Objectives and competences

This degree is aimed at holders of pre-EHEA undergraduate degrees in History of Art or related fields who want to gain a deeper understanding of the research mechanisms needed to prepare a doctoral thesis or to apply their knowledge to art distribution and the art market. The master's degree in Advanced Studies in Art History is structured around two specializations:
  • The first addresses specific knowledge of historiography and the methodology required for the rigorous preparation of studies in art history.
  • The second focuses on the explanation and experience of activities involved in art collecting (museums, foundations, educational institutions and private patrons), the art market (trade fairs, galleries, antiquarian dealers and auctions) and in the distribution and dissemination of art (education, publishing, criticism and the media).
Each of the specializations requires students to complete a range of core, compulsory subjects as well as the optional subjects unique to the specialized pathway. In addition, all students prepare a final project that will give them the opportunity to seek admission to doctoral studies.

Basic information

TypeMaster's degree
Faculty or schoolFaculty of Geography and History
Branch of knowledge
  • History of art and artistic expression, and fine arts
  • Cultural industries: design, animation, cinematography and audiovisual production
  • History, archaeology, geography, philosophy and humanities
Mode of delivery
  • Face-to-face
Credits60
Number of places available30
Length of course1 academic year
Language(s) of instructionCatalan and Spanish
Approximate price per credit27.67 euros per credit (82 euros for students who are not EU nationals and do not currently reside in Spain). Fees for the academic year 2023-2024
CoordinationROSER PIñOL BASTIDAS
E-mailmasterart@ub.edu
Course detailsIndicators
Open pre-enrolmentYes
Open enrolmentNo
Lead to doctoral studiesYes
Admission for applicants not holding a degree qualificationNo
Bridging coursesNo
Specializations
  • Art in Society
  • Art in Time and Thought
  • Open Pathway

Objectives and competences

Objectives

  • Critically identify the diachronic and synchronic processes in different fields of art history, and the methodological options available for the scientific appreciation of art in different historical contexts, for the purpose of designing appropriate cognitive models.
  • Determine and explain the relationship between artistic thought (theoretical, critical and aesthetic) and the process of artistic production throughout history.
  • Understand the evolution of issues related to artistic heritage in its various manifestations (monuments, collections, museums, the market, curating and tourism) in order to compare and distinguish between qualitative historical changes.
  • Classify and evaluate techniques and strategies in publications or specialized art history sections or supplements, to provide an overview of the artistic process and its phases.
  • Appreciate the complexity of today's globalized and multicultural art world.
  • Identify new artistic genres and the symbiosis and overlaps between all the arts (fine arts, performing and visual arts, cinema and audiovisual) through critical analysis.

Competences

General competences:
Upon completion of the master's degree, students will be able to:
  • Apply self-critical skills and self-assessment to their individual and collective learning processes.
  • Assess the implications of team work and apply their knowledge to group projects and specialized professional practice.
  • Design and manage projects.
  • Make appropriate decisions at each stage of development of a project.
    identify strategies for analysis and synthesis in complex cognitive processes, such as those related to diversity and multiculturalism in the contemporary world.
  • Identify professionally proven tools and strategies that foster quality in scientific work and in basic and applied research.


Specific competences:
Successful students will also be able to:
  • Critically identify the diachronic and synchronic processes in different fields of art history, and the methodological options ​​available for the scientific appreciation of art in different historical contexts, for the purpose of designing appropriate cognitive models.
  • Determine and explain the relationship between artistic thought (theoretical, critical and aesthetic) and the process of artistic production throughout history.
  • Understand the evolution of issues related to artistic heritage in its various manifestations (monuments, collections, museums, the market, curating and tourism) in order to compare and distinguish between qualitative historical changes.
  • Classify and evaluate techniques and strategies in publications or specialized art history sections or supplements, to provide an overview of the artistic process and its phases.
  • Appreciate the complexity of today's globalized and multicultural art world.
  • Identify new artistic genres and the symbiosis and overlaps between all the arts (fine arts, performing and visual arts, cinema and audiovisual) through critical analysis.

Access and admission

Applicant profile and access requirements

Recommended applicant profile

This master's degree is open to students with a broad range of profiles, as the field of art history encompasses many professions of diverse natures. The course is particularly addressed to holders of a bachelor's degree or equivalent qualification in:
  • Art history.
  • Humanities: history, geography, fine arts, social anthropology, conservation, etc.
  • Architecture or design, specializing in museography.
    Social sciences and communication: audiovisual communication, journalism, sociology, etc.
  • Economic sciences, business sciences and tourism.
  • Biological and environmental sciences (biology, palaeography, mineralogy, etc.), relating to museum or heritage management.

Access requirements and conditions

General requirements
In accordance with Article 16 of Royal Decree 1393/2007, of 29 October, students wishing to be admitted to a university master's degree must hold one of the following qualifications:

  • Official Spanish university degree.

  • A degree issued by a higher education institution within the European Higher Education Area framework that authorizes the holder to access university master's degree courses in the country of issue.

  • A qualification issued by an institution outside the framework of the European Higher Education Area. In this case, applicants must request homologation of the degree to its equivalent official Spanish university qualification or obtain express approval from the University of Barcelona, which will conduct a study of equivalence to ensure that the degree is of a comparable level to an official Spanish university qualification and that it grants access to university master's degree study in the country of issue. Admission shall not, in any case, imply that prior qualifications have been recognized as equivalent to a Spanish master's degree and does not confer recognition for any purposes other than that of admission to the master's degree course.

Specific requirements
You may be invited for an interview at the discretion of the master's committee.

Pre-enrolment

Calendar

- First period: 16 February - 16 April 2024.
- Second period: 18 April - 20 June 2024.

Notes:

  • Pre-enrolment fee: A pre-enrolment fee of 30,21 euros is charged. Students who apply to more than one master's degree must pay the fee for each pre-enrolment request. Pre-enrolment requests cannot be processed until this fee has been paid.Fees will only be refunded if the master's degree in question is suspended.
  • Reserved places: A maximum of 5% of the new places of the master's degree are reserved for students who meet the general and specific access requirements and accredit the recognition of a degree of disability equal to or greater than 33%.

Required documentation

Selection criteria

  • Suitability of academic record: credit is given for previous studies in art history and related disciplines.
    • Bachelor's degree or equivalent qualification in art history.
      Maximum of 3 points.
    • Bachelor's degree or equivalent qualification in humanities (history, geography, fine arts, social anthropology, conservation, etc.) or architecture or design with a specialization in museography.
      Maximum of 2 points.
    • Bachelor's degree or equivalent qualification in social sciences or communications (audiovisual communication, journalism, sociology, etc.) or tourism.
      Maximum of 1 point
  • Weighted average grade for previous studies
    Maximum score: 4
  • Suitability of professional profile, on the basis of curriculum vitae and experience
    Maximum score: 2
  • Other criteria established by the Admissions Committee (grants, participation in projects, etc.)
    Maximum score: 1

Notification

In the event that the demand exceeds the number of places available, the Admissions Committee may select candidates without carrying out merit prioritization.
Successful candidates are placed on an admission list in order of preference. Those who are not admitted are placed on a waiting list and will be admitted automatically in case of withdrawals or the creation of new places.
In the event that the number of places exceeds the demand, the Admissions Committee may select candidates without carrying out merit prioritization. To date this has never been the case.

Enrolment

As a general rule, at the UB you will be required to enrol online. Remember that you can lose your place if you do not enrol on the day you have been assigned

Course curriculum

Subjects and course plans

Distribution of credits

Type ECTS
Compulsory 15
Optional 30
Compulsory placements 0
Compulsory final project 15
TOTAL 60

List of subjects

Subject Type Language Credits
Specialization: Art in Society
Aesthetic Thought and Art Valuation Optional 2nd semester 5
Art and Gender Optional 1st semester 5
Art Criticism Optional 2nd semester 5
Art i Societat Optional 1st semester 5
Art Market, Communication and Culture Industries Optional 1st semester 5
Art Museums, Centres and Foundations Optional 1st semester 5
Art, Multiculturalism and Globalization Optional 1st semester 5
Collecting, Documenting, Cataloging and Valuing Works of Art Optional 2nd semester 5
Exhibition Curating Optional 2nd semester 5
Final Project Compulsory 2nd semester 15
Historiography and Theory of Art Compulsory 1st semester 5
Image, Imagination and Thought Optional 2nd semester 5
Institutional or Company Placement Compulsory 2nd semester 5
Research Perspectives and Trends in Methodology Compulsory 1st semester 5
Theory and History of Cinema Optional 2nd semester 5
Veure i Creure. Usos i Abusos de les Imatges Religioses Optional 2nd semester 5
Specialization: Art in Time and Thought
Aesthetic Thought and Art Valuation Optional 2nd semester 5
Art and Gender Optional 1st semester 5
Art Criticism Optional 2nd semester 5
Art i Societat Optional 1st semester 5
Art Market, Communication and Culture Industries Optional 1st semester 5
Art Museums, Centres and Foundations Optional 1st semester 5
Art, Multiculturalism and Globalization Optional 1st semester 5
Collecting, Documenting, Cataloging and Valuing Works of Art Optional 2nd semester 5
Exhibition Curating Optional 2nd semester 5
Final Project Compulsory 2nd semester 15
Historiography and Theory of Art Compulsory 1st semester 5
Image, Imagination and Thought Optional 2nd semester 5
Institutional or Company Placement Compulsory 2nd semester 5
Research Perspectives and Trends in Methodology Compulsory 1st semester 5
Theory and History of Cinema Optional 2nd semester 5
Veure i Creure. Usos i Abusos de les Imatges Religioses Optional 2nd semester 5
Specialization: Open Pathway
Aesthetic Thought and Art Valuation Optional 2nd semester 5
Art and Gender Optional 1st semester 5
Art Criticism Optional 2nd semester 5
Art i Societat Optional 1st semester 5
Art Market, Communication and Culture Industries Optional 1st semester 5
Art Museums, Centres and Foundations Optional 1st semester 5
Art, Multiculturalism and Globalization Optional 1st semester 5
Collecting, Documenting, Cataloging and Valuing Works of Art Optional 2nd semester 5
Exhibition Curating Optional 2nd semester 5
Final Project Compulsory 2nd semester 15
Historiography and Theory of Art Compulsory 1st semester 5
Image, Imagination and Thought Optional 2nd semester 5
Institutional or Company Placement Compulsory 2nd semester 5
Research Perspectives and Trends in Methodology Compulsory 1st semester 5
Theory and History of Cinema Optional 2nd semester 5
Veure i Creure. Usos i Abusos de les Imatges Religioses Optional 2nd semester 5

Previous years

Placements

Placements in a company or another type of organization are an integral part of university studies, providing first-hand experience of working methodologies in students' chosen professional fields. They offer invaluable practical experience for the transition into work after graduation.



Placements are supervised by tutors and subject to assessment. They are therefore included in the academic record.  There is also an option to complete non-curricular placements of up to 750 hours, which can be extended to 900 hours. For both curricular and non-curricular placements, an educational cooperation agreement is signed between the UB and the company, institution or other organization at which the placement will be carried out.



Institutional information


Career opportunities

What can you work on ?

The knowledge acquired during this master's degree is increasingly called for in teaching and research, and has a number of professional applications in the field of social development.
The impact of the recent financial crisis has not prevented graduates of this programme from finding work. Some have created their own companies for cultural activities, others are involved in publishing, museums, archives, fairs, auction houses and art and antiques galleries. This dynamism is supported by the offer of internships and work placements (curricular and non-curricular) and the inclusion of subjects closely related to the distribution and commercialization of art.
Since the course was introduced, efforts have been made to build relationships with companies and institutions and establish areas for collaboration. Experts from the sector are regularly involved in the teaching of the course, and students are also invited to visit experienced professionals in their places of business. The programme typically receives numerous offers of collaboration and receives regular information on professional vacancies open to its students.

Access to the labour market

Data from the university system in Catalonia

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