ATEC Doctoral Programs
The PhD in ATEC trains students in academic disciplines and research traditions related to technology and media.
The PhD program in Arts, Technology, and Emerging Communication is designed for those who wish to engage in deep scholarship or to develop artistic, cultural, or commercial applications of digital technology and emerging media. With a diverse group of faculty and a curriculum that integrates scholarly study with creative practice, ATEC cultivates creative scholars, scholarly practitioners, and interdisciplinary researchers. The PhD in ATEC additionally prepares students to teach arts- and technology-related courses in colleges and universities. Students seeking a PhD in Arts, Technology, and Emerging Communication will normally complete a minimum of 60 semester credit hours (42 semester credit hours in coursework and 18 semester credit hours in dissertation) beyond a master’s degree or its equivalent, pass doctoral field examinations, submit a dissertation proposal, and complete and defend a dissertation.
Doctor of Philosophy in Arts, Technology, and Emerging Communication
The ATEC PhD program is a unique doctoral program, one of the few of its kind in the US. Our faculty bring to the program different areas of expertise, including in games studies, arts education, global media studies, science and technology studies, critical media studies, and animation studies. No matter their field of expertise, they all share a focus on media, arts, and technology. Our students, who arrive with MA degrees in such diverse fields as literature, film studies, computer science, game studies, and art history and with MFA degrees in the visual and the digital arts, bring to the program their own extensive knowledge of culture, technology, the arts, and knowledge production.
This variety of interests and expertise produces ATEC’s distinct culture of collaborative and generative research and production practices. With ATEC’s 19 labs and studios for collaborative exploration, a weekly ATEC research colloquium event, opportunities to engage with faculty and students in other UT Dallas schools, and a well-developed graduate professional development program, ATEC’s PhD provides robust support for doctoral students’ intellectual, career, and creative goals, including through opportunities to expand their pedagogical skills as instructor of record. Our graduates have gone on to prestigious postdoctoral and faculty positions in higher ed.
ATEC PhD students are grouped into transdisciplinary cohorts for their first year of coursework, where they investigate foundational theories and methods that underlie the study of technology, media, communication, and the arts. Additional coursework on interdisciplinary topics (e.g., surveillance studies, global media studies, interactive arts, culture jamming, and intersectional approaches to media studies, among others) allows students to deepen their knowledge of specific fields, while the program also allows for up to 15 hours in courses from other UT Dallas schools (e.g., Interdisciplinary Studies, EPPS). The typical time to completion is four years, with at least the last year dedicated to working on the dissertation. Our ATEC PhD program offers four years of funding in the form of Teaching Assistantships to all who are admitted. To learn more, visit the List of Graduate Degree Program Policies and Procedures.
We also invite you to attend an online Graduate Studies Overview Session. At these events, our academic advisors provide an overview of our programs, the application and admissions process, funding opportunities, and answer your individual questions.
| Program Type | Doctorate |
| Format | On campus, full- and part-time options are available |
| Estimated Time to Complete | 4 years |
| Semester Credit Hours | 60 |
Admission and Funding
Applications to the PhD program must be started no later than January 1 and turned in no later than January 15 for consideration for admission. Students are admitted for a fall semester start.
Meet Professors You Will Never Forget
ATEC Faculty include world-renowned artists, scholars, and creative practitioners. Their diverse areas of expertise ensure that graduate students gain knowledge of breadth and depth. Our professors publish with the nation’s leading academic presses, work with top animation studios, hold patents in design, and are recognized as pioneers by peers in their field.
Areas of Faculty Work & Exhibition
3D computer animation; 3D modeling; 3D printing and projection mapping; digital fabrication; digital media and interactive art; documentary; games; new media art; photography and contemporary art; simulations
Areas of Faculty Research & Publishing
Applied media studies and remix culture; border studies; critical ethnic and race studies; critical making; digital humanities, including digital health humanities; disability and crip studies; feminist studies; game studies; infrastructure studies; literary studies; media studies and cinema studies; mobile media; new media arts and new media arts and education
Art-Based Research & Creative Practice
We believe if you can imagine it, we can make it. Our lab and studio culture blends art, technology, design, engineering, science, and the humanities to create an incubative environment rich with possibilities. Collaboration is the heart of the Bass School. Learn how faculty, students, art-based research, and creative practice are connected.
Contact Information
Shilyh Warren
Associate Dean of Graduate Studies
Phone: 972-883-6316
Email: shilyh.warren@utdallas.edu
Office: JO 4.510A
Bee Yan Goh
Graduate Academic Advisor
Phone: 972-883-4814
Email: beeyan.goh@utdallas.edu
Office: ATC 1.606
Graduate Advising
Bass School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology
The University of Texas at Dallas, JO31
800 W. Campbell Road
Richardson, TX 75080-3021
Phone: 972-883-4706
Email: ahtgradvising@utdallas.edu
Office of Admission and Enrollment
800 W. Campbell Road
Richardson, TX 75080-3021
972-883-2270 or 1-800-889-2443
admission@utdallas.edu
utdallas.edu/enroll
PhD Application Deadlines
| Fall 2024 | Jan 15 |