students
Art and Art History
 

Art History    .    Design  .    Studio Art    .    Visual Art Studies + Art Education

Prospective Freshmen Applicant Information

Admission and Program Information Sessions and Portfolio Review Events

Instructions for Online Undergraduate Portfolio Submission

 

You should apply to The University of Texas at Austin as a Freshman if you:

  • Have or will soon graduate from high school or receive a GED and
  • Have not enrolled in another college or university after graduating from high school or receiving a GED.

Freshman applicants who are U.S. Citizens or Permanent Residenst should visit the comprehensive Be A Longhorn Freshmen web portal for all things related to becoming a Freshman at the University of Texas at Austin: Admissions, Financial Aid, Housing, Tuition and more. If you do not have internet access, you can contact the Freshman Admissions Center at 512/475-7440 to request an admission packet. The Freshmen application deadline for Fall 2010 is DECEMBER 15, 2009.

Applicants who do not hold U.S. Citizenship or Permanent Resident status should visit the comprehensive Be A Longhorn International web portal for all things related to applying as an international student. If you do not have internet access, you should contact the Graduate and International Admissions Center at 512–475–7390 to request an international admission packet. International applicants must submit a TOEFL test score. The annual International application priority deadline is DECEBMBER 15, 2009.

The "Top 10% Percent Law" (officially Texas House Bill 588), which applies only to first-time college Texas-resident freshman applicants, guarantees that graduates from a Texas public high school who rank in the top ten percent of their senior class will be admitted to any state institution of higher learning. The law does not guarantee automatic admission to first-choice restricted majors. All majors in the Department of Art and Art History are restricted majors. Thus, even if you are in the top ten percent of your graduating high school class and have been granted automatic admission to The University, you will still need to be accepted for admission by this department. Not being in the top ten percent does not preclude admission to our department; we strongly encourage you to apply regardless of your high school rank.

Our department only enrolls new students into programs during Fall semesters. In order to have your application materials considered for admission to the Department of Art and Art History, you must select one of our admission codes on the application. Our department offers the following admissions codes:

You must submit the following to the UT Austin Office of Admissions by the application deadline of DECEMBER 15, 2009:

  1. Texas Common Application
  2. Application Fee
  3. Office of Admission Essay Requirement: Essay Topic B**
  4. Department of Art and Art History Essay Requirement: Essay Topic D***
  5. Official high school transcripts and dual-credit college transcripts
  6. Official test scores Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate scores (if applicable)
  7. Official test scores for ACT , SAT, and SAT Subject Tests (if applicable)
  8. Required Art Portfolio. Freshmen applicants applying to the B.F.A. Design, B.A. or B.F.A. Studio Art, and the B.F.A. Visual Art Studies admission codes must submit an art portfolio as part of the freshmen application review process. The art portfolio must be received by Slideroom by the DECEMBER 15, 2009 application deadline. Please do not send any art portfolio materials to the Office of Admissions or the Department of Art and Art History. Please refer to Instructions for Online Undergraduate Portfolio Submission.

**In addition to the two required essays, some applicants choose to submit a response to Essay C. Essay C is optional and cannot be submitted in place of a required essay. Students submitting Essay C do so in order to submit additional information to the university about special circumstances, such as socio-economic standing; educational goals; cultural background; employment, internships, etc.; race or ethnicity; personal experiences and hardships; personal responsibilities; and any additional information submitted by the applicant. Please see on-line application for additional information.

***Essay Topic D for Art History, Studio Art, Visual Art Studies, and Predesign Applicants: “Personal interaction with objects, images and spaces can be so powerful as to change the way one thinks about particular issues or topics. For your intended area of study (architecture, art history, design, studio art, visual art studies/art education), describe an experience where instruction in that area or your personal interaction with an object, image or space effected this type of change in your thinking. What did you do to act upon your new thinking and what have you done to prepare yourself for further study in this area?”

Admission to our department is based upon rankings, GPA, applicable test scores, academic performance in art-related Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, high school, and dual-college credit coursework (if any); quality of writing sample(s) on required essay(s); and if applying to B.F.A. Design, B.A. or B.F.A. Studio Art, and the B.F.A. Visual Art Studies, quality of required art portfolio.

Meeting minimum academic requirements and submitting all application materials by the deadline does not guarantee eligibility or acceptance as an external freshmen student. Application review and admission to all degree programs is competitive and selective.

Additional information on admissions, programs, and curriculum is included in this downloadable PDF document:
Undergraduate Admissions and Program Guide (pdf).

Contacts

Prospective freshmen applicants should arrange an appointment in advance of visiting the department. Please see Visiting the Department for detailed information.

 

Shane Sullivan, Senior Program Coordinator
Undergraduate Programs, Recruitment and Admissions

comebackshane@mail.utexas.edu (Please allow 24 to 48 hour response time.)
512-475-8757
512-232-1999 FAX
ART 3.340

You may also contact the Undergraduate Office by writing to the following address:

Undergraduate Office
Department of Art and Art History
The University of Texas at Austin
1 University Station D1300
Austin, TX 78712-0337

Information Request Form

Self-Guided Tour Map (pdf)