Degree Requirements
Bachelor of Arts in Visual and Performing Arts Studies
The Bachelor of Arts in Visual and Performing Arts Studies is an interdisciplinary degree offered jointly by the School of Dramatic Arts, the School of Architecture, the School of Cinematic Arts, the Roski School of Fine Arts, the Thornton School of Music, and the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. Candidates for the degree must complete the university general education requirements in addition to the courses in the major. Students in this major complete a core of required courses that provides them with a broad understanding of the various disciplines. The work in the major is completed by choosing courses from a wide array of course offerings from all the participating schools. A total of 128 units is required for completion of the degree.
General Education Requirements
The university’s general education program provides a coherent, integrated introduction to the breadth of knowledge you will need to consider yourself (and to be considered by other people) a generally well-educated person. This program requires six courses in different categories, plus writing, foreign language and diversity requirements, which together comprise the USC Core. See here and here for more information.
| REQUIRED CORE COURSES (SURVEY OF THE ARTS) | UNITS | |
|---|---|---|
| AHIS 120 | Foundations of Western Art | 4 |
| ARCH 304x | Intensive Survey: Prehistory to the Present | 4 |
| CTCS 393 | History of the American Film, 1946-1975 | 4 |
| FACS 150 | Visual Culture and Literacy I | 4 |
| MUHL 315x | Music and Culture | 4 |
| THTR 125 | Text Studies for Production | 4 |
| THTR 380 | Historical Approaches to Dance | 4 |
| Total: | 28 | |
| CASE STUDIES IN THE ARTS: | ||
|---|---|---|
| 12 units of upper division course work from the following: | ||
| Architecture: | ||
| ARCH 314 | History of Architecture: Contemporary Issues | 3 |
| ARCH 432 | People, Places and Culture: Architecture of the Public Realm | 4 |
| ARCH 434 | City Cine: Visuality, Media and Urban Experience | 3 |
| ARCH 440 | Literature and the Urban Experience | 4 |
| ARCH 444 | Great Houses of Los Angeles | 4 |
| ARCH 454 | Contemporary Asian Architecture | 4 |
| Cinematic Arts: | ||
| CTAN 451 | History of Animation | 2 |
| CTCS 392 | History of the American Film, 1925-1950 | 4 |
| CTCS 394 | History of the American Film, 1977-present | 4 |
| CTCS 406 | History of American Television | 4 |
| CTCS 407 | African-American Cinema | 4 |
| CTCS 409 | Censorship in Cinema | 4 |
| CTCS 411 | Film, Television, and Cultural Studies | 4 |
| CTCS 412 | Gender, Sexuality, and Media | 4 |
| CTCS 414 | Latina/o Screen Cultures | 4 |
| ENGL 471 | Literary Genres and Film | 4 |
| PHIL 446 | Aesthetics and the Film | 4 |
| Fine Arts: | ||
| AHIS 319 | Mesoamerican Art and Culture | 4 |
| AHIS 321 | Greek Art and Archaeology | 4 |
| AHIS 322 | Roman Art and Archaeology | 4 |
| AHIS 330 | Medieval Art | 4 |
| AHIS 343 | Renaissance Art | 4 |
| AHIS 364 | Myths, Arts, Realities: Visual Culture in California 1849 to the Present | 4 |
| AHIS 368 | Modern Art I: 1700-1850 | 4 |
| AHIS 369 | Modern Art II: 1851-1940 | 4 |
| AHIS 370 | Modern Art III: 1940 to the Present | 4 |
| AHIS 373 | History of Photography | 4 |
| AHIS 384 | Early Chinese Art | 4 |
| AHIS 385 | Later Chinese Art | 4 |
| FACS 350 | Art Theory and Criticism | 4 |
| FAIN 330 | Ideas in Intermedia | 4 |
| PAS 371 | Art in the Public Realm: Contemporary Issues | 4 |
| PAS 400 | New Models of Art in City-Space | 4 |
| Music: | ||
| MUHL 331 | Music History III | 3 |
| MUHL 332 | Studies in Musical Culture | 3 |
| MUHL 476 | Music Criticism | 2 |
| MUJZ 419 | The Jazz Experience: Myths and Culture | 4 |
| MUSC 400 | The Broadway Musical: Reflection of American Diversity, Issues, and Experiences | 4 |
| MUSC 420 | Hip-Hop Music and Culture | 4 |
| MUSC 444 | American Roots Music: History and Culture | 4 |
| MUSC 460 | Film Music: History and Function from 1930 to the Present | 4 |
| MUSC 465 | Music, Television and American Culture | 4 |
| Theatre: | ||
| COLT 354 | Revolutions in Theater | 4 |
| THTR 301 | Greek and Roman Theatre | 4 |
| THTR 302 | Shakespeare in His World | 4 |
| THTR 313 | Comedy of Manners | 4 |
| THTR 314 | Advanced Topics in Modern Drama | 4 |
| THTR 403 | The Performing Arts | 4 |
| THTR 405 | Performing Identities | 4 |
| THTR 406 | Theatre on the Edge | 4 |
| THTR 476 | African-American Theatre, Dance and Performance | 4 |
| THTR 481 | From the Border to Broadway | 4 |
| Other Courses: | ||
| COLT 381 | Psychoanalysis and the Arts | 4 |
| PHIL 445 | Philosophy of the Arts | 4 |
| Overseas Study Opportunities: | ||
| FREN 432 | French Theatre (Paris Semester) | 4 |
| SPAN 464 | Introduction to Contemporary Spanish Theatre (Madrid Center) | 4 |