Undergraduate Diploma in the History of Art (from 2027)

Course details

Discover the secrets behind the beauty of art.

Have you ever wanted to study a particular period of the History of Art in more depth? Or have you ever wondered why the nude in Western art became and continues to be an important feature? Discover more about how the landscape paintings of the nineteenth century are still important today in consideration of the environment.

This flexible part-time course will allow you to acquire in-depth knowledge of specific artistic movements, artists, and themes by choosing particular period pathways for in-person teaching in Oxford, while the online units cover important themes, from the Body to Landscape.  

Taught through a combination of online digital learning and in-person teaching, this course supports a student-focused and transformative learning environment. 

Please note:

This page is intended as an overview of the new course, and some information listed may be subject to change before the first application deadline. To read our FAQs about the course changes, please see here. You can find out more about our current Diploma course here.

Information for Certificate students starting in 2024: 

Please note that if you have joined the Certificate in the History of Art programme starting in 2024, there may be a break before you can begin this Diploma course, which starts in September 2027. 

Quick links

• Who is the course for?

• What will you gain?
• How you will study
• The course in detail – course structure and assessment
• Teaching staff and contact information
• Application details – how to apply, fees, award and credit transfer

• English language requirements

Who is this course for?

Do you have a passion for art history and ideas? Do you have an openness towards studying a range of historical art forms and grappling with critical debates about meaning? This course is for anyone with a high degree of motivation, is interested in the critical analysis of art, and are keen to discuss visual experience in an analytical way. 

Taught at second-year undergraduate level (FHEQ Level 5), this course is the next step if you have either completed, or are due to complete, our Certificate in the History of Art, our Certificate of Higher Education (having completed some History of Art courses), or other similar courses at first-year undergraduate level (FHEQ Level 4). 

You must have the necessary language skills (see below for English language requirements); a determination to succeed; and sufficient time available to devote to studying.

What will you gain?

• Get up to speed with the latest debates and methods to interpret works of art, particularly in the areas of politics, society, gender and identity, material culture and decolonising practices.  

How you will study

In-person elements

Students will meet in person twice per term, on specific dates on Fridays. In total, there will be 12 hours of in-person teaching, per term, plus select Saturdays (either in Oxford or London). The in-person elements of the course (two Fridays per term) will be held at Rewley House, 1 Wellington Square, Oxford, OX1 2JA.

Two Saturdays per year will be dedicated to Oxford/London trips and presentations.

Online elements

There are then eight online units per term, along with online tutorials.

The Online asynchronous (self-paced) instruction will include reading materials (materials in the Virtual Learning Environment and set texts from journal articles, textbooks, exhibition catalogues, and books), videos, forum activities, and online exercises, as well as independent study such as essay preparation and research. Some online units will take the form of case studies, allowing students to study in-depth around a particular topic, while others will offer theoretical or methodological approaches that can be employed across periods and regions. 

Students will be assigned a personal tutor for the year. They will have five hours of online synchronous tutorials for the entire year (three hours of small group tutorials – one hour per term, and two hours of one-to-one with the tutor). This includes up to 90 minutes for their research project supervision, spread out over the year plus extra time for one-to-ones throughout the year. Small tutor group tutorials will address essay writing, interpreting feedback, follow-up on online learning units, student presentations or student-led discussion.

You will need to spend about 10-12 hours in home study per week in term time.

The course in detail

Course structure

Year 1

Students will be introduced to different approaches to the History of Art through key themes (online units) and in the first year they will have the chance to study particular periods in depth by choosing a pathway (medieval or modern) for Friday residences. There are six Friday residences (two per term), composed of three two-hour teaching sessions. 

Year 2

The second year has six Friday residences (two per term), composed of three two-hour teaching sessions. The Friday residences have two parallel sessions and students choose either a Renaissance/Early Modern or Contemporary pathway. 

Online units:

1. The first term (Michaelmas) covers Landscape;
2. The second term (Hilary) covers Contact Zones: Global Cities;
3. The final term (Trinity) covers History of Art Now: Current Debates.

Provisional options for Friday residences: 

• Renaissance/Early Modern: Gifts and Diplomatic Exchange; Italian and Ottoman Encounters; Collecting in the Courts; Female Artists and Creativity; Caravaggio and the Caravaggisti; The Elizabethan Country House. 
• Contemporary: Spectacle and Spectator; Reproducibility: Art in the Age of Mass Media; Film: Art; Politics and the Moving Image; Memory and Trauma; Art and Diaspora; Art and Protest.

Assessment

Most assessments will take the form of written work, but some will follow innovative methods in Art History such as designing a virtual exhibition, but which can be assessed through a presentation. 

Year 1

Year 2 

IT requirements

To study at this level you are expected to have some IT skills, access to a computer and the internet. Your course requires you to engage with the Virtual Learning Environment for course materials and uses the Department’s online assignment submission system. Students need to have regular access to a computer and the internet, and some level of experience and skill including the use of Microsoft Word or similar word-processing package, email and internet browser such as Firefox or Google Chrome.

The computer you use should meet our recommended minimum computer specification.

Teaching staff

The Course Director is Dr Sean Willcock.

Alongside Dr Willcock, the teaching panel includes a number of experienced tutors – not only in their subject but in teaching adult students. They understand the learning needs of students returning to education and will able to advise you on subject-based study skills throughout the course.

 The Department also runs a programme of Study Skills workshops to help you develop and improve the skills needed for effective study. For full details of the Study Skills programme, please contact studyskills@conted.ox.ac.uk 

For advice on educational opportunities, credit transfer, special needs facilities and sources of funding, please contact Student Support on +44 (0)1865 280355 or at studentsupport@conted.ox.ac.uk

Contact information

If you would like an informal discussion on academic matters before applying you may contact the Course Director, Dr Sean Willcock: sean.willcock@conted.ox.ac.uk

Applications and admissions: +44 (0)1865 270312 undergraduate@conted.ox.ac.uk

For general guidance and advice, credit transfer, special needs provision and sources of funding: +44 (0)1865 280355 student.support@conted.ox.ac.uk

For information about Study Skills courses: +44 (0)1865 280892 studyskills@conted.ox.ac.uk

How to apply

Please click on the ‘Apply’ button which will automatically notify us that you want a link to the online application form. We will email you that link together with a code to waive the application fee, and guidance on completing and submitting your application.

All candidates need to upload the following documents as part of their application:

• a written statement stating why they wish to undertake the course, and including (if relevant) an outline of previous experience of the subject
• contact details for one referee
• proof of English language ability if a non-native English speaker. Further information on English language requirements can be found here. Please note that candidates are required to have the higher-level score.

Continuing Education Certificate in the History of Art students who wish to progress to the Diploma should submit their completed application with a statement of reasons for wanting to apply to the course. No reference is necessary.

Other applicants need to provide contact details for one referee. If possible, your referee should be someone who can comment on your academic ability and background, but where this is not appropriate, please choose a referee who can vouch for your motivation, commitment and potential. A reference from a family member is not acceptable.

If you are a Continuing Education Certificate in the History of Art student, a place on the Diploma will be reserved for you if your application form is received by the first deadline and if there are enough places available. If there are more Continuing Education Certificate in the History of Art students than places available, a selective system will operate. 

Admissions decisions will be based on an assessment of knowledge, relevant experience, academic ability, potential and suitability for a course of study. We welcome applicants without traditional qualifications, including those with relevant career or life skills.

Selection criteria

Even if a course has no specific academic entry requirements then: (a) assessment of an applicant’s academic ability and suitability for the course of study will still take place and (b) since applications for many courses often significantly exceed places available, each application will be judged against the gathered field of applicants for each course each year.

The University is committed to promoting diversity, equality, inclusion, and widening access, including during the admissions process. We fully endorse the Equality Policy and our admissions procedures are kept under regular review to ensure compliance with this policy.

Short-listed applicants will be invited for interview.

The final decision on admission to the course rests with the Department.

Award and credit transfer

An Undergraduate Diploma will be awarded on completion of the course. You will be invited to receive your Diploma at the annual Awards Ceremony of the Department for Continuing Education, held at Oxford’s Sheldonian Theatre.

Students who successfully complete this two-year course will be awarded an Oxford University Undergraduate Diploma in the History of Art. The Diploma carries a Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme (CATS) rating of 120 points at FHEQ Level 5. Outstanding performance will qualify for a Distinction. These credit points are widely recognised in terms of credit for transfer to other higher education institutions, including the Open University and modular universities such as Oxford Brookes University. 

Opportunities vary for the transfer of credit, so students who are considering taking this course in order to transfer credit are advised to discuss the possibilities with the Course Administrator on undergraduate@conted.ox.ac.uk or student.support@conted.ox.ac.uk. 

Learn more about the Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme (CATS points).

Fees

The course fees will be published once applications open. Please be aware that fees will usually increase annually. For a price guide, please see the previous year's fees here.

Information for applicants from the EU, EEA and Switzerland

On 11 May 2021 the UK Council for International Student Affairs published new regulations and guidance to be used in assessing the fee status of students commencing courses in August 2021 and later. We will be using this guidance to carry out fee status assessments for students commencing courses in 2021/22 and later, including students from the EU, EEA and Switzerland. 

If you are an EU national and do not live in the UK then you are likely to be charged Overseas fees. Students with settled and pre-settled status in the UK and some other categories of students who work in the UK can qualify for Home fee status as long as they meet the residence criteria.

Students from outside the UK/Republic of Ireland

If you are from outside the UK/Republic of Ireland, you will be classed either as an ‘Overseas’ or 'Islands' student.

Information on financial support can be found on our website here.

Overseas students

This course is not suitable for overseas students who do not already live in the UK before the course begins. For information, refer to www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration.

English language requirements

Please check the information on the specific English language requirements for this course. Applicants are required to have the higher-level scores.

Pathways

The Department for Continuing Education offers day and weekend courses, weekly learning programmes and summer schools in the History of Art.

At postgraduate level we offer the Postgraduate Certificate in Architectural History, the MSt in the History of Design, the MSt in Literature and Arts, the DPhil in Architectural History and the DPhil in Literature and Arts.

If you are planning on embarking on a new career as a result of your studies, or hope to progress in your current field, you can access help and advice through the University Careers Service.

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