Asato Ikeda
Job Title
Assistant Professor, Art History
Employer
Fordham University
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Review details about the recently announced changes to study and work permits that apply to master’s and doctoral degree students. Read more
Overview
Students in the PhD in Art History program are encouraged to situate art in its historical context, to analyze its impact on the world around us, and to develop theoretical frameworks that contribute to critical thinking and engage with debates in the field. The program involves coursework, two foreign languages, a comprehensive examination, dissertation proposal, roundtable presentation, doctoral dissertation, and oral exam.
What makes the program unique?
The Art History PhD program encourages high scholastic achievement, original research, and a firm theoretical grounding. Alumni of the program have made considerable contributions to teaching and research in universities, museums, and galleries worldwide.
Program Structure
The PhD program opens with the rigorous two-term required Methodology seminar led by two professors who are specialists in divergent areas. Seminar offerings within the Department are broad and diverse, and students are encouraged to take seminar coursework outside the Department as well. This typically provides our students with ways of complementing their art history courses either by pursuing their specialization or by extending the scope of their studies. We have well-established links with Social Geography, History, Anthropology, Women's Studies, the Institute of European Studies, the Institute of Asian Research, the Latin American Institute, and First Nations Studies, amongst others.
A successful PhD thesis is founded on high scholastic achievement, original research, and firm theoretical grounding. At the mid-stage of thesis research, PhD candidates share their findings with peers, faculty, and the public through a Round Table presentation to receive critical feedback.
Quick Facts
Program Enquiries
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Contact the program
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Admission Information & Requirements
1) Check Eligibility
Minimum Academic Requirements
The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements. Please review the specific requirements for applicants with credentials from institutions in:
Each program may set higher academic minimum requirements. Please review the program website carefully to understand the program requirements. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission as it is a competitive process.
English Language Test
Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.
Minimum requirements for the two most common English language proficiency tests to apply to this program are listed below:
TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language - internet-based
Overall score requirement: 100
Reading
22
Writing
21
Speaking
21
Listening
22
IELTS: International English Language Testing System
Overall score requirement: 7.0
Reading
6.5
Writing
6.5
Speaking
6.5
Listening
6.5
Other Test Scores
Some programs require additional test scores such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Test (GMAT). The requirements for this program are:
The GRE is not required.
Prior degree, course and other requirements
Prior Degree Requirements
Normally, admission to the Ph.D. requires the completion of an M.A. in Art History, including reading knowledge of one language other than English. Students with master's degrees in related fields may be required to complete additional art history courses for their Ph.D. program.
2) Meet Deadlines
September 2026 Intake
Application Open Date
15 October 2025Canadian Applicants
Application Deadline: 08 January 2026
Transcript Deadline: 08 January 2026
Referee Deadline: 12 January 2026
International Applicants
Application Deadline: 08 January 2026
Transcript Deadline: 08 January 2026
Referee Deadline: 12 January 2026
3) Prepare Application
Transcripts
All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study. Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.
Letters of Reference
A minimum of three references are required for application to graduate programs at UBC. References should be requested from individuals who are prepared to provide a report on your academic ability and qualifications.
Statement of Interest
Many programs require a statement of interest, sometimes called a "statement of intent", "description of research interests" or something similar.
Supervision
Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.
Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Doctor of Philosophy in Art History (PhD)
Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.
Citizenship Verification
Permanent Residents of Canada must provide a clear photocopy of both sides of the Permanent Resident card.
4) Apply Online
All applicants must complete an online application form and pay the application fee to be considered for admission to UBC.
Tuition & Financial Support
Tuition
| Fees | Canadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / Diplomat | International |
|---|---|---|
| Application Fee | $116.25 | $168.25 |
| Tuition * | ||
| Installments per year | 3 | 3 |
| Tuition per installment | $1,875.34 | $3,294.66 |
| Tuition per year (plus annual increase, usually 2%-5%) | $5,626.02 | $9,883.98 |
| Int. Tuition Award (ITA) per year (if eligible) | $3,200.00 (-) | |
| Other Fees and Costs | ||
| Student Fees (yearly) | $1,144.10 (approx.) | |
| Costs of living | Estimate your costs of living with our interactive tool in order to start developing a financial plan for your graduate studies. | |
* Regular, full-time tuition. For on-leave, extension, continuing or part time (if applicable) fees see UBC Calendar.
All fees for the year are subject to adjustment and UBC reserves the right to change any fees without notice at any time, including tuition and student fees. Tuition fees are reviewed annually by the UBC Board of Governors. In recent years, tuition increases have been 2% for continuing domestic students and between 2% and 5% for continuing international students. New students may see higher increases in tuition. Admitted students who defer their admission are subject to the potentially higher tuition fees for incoming students effective at the later program start date. In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct.
All fees for the year are subject to adjustment and UBC reserves the right to change any fees without notice at any time, including tuition and student fees. Tuition fees are reviewed annually by the UBC Board of Governors. In recent years, tuition increases have been 2% for continuing domestic students and between 2% and 5% for continuing international students. New students may see higher increases in tuition. Admitted students who defer their admission are subject to the potentially higher tuition fees for incoming students effective at the later program start date. In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct.
Financial Support
Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e. based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e. based on your financial situation) opportunities.
Program Funding Packages
From September 2024 all full-time students in UBC-Vancouver PhD programs will be provided with a funding package of at least $24,000 for each of the first four years of their PhD. The funding package may consist of any combination of internal or external awards, teaching-related work, research assistantships, and graduate academic assistantships. Please note that many graduate programs provide funding packages that are substantially greater than $24,000 per year. Please check with your prospective graduate program for specific details of the funding provided to its PhD students.
Average Funding
Based on the criteria outlined below, 12 students within this program were included in this study because they received funding through UBC in the form of teaching, research, academic assistantships or internal or external awards averaging $33,966.
- 8 students received Teaching Assistantships. Average TA funding based on 8 students was $9,201.
- 2 students received Academic Assistantships. Average AA funding based on 2 students was $2,735.
- 12 students received internal awards. Average internal award funding based on 12 students was $24,043.
- 2 students received external awards. Average external award funding based on 2 students was $20,000.
Study Period: Sep 2022 to Aug 2023 - average funding for full-time PhD students enrolled in three terms per academic year in this program across years 1-4, the period covered by UBC's Minimum Funding Guarantee. Averages might mask variability in sources and amounts of funding received by individual students. Beyond year 4, funding packages become even more individualized.
Review methodology
Review methodology
Scholarships & awards (merit-based funding)
All applicants are encouraged to review the awards listing to identify potential opportunities to fund their graduate education. The database lists merit-based scholarships and awards and allows for filtering by various criteria, such as domestic vs. international or degree level.
Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA)
Many professors are able to provide Research Assistantships (GRA) from their research grants to support full-time graduate students studying under their supervision. The duties constitute part of the student's graduate degree requirements. A Graduate Research Assistantship is considered a form of fellowship for a period of graduate study and is therefore not covered by a collective agreement. Stipends vary widely, and are dependent on the field of study and the type of research grant from which the assistantship is being funded.
Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA)
Graduate programs may have Teaching Assistantships available for registered full-time graduate students. Full teaching assistantships involve 12 hours work per week in preparation, lecturing, or laboratory instruction although many graduate programs offer partial TA appointments at less than 12 hours per week. Teaching assistantship rates are set by collective bargaining between the University and the Teaching Assistants' Union.
Graduate Academic Assistantships (GAA)
Academic Assistantships are employment opportunities to perform work that is relevant to the university or to an individual faculty member, but not to support the student’s graduate research and thesis. Wages are considered regular earnings and when paid monthly, include vacation pay.
Financial aid (need-based funding)
Canadian and US applicants may qualify for governmental loans to finance their studies. Please review eligibility and types of loans.
All students may be able to access private sector or bank loans.
Foreign government scholarships
Many foreign governments provide support to their citizens in pursuing education abroad. International applicants should check the various governmental resources in their home country, such as the Department of Education, for available scholarships.
Working while studying
The possibility to pursue work to supplement income may depend on the demands the program has on students. It should be carefully weighed if work leads to prolonged program durations or whether work placements can be meaningfully embedded into a program.
International students enrolled as full-time students with a valid study permit can work on campus for unlimited hours and work off-campus for no more than 20 hours a week.
A good starting point to explore student jobs is the UBC Work Learn program or a Co-Op placement.
Tax credits and RRSP withdrawals
Students with taxable income in Canada may be able to claim federal or provincial tax credits.
Canadian residents with RRSP accounts may be able to use the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP) which allows students to withdraw amounts from their registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to finance full-time training or education for themselves or their partner.
Please review Filing taxes in Canada on the student services website for more information.
Cost Estimator
Applicants have access to the cost estimator to develop a financial plan that takes into account various income sources and expenses.
Alumni on Success
Enrolment, Duration & Other Stats
These statistics show data for the Doctor of Philosophy in Art History (PhD). Data are separated for each degree program combination. You may view data for other degree options in the respective program profile.
ENROLMENT DATA
| 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Applications | 20 | 20 | 26 | 31 | 31 |
| Offers | 5 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| New Registrations | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Total Enrolment | 22 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 31 |
Completion Rates & Times
This program has a graduation rate of 75% based on 29 students admitted between 2011 - 2014. Based on 10 graduations between 2020 - 2023 the minimum time to completion is 5.34 years and the maximum time is 10.27 years with an average of 7.08 years of study. All calculations exclude leave times.
Disclaimer
Admissions data refer to all UBC Vancouver applications, offers, new registrants for each registration year, May to April, e.g. data for 2022 refers to programs starting in 2022 Summer and 2022 Winter session, i.e. May 1, 2022 to April 30, 2023. Data on total enrolment reflects enrolment in Winter Session Term 1 and are based on snapshots taken on November 1 of each registration year. Program completion data are only provided for datasets comprised of more than 4 individuals. Graduation rates exclude students who transfer out of their programs. Rates and times of completion depend on a number of variables (e.g. curriculum requirements, student funding), some of which may have changed in recent years for some programs.
Research Supervisors
Supervision
Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.
Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Doctor of Philosophy in Art History (PhD)
Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.
Advice and insights from UBC Faculty on reaching out to supervisors
These videos contain some general advice from faculty across UBC on finding and reaching out to a supervisor. They are not program specific.
Doctoral Citations
A doctoral citation summarizes the nature of the independent research, provides a high-level overview of the study, states the significance of the work and says who will benefit from the findings in clear, non-specialized language, so that members of a lay audience will understand it.
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2015 | Dr. Dangeli studied the work of First Nations composers and choreographers on the Northwest Coast of British Columbia. Her research demonstrates that Indigenous protocol is integral to their process of creation and performance. The newly created songs, dances and collaborations are vital to the assertion of Aboriginal sovereignty and land rights. |
| 2015 | Dr. Steinmann analyzed video works by artists Melanie Gilligan and Hito Steyerl through the lens of what Michel Foucault called biopower. She argued that these works show how biopower shapes the neoliberal subject through surveillance and documentation. Her work demonstrates that this politically engaged art offers new insight into biopower. |
| 2015 | Dr. Horacek studied central European art from the late 16th and early 17th centuries. She examined the fusion between art and knowledge as imbued in artefacts that were collected and exchanged as gifts by monarchs of that period. Her research brings forward the socio-political agency of works of art and how they mattered to people who exchanged them. |
| 2015 | Dr. Chehab studied developments in seventeenth-century Spanish painting. She examined the emergence of the genre of still-life painting in relation to more traditional forms of religious imagery, and argues that still life functioned as a forum for pictorial experimentation. This research broadens our understanding of Spanish imagery of this period. |
| 2013 | Dr. Chang assessed a group of similar paintings produced in 16th-to-18th century China. She proved that they visualize many upper- and middle-class people's changing and diverse views of an ideal society. Her study establishes the art-historical value of the paintings, and argues for copying as a form of improvised new creation rather than mere imitation. |
| 2012 | Dr. Ikeda used the framework of fascism as a lens through which to understand art and visual culture in wartime Japan. Her study highlighted Japan's intellectual and artistic dialogues with Germany and Italy during the period of extreme nationalism and military conflict and showed how fascism was disseminated through art production and cultural institutions. |
| 2012 | Dr. Liu studied the resurgence of the popular woodblock printing industry in China dating back to the 1980s. In challenging folk art discourses that relegate Chinese printmaking traditions to the past, Dr. Liu examines the prints in their lived contexts, as tied to ritual practices, lineage identities, and livelihood. |
| 2011 | Dr. Carr studied the architecture of Indian Residential Schools to show how they were designed to subvert the cultural, economic and political life of Indigenous populations. Dr. Carr's research also suggests the need for sustained commemoration of residential school buildings and history, to improve relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. |
| 2011 | Dr. Kameda-Madar examined the ideological workings of cultural networks in the Tokugawa period in Japan by surveying a range of visual representations of the Orchid Pavilion Gathering. Her study showed how pictorial motifs promoted class permeability and contributed to the dynamism of identity formation. |
| 2009 | Dr. Windover examined socio-political consequences of Art Deco architecture and design. He showed how this interwar style, while appearing fashionably new, ultimately reinscribed pre-existing social hierarchies. Situating Art Deco within networks of international economic and cultural exchange, his work provides new ways to approach the subject. |
Pages
Sample Thesis Submissions
Further Information
Specialization
Art History offers advanced study in the major periods of European and North American art, in certain areas of Asian art, and in the indigenous arts of the Americas.
Program Website
Faculty Overview
Academic Unit
Program Identifier
VGDPHD-B4
September 2026 Intake
Application Open Date
15 October 2025 Canadian Applicant Deadline
08 January 2026 International Applicant Deadline
08 January 2026 Program Enquiries
Still have questions after reviewing this page thoroughly?
Contact the program
Contact the program
Departments/Programs may update graduate degree program details through the Faculty & Staff portal. To update contact details for application inquiries, please use this form.
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