Why study Fine Arts - Art?

The Bachelor of Fine Arts Program provides students with strong technical and critical thinking skills.

Studios are taught by artist-teachers who are active professionals in one or more visual arts disciplines. Faculty provide a dynamic mixture of media, craft, and aesthetic viewpoints that expose students to various ideas and attitudes about art. In this context, art students are encouraged to develop their own innovative philosophies and approaches to art and a unique visual language. The BFA program requires a broad exposure to many media and techniques through introductory and advanced studios. Fine Arts students will complete a three-course track in one of these 6 areas: Art & Technology, Ceramics, Drawing & Painting, Photography, Printmaking, and Sculpture. Each track consists of 3 introductory-level classes taken prior to each student's first co-op in the spring of their third year. Transfer and transition students blend in as their transfer course histories are evaluated. In addition to the track courses, students will take ten studios in various disciplines. Studio practice is complemented by art historical and visual studies courses in survey and seminar formats and a series of theory-based courses covering avant-garde forms of expression from Modernism to the present. 

Career Possibilities

Fine artists express themselves visually using one or several different art forms. For example, they may find employment as photographers, ceramists, model builders, or video animators. If students complete the teaching licensure option offered within the School of Art, they can teach elementary and/or secondary school art. With advanced study, they may become college teachers, art restorers, art administrators or curators for galleries, museums or exhibition centers.

Minoring in Fine Arts - Art

The School of Art offers a 24-credit-hour fine art minor for students interested in studying fine arts and developing their artistic expression and abilities. The curriculum includes studio coursework in drawing, space, and time. Students must also choose introductory and advanced studio work in various fine arts disciplines including art & technology, ceramics, drawing & painting, photography, printmaking, and sculpture. 

Students must have a 2.5 GPA to pursue the minor. Admission to the minor is limited. Students can apply by filling out the application form and submitting it to the DAAP Student Affairs Office, 5470 Aronoff.

Major Maps

• Guide: Bachelor of Fine Arts (Effective Spring 2025)
• Guide: Bachelor of Fine Arts: Transfer & Transition Students (Effective Spring 2025)
• Guide: Bachelor of Fine Arts: K-12 Art & Design License Prep | MA Art Education (Effective Spring 2025)

Advising

Prospective students are encouraged to explore the information on our website and contact DAAP Student Affairs at 513-556-1376 or daap-admissions@uc.edu with questions. Prospective transfer students can receive assistance from the Transfer Center within UC Admissions and current UC students can contact the Transition Advising Center. Current DAAP students are assigned an academic advisor based on their major/program. For more information on DAAP advising, please visit the DAAP Undergraduate Advising webpage.

UC Advantages and Special Opportunities

• The city of Cincinnati, once called the "Queen City of the West" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, provides an excellent array of cultural resources for students who intend to pursue a degree in the visual arts. It offers the energy and assets of a larger city, along with quiet neighborhoods steeped in rich traditions. Cincinnati offers live music venues that range from top-notch symphony and opera companies to a growing pop and rock community. Home to the Cincinnati Art Museum, the Taft Museum and the Contemporary Arts Center, the city also enjoys the presence of numerous art galleries and a strong support system among practicing artists.
• UC's College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP) is one of the most comprehensive colleges of its type in the country. A collection of nationally respected design and art programs is housed in a unique and educationally stimulating architectural setting. Students have opportunities to enroll in courses in a range of related disciplines and to participate in interdisciplinary studios or special projects.
• Students learn creative and technical skills in the studio environment, taught by a passionate faculty who interact with their students on a daily basis. The goal is to guide students as they grow both intellectually and professionally.
• Other educational opportunities include study abroad and minor and certificate programs within the college and the university. Students are encouraged to share their interests in these opportunities with their academic advisor.
• The Robert A. Deshon and Karl J. Schlachter Library for Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning has an outstanding collection of books, periodicals and visual resources supporting architecture, planning, design, art history, and related subjects. Access to library holdings is provided by an automated online catalogue, UCLID, which provides access to the University of Cincinnati Library information database, and through OhioLINK, the holdings of other academic libraries throughout Ohio.
• DAAP’s multiple labs, centers and initiatives support our programs and the creative work and research of our faculty, staff, and students.

Special Programs

Computer Requirements: All undergraduate students in this program are required to purchase a personal laptop computer. Each discipline has its own specific recommendations for hardware and software. Please note that these recommendations may be slightly altered as equipment evolves. Therefore, students new to DAAP are encouraged to delay their computer purchase until the summer prior to entering to make the most informed computer purchase. Many of our programs have additional technology requirements for students in the later years of study.

Admission Requirements

The College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning at the University of Cincinnati seeks to attract, enroll, and graduate academically talented students of varied and diverse backgrounds. Success in our programs is largely dependent upon sound academic preparation. In multidisciplinary programs like those in DAAP, students’ insight and perspective are greatly enhanced by exposure to students from different backgrounds, geographies, and co-curricular interests. DAAP has an admissions review process to support these goals. Effective for Fall 2025, first year students (i.e., those applying from high school) are no longer able to submit an optional portfolio as part of the undergraduate admissions process. Please note that it’s impossible to predict – or guarantee – what credentials a student will need to gain admission into DAAP, because the size and quality of the applicant pool varies each year.

Please visit the Admissions Office's website for more information, including application materials, requirements, deadlines, and timelines.

Transferring to UC Requirements

Students seeking to transfer from another regionally accredited university or college must be in good standing to be considered for admission. Students wishing to transfer into a DAAP program should submit a Transfer Application. Transfer students are generally admitted to the first year of our studio-based, co-op programs due to the sequence of studios and co-op. For further information such as minimum grade point average and application deadlines, please refer to the DAAP Transfer and Transition webpage.

Changing Majors within UC Requirements

Students seeking to transfer from other colleges and programs at UC must be in good standing to be considered for admission. Students wishing to transition into a DAAP program should submit an Application for Change in College and Program. Transition students are generally admitted to the first year of our studio-based, co-op programs due to the sequence of studios and co-op. For further information such as minimum grade point average and application deadlines, please refer to the DAAP Transfer and Transition webpage.

International Student Requirements

Please visit the university’s Office of Admissions website for general admissions information and application requirements for international students.

Graduation Requirements

In consultation with faculty advisers, fine arts students determine their own interests and elect creative work in one or more of the program’s disciplines: art & technology, ceramics, drawing & painting, photography, printmaking, and sculpture.

In addition, students complete course work in art history and electives in humanities, sciences and social sciences from other colleges in the university. The curriculum is completed with a senior thesis colloquy, which emphasizes professionalism and culminates in an exhibition of the student’s work. Seniors are required to participate in the annual DAAP senior show.

Students must obtain a minimum overall grade point average of 2.0 and, in addition, must have at least a 2.0 grade point average for the senior year to be eligible for graduation. In order to be eligible for graduation with honors, a student must have completed at least 60 semester hours in the college and have earned at least a 3.6 grade point average.

Application Deadlines

High school applicants who submit a complete application by the December 1 Early Action deadline will be pooled and reviewed for selection. Early Action applicants can expect to learn their admission decision on Cincinnati Decision Day. This date varies by year and is shared on the university’s Office of Admissions website. Students who apply by December 1 also receive maximum scholarship consideration. Applications received after December 1 may be considered on a space-available basis.

Students seeking to transfer from other colleges and programs at UC or another regionally accredited university or college should submit a complete application for admission by the priority deadline of March 1 for the following academic year.

Accreditation

All programs in the School of Art are accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD).