Upon completion of this three-year program, the student will be well versed in debates that define art and visual culture from modernism to the present, capable of conceiving new models of contemporary exhibition and criticism, and trained to execute professional, innovative projects in the field.  The University Art Galleries will be prominently featured in the curriculum, serving as laboratories for cultural research conducted by the Critical and Curatorial students and faculty.

The concentration's curriculum is interdisciplinary, taught and administered by a core faculty selected from Studio Art and the Visual Studies PhD program in the School of the Humanities.  The collaboration between Studio Art and Visual Studies is designed to prepare graduates for careers in such visual art venues as museums, art galleries, publications, and archives.  The Critical and Curatorial curriculum and resulting degree combine aspects of MA and MFA training, reflecting the Concentration's location in the School of the Arts and its partnership with the School of Humanities.

Undergraduates must have a BA or a BFA from an accredited college/university in the humanities or fine arts.  Overall GPA should be 3.0, with a minimum of three undergraduate art history and/or art theory courses completed.  Should the applicant not have the art history requirement upon admission, he/she must take these courses on route to the MFA.