The MA is designed to be accomplished within two years of full-time study; students are strongly encouraged to finish by the end of the sixth quarter of study. Students spend the first year in coursework, taking seminars and lecture courses to become acquainted with a broad range of art historical methods and approaches. MA students are also encouraged to pursue internships and research opportunities at local museums and art organizations, for which they may earn a limited number of course units. In the second year, each student works closely with a faculty advisor to prepare an MA thesis of approximately 60-80 pages.

The thesis allows the student to integrate art historical and theoretical/methodological studies into a sustained independent research project. While students work primarily with faculty in the History of Art, they may also take courses and work with faculty in related disciplines such as American Studies, Anthropology, Comparative Literature, History, and Media and Cultural Studies, depending on the focus of their research.