The art department this fall rolled out a new minor in photography that offers a 21-credit focus to a popular medium among students.
“For students majoring in journalism and graphic design, in particular, this allows them to list the minor on their résumés,” said Cynthia Clabough, art department professor and chair. “So even though they could have done all this study before, it allows an employer or graduate school to see they were focused and dedicated.”
Clabough said alumni working in photography throughout the region helped motivate the creation of a photo minor.
“The distinction gives the students just that little extra bit of confidence they may need, and certainly gives the employers more confidence, too,” she said.
The photo minor is the latest among a number of minors related to the art department that have strong interdisciplinary interest and cooperation: arts management, museum studies, expressive art therapy and audio design and production.
“So this is in that tradition,” Clabough said. “We don’t always call these courses interdisciplinary, but it does show cooperation. That interdepartmental, inter-area cooperation, we do well here at Oswego. That’s key. It’s key to what our departments have been willing to invest in.”