Art therapy is a professional (graduate) program of study with licensure requirements that differ across states. Undergraduate students at Wells are supported and well advised to be successful candidates in any of these programs. Admission requirements to graduate programs in art therapy may be met via several pathways at Wells College.
Prerequisite requirements (below) may be met in conjunction with literally any major at Wells, through careful selection of courses; alternatively, students may choose to major in one of the two primary areas (visual arts: studio art or psychology) and minor in the other. Or, they may apply to double major in these two fields. Any approach that formally includes studio art will include a portfolio upon completion, but students may also develop a portfolio through a mindful and supervised curating process.
By concentrating studies in the field of visual arts and/or psychology at Wells, students will gain academic credentials that far surpasses minimum graduate admissions standards. Targeted co-curricular programming developed at Wells aims to provide students with experiences and opportunities that will strengthen their candidacy to graduate programs even more.
REQUIRED COURSES
The following courses in art (6 sem. hrs.):
ART 118 Three-Dimensional Design (3 sem. hrs.)
ART 121 Drawing and Painting I (3 sem. hrs.)
An additional four courses in art (12 sem. hrs.):
Recommended courses include:
- ART 221, Drawing and Painting II (strongly recommended)
- ART 119, Visual Organization (strongly recommended)
- ART 241, Oxidation Fired Pottery -or- ART 242, Reduction Fired Pottery
- ART 261, Photographic Digital Imaging
The following courses in psychology (9 sem. hrs.):
PSY 101 General Psychology (3 sem. hrs.)
PSY 227 Abnormal Psychology (3 sem. hrs.)
PSY 210 Child Development (3 sem. hrs.)
-or- PSY 318 Adolescent Development (3 sem. hrs.)
-or- PSY 355 Adult Development and Aging (3 sem. hrs.)
One additional course in psychology (3 sem. hrs.):
Recommended courses include:
- PSY 280 Psychology of Art
- PSY 338 Psychotherapy
- PSY/THEA 285 Approaches to Drama Therapy
ADDITIONAL ELECTIVE COURSES
Courses in the following areas may help to further prepare students:
- Performance arts: theatre, dance and music
- Book arts
- English, especially creative writing
- Physical education, especially yoga or meditation
- Visual arts or the PSY 290/390 Internship