Liberal Arts courses at the Cleveland Institute of Art help all students succeed as well-rounded artists and designers. With small class sizes and devoted faculty, our Liberal Arts courses enhance students’ work in the majors. They focus on critical thinking, creative problem-solving, writing and communication, art history, storytelling, and professional skills. They include courses in seven subject areas:

• Art History + Visual Culture
• Humanities + Cultural Studies
• Natural Science
• Quantitative Reasoning
• Social Science
• Writing
• Professional Practices

Liberal Arts courses supplement the studio curriculum throughout every academic program at CIA. Additionally, CIA’s curriculum includes specific Liberal Arts requirements that are “distributed” throughout your years in your major program. Some major programs have specific courses assigned to specific distributed requirements. See the major program course requirements for details.

Art History + Visual Culture

AH 150 Critical Issues in Visual Culture 3 credits
AH 250 Themes & Movement in Art Design History 3 credits
2 courses of 300-400 level Art History (AH) 6 credits

Distribution Requirements

Humanities or Cultural Studies (HC) 3 credits
Natural Science (NS) 3 credits
Quantitative Reasoning (QR) 3 credits
Social Science (SS) 3 credits
Open Liberal Arts elective 3 credits

Writing Requirements

WR 101 Writing I 3 credits
WR 102 Writing II 3 credits
2 courses of Writing Intensive (WR) 6 credits

Professional Practices

PPEL 398A/B/C 3 credits