Minors

Explore Our Minors

Complement your major.

We’re flexible. We encourage students to pursue the interests and fields they’re passionate about, because we think that leads to great work and great careers. For students who are eager to color outside the lines and take classes outside their major, we offer a mix of minors and concentrations that let you customize your time here.

Minors constitute five courses (15 credit hours) taken outside your specific degree program. Transfer credits do not count towards a minor. One course, or up to 3-credits, of a minor may also fulfill course requirements in your major. Successfully completed minors will be recorded on your official transcript along with your declared major.

Art History

The Art History minor is for students who wish to further their study of art history, intend to enter the fields of museum and curatorial studies, gallery management, art conservation, or other pursuits for which a minor in art history would be an advantage; This minor also expands students’ usual framework, providing images which could inspire their own work. It also gives students thinking of pursuing a graduate degree a more advanced cirriculum and better prepares them for admission into graduate programs in studio art, art history, art conservation, or arts management where a depth of undergraduate studies in art history is an admissions criterion.

Business of Art + Design

Our Business of Art and Design department will prepare you to understand the business behind the always-expanding world of creative industries. We offer an interdisciplinary, experience-based minor curriculum designed to train collaborative leaders, blue-sky thinkers, and creative problem solvers. You will learn about business strategy, people and team management, entrepreneurship, negotiations, marketing, project management, accounting, and other key business areas that will help to expand your career options and better prepare you for success in your chosen fields within art and design.

Creative Writing

Our Creative Writing minor instills the fundamentals of storytelling and writing – elements necessary to becoming a great artist or designer and complementary to every major. You will learn the basics of plot, narrative, scene and environment building, character development, and read literature in a variety of genres, such as science fiction, nonfiction, children’s literature, horror, fantasy, and pop culture.

Film Studies

The Film Studies minor provides students with a broad understanding of cinema as a cultural force and storytelling medium. Courses, including those on genres, history, directors, and cultural perspectives, offer insight and perspective into visual storytelling—a focus here at Ringling College. Cinema was the first medium to tell stories with moving images, and the conventions, genres, standards, and archetypes of film are the foundation of popular art forms that followed in its wake. As such, the Film Studies minor is a valuable complement to a range of majors.

Fine Arts

Our Fine Arts minor will provide you with a solid grounding in the traditional practicalities of painting, sculpture, printmaking, or installation art—lifelong skills that will serve you well in whatever field you choose. Our faculty will also push you to develop your own personal style and artistic voice, a signature that will carry over and define your work.

Gender + Sexuality Studies

The Gender & Sexuality minor provides students with the opportunity to deeply explore the study of gender and sexuality as they take shape and impact our lives in a global, diverse, and multicultural world. The curriculum will empower students to actively engage with social and critical theory and storytelling that accurately reflects, includes, and illuminates experiences of all genders and sexual identities as global citizen artists. Through its well-crafted interdisciplinary menu of courses, the minor engages students to critically analyze gender and sexuality in the contexts of sexual orientation, race, class, ethnicity, citizenship status, age, gender identity and dis/ability. The minor prepares students to successfully conceptualize and execute relevant projects, products, or branding experiences in their respective industries.

Graphic Design

Our Graphic Design minor is designed to provide you with broad and desirable skills that will prepare you to collaborate with other disciplines. You will learn to create well-crafted typographic compositions for print, web, and other screen formats.

Photography + Imaging

Photography & Imaging

Our Photography and Imaging minor is designed to help you discover your voice while you pick up the tools of the trade. Then, explore the controlled environment of a studio and take your talents on the road to shoot on location, learn traditional darkroom techniques, and discover how to manipulate images on the newest computer software.

Realistic Painting

Our Realistic Painting minor builds upon the foundations of observation and is rooted in traditional drawing and painting techniques. You will learn the historical approaches to drawing and painting that have proven to be reliable and effective, as well as contemporary concepts and techniques as they apply to representational imagery.

Virtual Reality Development

The Virtual Reality Development minor provides students with the opportunity to learn more about this emerging technology. The use of VR as an integral visual communication tool is on the rise and extends to all industries; from gaming, entertainment, and media to enterprise sectors such as healthcare, job training, engineering, manufacturing, architectural visualization, real estate, and so much more. Students will learn how to conceptualize, 3D model, and create materials and texture sets to develop virtual environments, interactive objects, hands, and custom avatars. In addition, students can learn how to develop complex interactions, advanced visual scripting, and a wide variety of technical art skills using Unreal Engine.

Visual Development

A Visual Development minor from Ringling College will prepare you to play a key role on any animation team. Starting with the basics of concept art and anatomy, you will learn to conceive and build characters and environments for animated films, graphic novels, video games, and more. You will then incorporate key communications principles as they develop the look and feel of a project that is intended for a specific audience or purpose.

Get in Touch

We’re happy to answer any questions you may have.

Admissions Questions
(applying, portfolio, transfers, deadlines, events)
admissions@ringling.edu

General Questions
info@ringling.edu

Media Inquiries
communications@ringling.edu

Web Accessibility Inquiries
communications@ringling.edu

Ringling College of Art and Design

2700 N. Tamiami Trail
Sarasota, FL 34234
info@ringling.edu
941-351-5100

Office Hours:
M-F 8:30 am-4:30 pm EST

Co-Interim Director of Library Services	941-359-7582	Pat Mizak
Co-Interim Director of Library Services	941-309-4055	Alexandra Vargas-Minor
Digital Curation and Special Collections Librarian	941-359-7583	Janelle Rebel
Technical Services Librarian	941-359-7586	Janet Thomas
Instructional Design Librarian		Vacant
Instructional Design Librarian		Vacant
Library Technician III (Cataloging and Metadata Assistant)	941-359-7631	Lisa Martinez
Library Technician II (Periodicals and Interlibrary Loan)		Vacant
Library Technician III (Circulation Manager)	941-359-7587	Tim DeForest
Library Technician III (Acquisitions Manager/Office Support)	941-359-7584	Yolanda Coleman
Library Technician II (Assistant Circulation Manager)	941-359-7587	Christina Song
Circulation Assistant		Jean Ferderber
Circulation Assistant		Sooyeon Baek
Circulation Assistant		James Harrison

Patron Type	# of Items	Type of Material	Borrowing Time
Student	40	Books	3 weeks
		CDs and CD-ROMs	3 days
		DVDs and Blu-Ray	3 days
		Magazines (unbound)	3 day
		Magazines/Annuals (bound)	5 days
		Videogames*	7 days

Faculty and Staff	40	Books	6 weeks
		CDs and CD-ROMs	3 days
		DVDs and Blu-Ray	7 days
		Magazines (unbound)	3 day
		Magazines/Annuals (bound)	5 days
		Videogames*	7 days

Trustee, Alumni, Cross College Alliance, and	15	Books	3 weeks
Ringling College LibraryAssociation Members		CDs and CD-ROMs	3 days
		DVDs and Blu-Ray	3 days
		Magazines (unbound)	3 day
		Magazines/Annuals (bound)	5 days
		Videogames*	N/A

PreCollege	5	Books	3 weeks
		CDs and CD-ROMs	3 days
		DVDs and Blu-Ray	3 days
		Magazines (unbound)	3 day
		Magazines/Annuals (bound)	5 days
		Videogames*	N/A

Local Teacher	15	Books	3 weeks
		CDs and CD-ROMs	3 days
		DVDs and Blu-Ray	3 days
		Magazines (unbound)	3 day
		Magazines/Annuals (bound)	5 days
		Videogames*	N/A

Chartwell’s and Follett employees located at Ringling	15	Books	3 weeks
		CDs and CD-ROMs	3 days
		DVDs and Blu-Ray	3 days
		Magazines (unbound)	3 day
		Magazines/Annuals (bound)	5 days
		Videogames*	N/A

*The video game collection supports the research and teaching of the Game Art & Design program. Video games may not be checked out by Alumni, Ringling College Library Association members or Family members.

The Alfred R. Goldstein Library features a wide variety of quiet, group study, and work process spaces. Looking for a quiet study area? Make your way up to the 3rd floor to look for a book in the Research Collection or peruse the new art magazines while relaxing in comfortable seating. When the weather is nice, you can take your coffee from Roberta’s Café on the first floor to one of the four terraces to work outside and enjoy the sights and sounds of nature. Looking for meeting space to get together with a group? Check out the group study rooms, which are available on all three floors of the Goldstein Library. The 10 group study rooms are available to students on a first-come first served basis, or available for booking by Ringling College faculty and staff for group and class meetings.

Library Services Hours (when classes are in session):

Sunday: 12:00 pm – 11:00 pm
Monday – Thursday: 8:00 am – 11:00 pm
Friday: 8:00 am – 7:00 pm
Saturday: 12:00 pm – 6:00 pm

Holidays and Breaks:
The Library is closed on holidays, as designated by the institution, and typically operates on a Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm schedule during breaks.

Ringling College ID Access Only

Please note a Ringling College ID is required for access, except from 8:30am – 4:30pm from Monday – Friday.

Hours for the Brizdle-Schoenberg Special Collections Center:

By appointment only from Monday – Friday 9:30 am – 4:30 pm, no drop-ins. Closed Saturday and Sunday.

Contact specialcollections@c.ringling.edu to schedule an appointment.

Visit Us

Ringling College of Art + Design
Alfred R. Goldstein Library
2700 N. Tamiami Trail
Sarasota, FL 34234-5895

Download a campus map

Suggest a Purchase: Library Acquisitions Request

We welcome recommendations for new library materials from the Ringling College community. Librarians will consider all requests bearing in mind their appropriateness for the collections and the current budget.
(*=Required Field)

Text us: 941-208-4542
Email us: research@ringling.edu
Call us: (941) 359-7587

Schedule a research consultation

Schedule an appointment with one of our librarians or a research consultant.