Graduate Diploma in the History of Art

Courtauld Institute of Art, University of London

The Graduate Diploma is a concentrated form of the undergraduate degree and gives graduates of other disciplines the opportunity to apply their existing skills to the study of Art History.

The programme is supported by a personal tutor and by study sessions and workshops on topics such as reading art historical texts and essay writing. Students have access to all that The Courtauld has to offer, including world-class events run by the Research Forum, careers events and one-to-one sessions with professional writers. In addition to the compulsory elements of the programme, you are welcome to attend lectures from other programmes, including other optional modules which range across art historical periods and approaches to the discipline.

The Diploma is particularly suitable for people coming back into higher education after a period away, or those who want to gain a broad overview of the possibilities of Art History before moving on to more specialised study. It provides a rigorous and solid foundation for further postgraduate work, and many graduates from the programme continue to an MA at The Courtauld or elsewhere. Others go on to careers in the art world, such as art education or publishing, or combine skills and knowledge from a previous career with Art History to take an entirely new path.

Careers and Employability

The Graduate Diploma programme is designed to enable you to build on previous careers or study, or to change career or direction. It equips students with highly transferable skills, relevant to a wide range of employment opportunities, or further academic study. Our graduates are not only equipped with a detailed knowledge and understanding of the History of Art, but also learn how to:

• Analyse visual imagery and articulate sophisticated arguments in formal writing and in oral presentations.


• Read critically and economically.


• Assimilate complex material.


• Formulate and express a broad range of different ideas.


• Present research to a varied audience.


• Develop independent research skills.


• Experience collaborative work in groups.