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Visual Arts Major

Our program is unique to Stritch because we focus on the principles of art integration. You will have hands-on learning experiences that will develop a marketable skillset for your future career in the arts, or other fields such as advertising and design. Professionally experienced faculty will participate in the mentoring process of your artistic journey at Stritch. 

Program Details

Program Overview

Your major in visual arts is at home in both traditional studio art and digital media. The interdisciplinary nature of this major encourages you to explore key areas of your creative work in drawing, painting, digital design and photography, sculpture and ceramic art. Choose a double major or minor in another area that best fits your career objectives. Several options are available and include business, communication art, computer science, psychology, theater or other programs of interest.

Program Concentrations

This program is made up of the following concentrations. Learn more about concentrations.

Concentration Overview

The Digital Arts concentration is for students who want a focus on visual communication through art and digital design (e.g., computer graphics, photography, time based media, and web design). Communicating ideas in the workplace, in the classroom, or online demands clarity, precision, efficiency, visual impact, and an awareness of diverse audiences.

Concentration Overview

The Studio Arts Integration Concentration will expand your artistic skills through 2D and 3D studio art courses and introduce strategies for creating arts-rich, culturally responsive work environments. Our program will encourage you to think critically and speak about issues related to arts integration and education.

Courses in this Concentration

Concentrations on this page are required for this program. Additional courses or concentrations may need to be added to meet program or credit requirements.

Program Coursework

The specific degree requirements on the website are for illustrative purposes and may change at any time. Please contact the Registrar's Office, Academic Advising or refer to the course catalog for detailed program requirements.

Liberal Arts Core

The Liberal Arts Core Curriculum is rooted in the Liberal Arts and our Franciscan heritage. It is designed to create a framework to develop knowledge, skills, and responsibilities necessary to educate students so that they will be prepared to contribute to the world guided by a concern for issues of justice and ethical behavior.

LEADERSHIP:  4 credits
  • Freshman Seminar (1 cr.)
  • Spiritual & Ethical Literacy (3 cr.) 
FOUNDATIONAL LITERACIES/SKILLS:  12 credits
  • Personal Branding Communication (3 cr.)
  • Writing for the 21st Century (3 cr.)*
  • Quantitative Problem Solving (3 cr.)*
  • Language & Culture (3 cr.)
*For ‘Writing for the 21st Century’ (English) and ‘Quantitative Problem Solving’ (Math), you may need additional courses depending on your placement.

CORE LITERACIES:  15 credits – Choose one (1) course from each broad theme. Course options can be found in the course catalog or on the academic advising page. Broad themes are:
  • Narratives of Identity (3 cr.)
  • Science, Environment & Culture (3 cr.)   
  • Social Tensions (3 cr.)    
  • The American Experience (3 cr.)
  • Approving the Better Things (3 cr.)

Professional Core

Culminating Experience

Giving students a culminating experience as well as practical work experience, the Professional Core is a graduation requirement for every Stritch student in a bachelor’s degree program. This bachelor’s degree program includes completion of the Professional Core consisting of three courses:
  • Pre-Internship
  • Internship
  • Capstone

Arts integrated curriculum, strategies and experiences

According to the Kennedy Center’s comprehensive definition of arts integration, it is an approach to teaching in which students construct and demonstrate understanding through an art form.

Students engage in a creative process which connects an art form and another subject area and meets evolving objectives in both.

Source: The Kennedy Center

The goal of the Linda D'Aquisto Cultural Diversity Museum Project is to provide Undergraduate teacher candidates the opportunity to 'seek first to understand, then be understood' as they work together to bring their collective cultural backgrounds to life for local elementary students.

Learn About Arts Integration

Students address social justice through art

In the Interdisciplinary course, Social Change Through Storytelling, students were given the ultimate challenge to tell a story of how society reacts to different world events.

Read More

Tim Abler

Art Faculty

This is my favorite time of the year, and it has to do with that point of energy where there’s an initial excitement, and then it gets to be work. Students begin to realize there’s a lot of decisions, and that’s my favorite part because it’s a struggle. That’s what art often is. It’s often part of the story too. Stories aren’t easy to tell.

Visual Art Example

Visual Arts Jobs

Creative careers allow windows of opportunities for students to take their talents in any direction. 

Job opportunities can include...

  • Graphic Design
  • Photographer
  • Set Designer
  • Animation Artist
  • Illustrator
  • Marketing Director

Visual Arts Careers

Contact admissions or the program faculty with questions about this program.

Admissions

Tim G. Abler

Chair - Visual and Performing Arts|Faculty - Art

Arts

tgabler@stritch.edu

(414) 410-4107

Read Full Profile