as a matter of course as students pursue their normal programs of study.