Research

Undergraduate Research in the HAA department

Undergraduate majors have the opportunity to conduct research in a variety of ways.

HAA 1009: Research Seminar

This course was developed to expand the capstone research experience of undergraduate students in the History of Art and Architecture department. It is conceived as a supplement to HAA 1010: Approaches to Art History, the official writing seminar. It will be limited to 15 students, thus undergraduates will receive more direct mentoring from a faculty member than is possible in a regular lecture-based class. The course is designed to provide experiential learning opportunities, with research projects resulting in creative products. Courses taught in a given semester as a Research Seminar will encourage creative inquiry and may be collaborative in nature. The department hopes to offer a HAA 1009 section at least once a year.

HAA 1009: Research Seminar--Configuring Deisciplines

At the same time that the library and the printed book have been transformed by on-line and digital media, so too has the role of the museum been reshaped in response to new technologies and shifting expectations of the gallery as a space of learning. Configuring Disciplines, a combined undergraduate and graduate seminar and collaborative exhibition project, seeks to examine the dynamic interchanges between reader, image and text; and beholder, object and space. At the core of these inquiries are questions about the nature and purpose of collections in a digital era and the role of the gallery as a support to scholarly and instructional activities. The undergraduate seminar will investigate modes of graphic image-making developed since the Renaissance and used to create knowledge in different scholarly or scientific disciplines. Undergraduates, working in close consultation with two HAA professors and graduate student mentors, will have a unique opportunity to work with objects from local collections and get hands-on experience with exhibition-design. Illustrated texts from Pittsburgh collections will be the focus of weekly discussions and will be used to raise questions about the intrinsic qualities of the book as an object and mediator of knowledge. The seminar will serve as a workshop and think-tank for the development of an exhibition on these themes that will take place in the University Art Gallery (Frick Fine Arts Building) in September - October 2014. The principal objects examined in the seminar and exhibition will be drawn from library and museum collections in the Pittsburgh region. The overarching themes of the exhibition will be developed in seminar during the spring semester and sections within the exhibition will be curated by students. This is an unprecedented opportunity to think about the relationship between scholarly research and exhibition practices and the role of the University Art Gallery and local collections.

HAA 1951: Research Seminar

This seminar is intended for undergraduate students pursuing an honors thesis project in the Department of the History of Art and Architecture. Students will devise and carry out research for their thesis paper under the direct supervision of a qualified faculty member in the department, depending on the student’s specialized interest. That faculty member will guide the student through the production of the paper in accordance with stipulated deadlines for outlines and drafts leading up to the final work. (See the Honors Thesis contract which is required of students who enroll in HAA 1950: Honors Thesis.) The Honors Thesis Seminar is designed as a supplement to this process. The seminar will provide a forum for maintaining steady progress on the project and engage the student in a research community. It will also serve to enhance visual analysis and critical reading skills. And students will acquire supplemental professionalizing skills that will allow them to build on the advantages of undertaking an honor's thesis paper or independent project.

HAA 1010: Approaches to Art History – the Research and Writing Seminar

All majors are required to complete a capstone research and writing seminar, HAA 1010: Approaches to Art History, which requires the production of a substantive research paper. For further information on this course and its objectives, see this guide.

HAA 1950 and HAA 1901: Honors Thesis and Independent Study Research

Independent research often evolves out of pre-existing coursework, or a prior HAA 1010 project. Often, though, our majors devise an independent research topic anew. These projects are completed under the guidance of a faculty member who mentors the student through the various research stages and oversees the project. Students earn academic credit for this work in two ways:

  • HAA 1950 Honors Thesis: Available to any major with an overall and departmental GPA of 3.5 or higher. This course results in a letter grade and is worth 3 credits. Students who complete HAA 1950 with a grade of A- or higher and maintain the 3.5 GPA will graduate with honors from the department and are eligible to apply for annual departmental awards. Students interested in the honors major and the thesis project should consult early with Gretchen Bender, the director of undergraduate advising, for assistance developing a project and seeking a faculty mentor. View a listing of past honors thesis projects.
  • HAA 1901 Independent Study: Available to any major who has gained a faculty sponsor in the department for his or her project. This course is taught with variable credit (can be taken for 1, 2 or 3 credits), and is taught with the S/N letter grade. Independent studies can result in research papers, but other creative activites and products are possible as well. Consult with Gretchen Bender if you wish to pursue and independent study.

HAA 1909: Undergraduate Research Assistantships

This course enables students to receive academic credit for serving as assistants to faculty members who are conducting their own pre-existing research projects (i.e. preparing work for publication or a conference). This collaboration will result in a meaningful experience for the student that introduces them to and gives them grounding in the ethos and mechanics of research and publication. This option is particularly recommended for younger majors who seek to establish a stronger mentoring relationship with a faculty member, or who wish to gain some knowledge of the research process before engaging in a project of their own design. This course can be taken for 1, 2 or 3 credits, and is conducted under the S/N grade option. For further information, please consult the HAA 1909: Undergraduate Research Contract.

Research Fellowships and Awards

Many of our majors have secured prestigious fellowships and awards for their independent research efforts, including the Brackenridge Summer Research Fellowships, the Honors Research Fellowships, and the Summer Research Abroad Awards offered through the University Honors College, and the School of Arts and Sciences annual Summer Undergraduate Research Awards. Gretchen Bender, director of undergraduate studies, is available to assist students with the development of research ideas and the application process for these awards. Read more about the summer 2015 research projects.

HAAARCH!!!

Read more about the annual undergraduate research and opportunities fair.