College of Fine Arts and Communication

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General Information

The College of Fine Arts and Communication at the University of Missouri-St. Louis includes the Departments of Art and Art History, Communication, Music, and Theatre Dance and Media Studies. The faculty and alumni of this college have distinguished themselves as scholars, visual artists, teachers, and performers. Students of the college pursue their activities in a variety of campus locations, including the Fine Arts Building, Lucas Hall, the Music Building and the General Services Building. The Touhill Performing Arts Center, affords two world-class venues for performances by individual university students and faculty, campus ensembles, and visiting artists. In addition, Gallery 210, Gallery FAB, and Gallery VISIO in the Millennium Student Center offer space for the display of student and faculty artwork, as well as visiting exhibitions.

The College of Fine Arts and Communication is distinguished by its collaboration with the community. Six endowed professorships link the University to the Saint Louis Symphony, the Saint Louis Art Museum, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, the Laumeier Sculpture Park, and other local cultural institutions. The Des Lee Fine Arts Education Collaborative connects the University and a variety of partner cultural institutions to local school districts.

The College of Fine Arts and Communication consists of some 50 full-time faculty members in the following departments, each offering work in specific undergraduate degree programs: art and art history, communication, music, and theatre dance and media studies.

Graduate study degree programs, administered through the Graduate School, are also offered in the communication and music departments.

Requirements for Undergraduate Study

In addition to the university general education requirements, all majors in the College of Fine Arts and Communication must meet the following requirements:

Requirements of their chosen baccalaureate degree (i.e., B.A., B.F.A., B.M., etc) in accordance with the policies of the College of Fine Arts and Communication. Requirements of the department for their selected major or interdisciplinary program.

Cultural Diversity Requirement
To expand cultural awareness, students in some academic units may be required to complete a course that emphasizes Asian, African, Middle Eastern, Latin American, Pacific aboriginal, Native American, or a comparable culture. Courses that satisfy this requirement involve substantial material independent of the cultures' interactions with European cultures. If a course focuses on one facet of a culture, it must treat the topic within the context of the culture as a whole. These courses are also coded with the initials [CD] for Cultural Diversity A list of courses which fulfill the Cultural Diversity requirement may be found elsewhere in this bulletin.

Academic Policies

Grade Requirements
To graduate, all majors in the college must satisfy one of the following grade point options:

Residency Requirements

Transfer students must complete at least 30 of the last 36 hours of their degree program in residence at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

Unless otherwise specified, a transfer student must complete 12 hours of graded work at UMSL at the 2000 level or above within the minimum number of hours required for each major.

Unless otherwise specified, a transfer student must complete at least six hours of graded work at UMSL at the 2000 level or above within the minimum number of hours required for each minor. Students should consult the minor department for specific residency and grade requirements.

Specific Baccalaureate Degree Requirements

Course Requirements
After fulfilling the general education and specific major degree requirements, students are to take the remaining hours required to complete the bachelor’s degree from courses from one or more of the following areas at UMSL or university-quality equivalents at other institutions: anthropology/archaeology, art (appreciation, history, studio), astronomy, biology, chemistry, communication, criminology and criminal justice, economics, English, foreign languages/literatures, geology, history, mathematics/computer science, music (appreciation, history, performance), philosophy, physics, political science, psychology, social work, sociology, business, education, engineering, or interdisciplinary. Other areas or courses not listed require approval by the chair of the student’s department.

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)
All B.A. degree candidates must successfully complete a curriculum that includes a departmental major or an approved interdisciplinary field. A major must include at least 30 credit hours but no more than 45 hours. The college offers the B.A. degree in art history, communication, music and theatre and dance.

Foreign Language Requirement
Candidates for the B.A. degree are required to complete 13 credit hours or the equivalent in proficiency in one foreign language. Foreign language guidelines are as follows:

Students entering with no high school language units must enroll in Language 1001 or may enroll in the 2115 series. Students with the degree of proficiency equivalent to 13 hours of college-level work may obtain exemption by passing the department’s placement exam. The specific dates for the exam are announced in the Schedule of Courses or may be obtained from the admissions office or the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures. Native speakers of language other than English may meet the foreign language requirement by presenting a transcript from a university or secondary school of their native country to the Department of foreign languages and literature. The department will certify native speakers of those languages that are taught at the university. Those who are proficient in other languages must submit certification of competence to the college. Language 2115 a, b, and c (Intensive) will satisfy the foreign language requirement. 2115 and co-requisites must be completed with a grade of C-or better, to satisfy the foreign language requirement. Students may not repeat, for credit an elementary course if they have already completed a higher-level course for which the elementary course, or its equivalent, is a prerequisite.

Applied Music and Studio Art
Students not majoring in music may count no more than eight hours in music-performing organizations (Music 1400, 1410, 1500, 1520, etc.) Students in the college majoring in music may count any number of hours of applied music (private lessons). Students not majoring in studio art may count any studio art course toward any degree in the college. This also includes transferred credit.

Bachelor of Music (B.M.)
The requirements are the same as for the B.A. degree with the addition of music education courses for music majors seeking state teacher certification. Although foreign language proficiency is not required, foreign language study is required for applied voice students.

Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
All majors must complete a minimum of 51 hours in Media Studies courses and at least 24 of these hours must be taken at UMSL. A minimum of 39 credit hours in Media Studies and a minimum of 12 credit hours in Theatre and Dance, totaling 51 credit hours, are required. At least 18 hours of coursework must be taken at the 2000 level or above at UMSL. There is no foreign language requirement, but foreign language proficiency is recommended.

Certificate Programs
An undergraduate certificate program is offered in Photographic Studies and Arts Management. The certificate in Non-Profit Arts Organization Management & Leadership is currently inactive.

Evening Program
All the departments of the College of Fine Arts and Communication offer coursework in the evening or in other non-traditional modes (i.e. on-line and/or video). The Department of Communication offers sufficient coursework to complete its degree program in the evening. Consult the website of the department in which you are interested for details on degree requirements and 3-year schedule of planned course offerings.

Department Honors
Majors in the following department may pursue departmental honors.

Minors
A number of minors are available at UMSL. Some are offered by individual departments, while others, such as Classical Studies and Africana Studies, are interdisciplinary in nature and involve a number of departments. The requirements for the various minors are listed the undergraduate certificates or interdisciplinary sections of this Bulletin.