Degree: Master of Arts (MA)
Field of Study: Art History and Museum Studies
Art History and Museum Studies (MA) Program Information

Degree: Juris Doctor (JD)
Juris Doctor (JD) Program Information

Program Overview

The School of Law at Case Western Reserve University prepares JD students to practice law in, among other areas, the fields of intellectual property and law and the arts. The MA in Art History and Museum Studies program, coordinated by the Department of Art History and Art and the Cleveland Museum of Art, is designed to provide students with a broad knowledge of the major art historical periods, of the historiography and critical methodologies of art history, and of museological practice and history, connoisseurship, conservation, and interpretation, through course work and museum internships. The dual degree program prepares students to participate in the fields of intellectual property and law and the visual arts and provides students with an opportunity to develop expertise in areas of substantive interest.

For students in dual degree programs, 12 credit hours of electives in the JD program are waived in consideration of completion of the dual degree.  Students must be separately admitted to both degree programs in order to pursue a dual degree, the qualitative requirements of both degrees must be fully met, and the two degrees must be earned simultaneously. Students must begin coursework in the second degree program prior to beginning the fifth semester of law school work.  Also, no coursework completed prior to official matriculation in the law school may be counted towards the law school degree.

Dual Degree Student Advising System

Dual degree students are advised by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the School of Law.  In the Department of Art History and Art, dual degree students will be advised by the art history department liaison and the director of graduate studies.

Admissions

Students wishing to enroll in the dual degree program must be separately admitted to each program. The Department of Art History and Art will waive the GRE requirement for admission to the MA program and use the LSAT in the admissions process. Applicants can apply to the dual degree program when they apply to the School of Law or after the first year of enrollment in the School of Law. Once students have been admitted, they will consult with the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the School of Law and the Department of Art History and Art liaison to determine their appropriate course of study.

Program Requirements

The School of Law requires 88 credit hours of coursework, including 36 credit hours of required courses and an upper-class writing requirement, for the JD degree. Most of the requirements are completed during the first year of the law program, which includes:

In addition to the 30 credit hours of first-year courses, JD students must complete the following courses during their second year of study:

Students must also fulfill an upper-class writing requirement and complete a capstone project during the final year of study.  Students should consult the School of Law curriculum guides for details about degree requirements that are applicable to the JD/MA dual degree program.

Students in the MA program in Art History and Museum Studies must complete 31 credit hours, 9 credit hours of which must be taken in the School of Law, to satisfy the requirements for the dual JD/MA degree. In addition, students in the MA program must demonstrate a reading knowledge of one approved modern language other than English. They must also take the MA comprehensive examination at the conclusion of their art history studies.

The 31 credit hours of coursework must be taken at the 400-level or higher, and be distributed as follows:

a

 Three of the courses in these two categories must be seminars.

The dual degree program requires students to complete 98 credit hours. Law students enrolled in the dual degree program will earn up to 12 credit hours toward the JD degree for completion of the graduate-level art history courses. Credit will not be given for work done in such courses before the student completes the first year of law school. Dual degree students are required to complete 22 credit hours toward the MA. 9 credit hours of law school coursework will count toward the 31 credit hours required for the MA in Art History and Museum Studies. The Department of Art History and Art liaison must approve the law school courses that will count toward the MA.

Dual degree students generally begin study in the law school and defer enrollment in the MA program until their second year. (There may be exceptions to this general rule. In certain cases, for example, students may be permitted to take one course in the art history department during the second semester of the first year of law school.) Students interested in completing the dual degree should consult both programs early in the process to avoid difficulties. After the first year of law school, students may enroll in law courses or art history courses; the program will not require students to complete a specific “core” in a “dedicated” semester in the Department of Art History and Art. Completion of the dual degree program will take at least seven semesters or three-and-a-half years of coursework. 

Year 1: First-year law school curriculum. (30 credit hours)

Year 2, 3 & 4: Mixture of courses between the two units, including 22 credit hours of coursework in the art history program and the MA comprehensive examination.

Credit Hour Requirements

• Total Credit Hours in the School of Law: 76
• Total Credit Hours in the art history department: 22
• Total Credit Hours in the Dual Degree Program: 98