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Art History & Management
What you'll do in college
No paint on your clothes, just a lot of highlighters. You will read dense, theoretical texts about postmodernism, write 30-page theses on the socio-political impact of a single brushstroke, and intern at local galleries (usually for free).
You are the academic backbone of the art world.
What you'll do after college
You are the gatekeepers. Grads become museum curators, gallery directors, auction house appraisers, critics, and arts administrators. It's a prestige-heavy, networking-reliant field.
Many eventually pivot to law school (to become IP/art lawyers) or pursue a Ph.D. to become tenured professors or head curators at major museums.
Famous graduates
- Thelma Golden — Director and Chief Curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem; B.A. from Smith College
- Jerry Saltz — Pulitzer-winning art critic; studied at School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC)
- Peggy Guggenheim — Legendary art collector and bohemian; informally educated/self-taught
Selectivity vs. earnings
By acceptance rate
Acceptance rate · bar = degree-weighted earnings
By SAT median
Combined SAT composite median (submitters + non-submitters) · bar = degree-weighted earnings
Earnings by acceptance rate and institution category
Each dot = a college · y = degree-weighted earnings
Majors in this category
| Major | Colleges | Degrees ▼ | Male/Female | Intl | Earnings | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Art History & Management | 434 | 2,831 | 16% / 84% | 8% | $50,256 | 92% |
| Art History | 312 | 1,620 | 13% / 87% | 6% | $45,904 | 91% |
| Arts Management | 37 | 233 | 25% / 75% | 3% | $47,743 | 96% |
| Strategic Design and Management | 1 | 227 | 15% / 85% | 41% | $84,485 | 84% |
| Art History, Criticism and Conservation | 27 | 138 | 7% / 93% | 3% | $47,395 | 92% |
| Fine and Studio Arts Management | 10 | 107 | 24% / 76% | 6% | $49,122 | 98% |
| Arts, Entertainment, and Media Management | 15 | 106 | 33% / 67% | 4% | $51,551 | 96% |
| History of Art | 8 | 78 | 14% / 86% | 6% | $55,284 | 92% |
| History of Art and Architecture | 4 | 66 | 20% / 80% | 5% | $58,464 | 91% |
| Art History and Criticism | 24 | 36 | 14% / 86% | 6% | $43,126 | 90% |
| Art History and Archaeology | 2 | 36 | 22% / 78% | 19% | $49,070 | 93% |
| History of Art and Visual Culture | 1 | 34 | 21% / 79% | 0% | $42,063 | 89% |
| Arts Management and Arts Entrepreneurship | 1 | 25 | 24% / 76% | 0% | $55,604 | 89% |
| History of Art & Architecture | 1 | 21 | 5% / 95% | 29% | $52,435 | 84% |
| Arts and Entertainment Management | 2 | 20 | 65% / 35% | 15% | $45,110 | 91% |
| Arts Administration | 7 | 18 | 11% / 89% | 6% | $43,206 | 96% |
| Museum Studies | 8 | 15 | 13% / 87% | 7% | $49,656 | |
| Global Arts Studies | 1 | 13 | 15% / 85% | 0% | $44,902 | |
| History of Art and Design | 1 | 12 | 8% / 92% | 17% | $45,948 | 93% |
| Art and Archaeology | 1 | 11 | 18% / 82% | 9% | $61,458 | |
| Business of Art and Design | 1 | 4 | 0% / 100% | 25% | $45,479 | |
| Art Theory and Practice | 1 | 3 | 0% / 100% | 33% | $50,629 | |
| Arts Leadership | 1 | 3 | 0% / 100% | 0% | $43,846 | 94% |
| Critical and Visual Studies | 1 | 3 | 33% / 67% | 33% | $46,534 | |
| Fine Arts Management | 4 | 2 | 50% / 50% | 0% | $46,970 | 98% |
| Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art | 2 | 0 | $41,616 | |||
| Art History, Theory and Criticism | 1 | 0 | $45,773 | 88% | ||
| Arts and Entertainment Industries Management | 1 | 0 | $49,667 |