DSST Art of the Western World Exam Prep Course
Full course with 66 chapter quizzes and a practice final exam
Self-paced prep for the DSST Art of the Western World exam. 14 chapters covering all 10 content areas the exam tests, with 66 chapter quizzes and a practice final exam. 100 questions in two hours. A score of 400 earns ACE's recommendation of 3 semester hours of college credit.
- Backup ACE/NCCRS credit path — included in every plan
- Lifetime access — no deadlines, no expiry, study at your own pace
- Credits accepted at 1,500+ U.S. colleges
Pricing
$19 for this course with lifetime access, or $29 a month for all DSST subjects. Every plan also unlocks the ACE/NCCRS course in the same subject.
- All 14 chapters and 66 lessons
- 66 chapter quizzes and a practice final
- Readiness score tracker
- From the Standard of Ur to Barbara Kruger
- Lifetime access, no expiry
- All DSST prep courses
- Every chapter, lesson and quiz
- Readiness tracker per subject
- Backup ACE/NCCRS credit path
- Cancel or pause anytime
- Lifetime access to every CLEP and DSST subject
- All current and future courses
- 12-month ACE/NCCRS backup path
- Pay once, never renew
What are ACE and NCCRS?
Two independent bodies that review online courses and recommend them for college credit. The American Council on Education (ACE) and the National College Credit Recommendation Service (NCCRS) put courses through faculty panels that assess rigor and learning outcomes, then publish a credit recommendation. When you complete one, the credentialing body issues an official transcript you send to your college — the same kind of transfer credit a student moving from another university would bring with them.
- Reviewed by faculty panels, not by the course provider
- Official transcript issued on completion
- Recognized at 2,100+ colleges, many of which also take CLEP and DSST
Both routes, one plan
Every plan with DSST Art of the Western World prep also opens the ACE/NCCRS course in the same subject — at no extra cost. So exam day isn't the only way through. If the score doesn't land, the course is already sitting in your account: complete it self-paced, no proctor and no two-hour timer, and earn the three credits through coursework instead.
- Same subject, same 3 semester hours, different path
- Unlocked automatically — no extra fee, no application
- DSST can be retaken after 30 days
Each college sets its own transfer policy, so confirm yours accepts the route you plan to use.
Check your college's policy before you buy. Our school pages list accepted exams, required scores and credits awarded.
Check your collegeDSST Art of the Western World exam format and topics
The exam covers Western art from the ancient Near East to the present across 10 content areas. The Ancient World and the Renaissance are the largest at 15% each, followed by the Middle Ages and the Early Twentieth Century at 12% each. 100 multiple-choice questions in two hours. A score of 400 earns ACE's recommendation of 3 semester hours.
| Content area | Weighting | Questions | What it covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ancient World | 15% | ≈15 | Ancient Near East; Egypt; Greece; Rome |
| Middle Ages | 12% | ≈12 | Early Christian, Byzantine & Romanesque; Gothic |
| Renaissance | 15% | ≈15 | 15th-Century Italy; 15th-Century Northern Europe; 16th-Century Italy; 16th-Century Northern Europe |
| Baroque | 10% | ≈10 | Italy, France & Spain; Holland & Flanders |
| Rococo and Neoclassicism | 9% | ≈9 | 18th-century art in Europe and America, from the playful Rococo to the Neoclassical revival of Greek and Roman forms |
| Romanticism and Realism | 8% | ≈8 | Late 18th- and 19th-century art: Romantic emotion, nature and the sublime, then Realism's scenes of everyday life and work |
| Impressionism and Post-Impressionism | 8% | ≈8 | Later 19th-century art, mostly in France: Manet, the Impressionists and the Post-Impressionists who followed them |
| Early Twentieth Century | 12% | ≈12 | Emergence of Modernism; Art between the World Wars |
| Postwar to Postmodern | 6% | ≈6 | Art after World War II: Abstract Expressionism, Pop Art, Minimalism and Conceptual Art |
| Contemporary | 5% | ≈5 | Recent art: postmodernism, appropriation, feminist art, installation and contemporary architecture |
| 10 content areas | 100% | ≈100 | 2 hours · 100 multiple-choice questions · score 400 for an ACE recommendation of 3 semester hours |
The last two areas are easy to skip: Postwar to Postmodern (6%) and Contemporary (5%). With the Early Twentieth Century (12%), modern and contemporary art is 23% of the exam, so give the last four chapters real time before you book.
How hard is the exam?
The exam is broad rather than deep. It runs from the ancient Near East to contemporary art, and no single area is larger than 15%, so gaps in any period cost points. The four biggest areas, the Ancient World, the Renaissance, the Middle Ages and the Early Twentieth Century, make up 54% of the exam together. Steady review of key works, their artists and styles, and the terms that describe them pays off more than memorizing dates.
- Ancient World and Renaissance are 15% each
- Link each key work to its artist, period and style
- Know contrapposto, chiaroscuro and tenebrism apart
Exam fee and booking
Register through the DSST program, run by Prometric, for $100. Test centers may add their own administration fee. You can test at a center or online with a remote Prometric proctor. Internet-based results appear as soon as you finish, and your college receives the official score report.
- Passing score 400, for 3 semester hours
- Retake permitted after 30 days
- Funded by DANTES for eligible military (first attempt)
Each college sets its own minimum score and credit award for DSST Art of the Western World, so check your school's DSST policy before you book.
Check your collegeCourse chapters and lessons
14 chapters and 66 lessons. Expand any chapter to see the lessons inside it.
Chapter 1 Visual Analysis and the Ancient Near East
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1.1 Form and Content: What We Look at in a Work of Art
How to look at a work of art through form, content and iconography, then Mesopotamian ziggurats, the Standard of Ur and Hammurabi's stele, the Palette of Narmer and hierarchic scale, and Egyptian mastabas, pyramids and the Amarna style.
- 1.2 Iconography: Reading the Meaning of Images
- 1.3 Mesopotamian Art: Ziggurats, the Standard of Ur, and Hammurabi's Stele
- 1.4 Egyptian Art: The Palette of Narmer and Hierarchic Scale
- 1.5 Egyptian Monuments: Mastabas, the Great Pyramids, and Amarna Style
Chapter 2 Greek and Roman Art
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2.1 Greek Sculpture: The Anavysos Kouros, Contrapposto, and the Doryphoros
Greek sculpture from the Anavysos Kouros to contrapposto and the Doryphoros, Greek temples, orders and red-figure vases, and Roman concrete, the Colosseum, the Pantheon, Pompeian painting and the Ara Pacis, completing the Ancient World area, 15% of the exam.
- 2.2 Greek Architecture and Vases: Temples, Orders, the Parthenon, and Red-Figure Painting
- 2.3 Roman Building: Concrete, Arches, the Colosseum, and the Pantheon
- 2.4 Roman Imagery: Pompeian Painting, the Ara Pacis, and Imperial Portraits
Chapter 3 Medieval Art: Early Christian to Gothic
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3.1 Early Christian Art: Basilicas, Catacombs, and Central-Plan Churches
Early Christian basilicas and catacombs, Hagia Sophia, San Vitale and icons, the Book of Kells and the Bayeux Tapestry, Romanesque Saint-Sernin and Autun, Gothic Saint-Denis, Chartres and Sainte-Chapelle, and Giotto and Duccio: the Middle Ages area, 12% of the exam.
- 3.2 Byzantine Glory: Hagia Sophia, San Vitale, and Icons
- 3.3 Early Medieval Art in the West: The Book of Kells, Aachen, and the Bayeux Tapestry
- 3.4 Romanesque Style: Saint-Sernin and the Autun Tympanum
- 3.5 Gothic Structure: Pointed Arch, Ribbed Vault, and Flying Buttress at Saint-Denis
- 3.6 Gothic Chartres and Sainte-Chapelle: Jamb Figures and Stained Glass
- 3.7 Giotto and Duccio: The Arena Chapel and the Maestà
Chapter 4 The Early Renaissance in Italy and the North
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4.1 Brunelleschi and Linear Perspective
Brunelleschi and linear perspective, Donatello and Masaccio in Florence, Medici patronage, Neoplatonism and Alberti, Botticelli and Venice, and in the north, Van Eyck's oil technique, Rogier van der Weyden and Bosch.
- 4.2 Donatello and Masaccio: Sculpture and Painting in Florence
- 4.3 Medici Patronage, Neoplatonism, and Alberti's Palazzo Rucellai
- 4.4 Botticelli's Birth of Venus and Venice
- 4.5 Van Eyck and the Invention of Oil Technique
- 4.6 Rogier van der Weyden and Bosch
Chapter 5 The High Renaissance and the Northern Renaissance
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5.1 Leonardo da Vinci: Chiaroscuro, Atmospheric Perspective, and Closed Form
Leonardo's methods and masterpieces, Michelangelo's David and the Sistine Chapel ceiling, Raphael's School of Athens, Mannerism and Venetian painting, then Grünewald, Dürer, Holbein and Bruegel in the north, completing the Renaissance area, 15% of the exam.
- 5.2 Leonardo's Masterpieces: The Last Supper and the Mona Lisa
- 5.3 Michelangelo: David and the Sistine Chapel Ceiling
- 5.4 Raphael's School of Athens and St. Peter's
- 5.5 Mannerism: Parmigianino and Venetian Painting
- 5.6 Grünewald and the Isenheim Altarpiece
- 5.7 Dürer and Printmaking: Melencolia I
- 5.8 Holbein's Ambassadors and Bruegel's Hunters in the Snow
Chapter 6 Baroque Art in Italy, France, and Spain
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6.1 The Baroque Style: Open Form, Tenebrism, and the Counter-Reformation
The Baroque style and the Counter-Reformation, tenebrism in Caravaggio and Artemisia Gentileschi, the sculpture and architecture of Bernini and Borromini, and Poussin, Velázquez and the Palace of Versailles.
- 6.2 Caravaggio and Artemisia Gentileschi
- 6.3 Bernini and Borromini: Baroque Sculpture and Architecture
- 6.4 Poussin, Velázquez, and the Palace of Versailles
Chapter 7 Baroque Art in Holland and Flanders
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7.1 Rubens: Elevation of the Cross and Marie de' Medici
Rubens in Flanders, Dutch portraits by Hals and Rembrandt, including the Night Watch, and Vermeer, vanitas still lifes and Dutch landscape, completing the Baroque area, 10% of the exam.
- 7.2 Dutch Portraits: Hals, Rembrandt, and the Night Watch
- 7.3 Vermeer, Vanitas, and Dutch Landscape
Chapter 8 Rococo and Neoclassicism
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8.1 Rococo Style and the Fête Galante: Watteau and the Hôtel de Soubise
Rococo style and the fête galante from Watteau to Boucher and Fragonard, Hogarth and Gainsborough in England, Neoclassicism after Pompeii and Herculaneum, Jacques-Louis David, Greuze, Houdon, Canova and Ingres, and Jefferson's Monticello.
- 8.2 Boucher and Fragonard: The Toilette of Venus and The Swing
- 8.3 English Rococo: Hogarth and Gainsborough
- 8.4 Neoclassicism and the Enlightenment: Pompeii and Herculaneum
- 8.5 Jacques-Louis David: Oath of the Horatii and Death of Marat
- 8.6 Greuze, Houdon, Canova, and Ingres
- 8.7 Jefferson's Monticello and American Neoclassicism
Chapter 9 Romanticism and Realism
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9.1 Romanticism and the Sublime: Friedrich and Constable
Romanticism and the sublime in Friedrich and Constable, drama and revolution in Géricault, Goya and Delacroix, Turner's Slave Ship, Courbet's Realism, and Millet, Daumier and the daguerreotype.
- 9.2 Drama and Revolution: Géricault, Goya, and Delacroix
- 9.3 Turner's Slave Ship
- 9.4 Realism: Courbet's Stone Breakers and Burial at Ornans
- 9.5 Millet, Daumier, and the Daguerreotype
Chapter 10 Impressionism and Post-Impressionism
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10.1 Manet: Luncheon on the Grass and Olympia
Manet's Luncheon on the Grass and Olympia, Japonisme, Monet and Degas, Renoir's Luncheon of the Boating Party, Seurat's pointillism, Cézanne, Gauguin, Van Gogh and Rodin.
- 10.2 Japonisme and the Impressionist Eye: Monet and Degas
- 10.3 Renoir's Luncheon of the Boating Party
- 10.4 Seurat and Pointillism, Cézanne's Mont Sainte-Victoire
- 10.5 Gauguin, Van Gogh, and Rodin
Chapter 11 Early Twentieth-Century Modernism
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11.1 Fauvism and German Expressionism: Matisse, Die Brücke, and Der Blaue Reiter
The emergence of modernism: Fauvism and German Expressionism with Matisse, Die Brücke and Der Blaue Reiter, Cubism and collage with Picasso and Braque, and Futurism, Brancusi's Bird in Space and Duchamp's Fountain.
- 11.2 Cubism: Picasso, Braque, Collage, and Papier Collé
- 11.3 Futurism, Brancusi, and Dada: Boccioni, Bird in Space, and Duchamp's Fountain
Chapter 12 Art between the World Wars
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12.1 Surrealism: Dalí, Magritte, and Dreamlike Imagery
Surrealism with Dalí and Magritte, De Stijl and the Bauhaus with Mondrian and Gropius, and art and politics in Guernica, American Gothic and Mexican muralism, completing the Early Twentieth Century area, 12% of the exam.
- 12.2 De Stijl and the Bauhaus: Mondrian and Gropius
- 12.3 Art and Politics: Guernica, American Gothic, and Mexican Muralism
Chapter 13 Postwar to Postmodern Art
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13.1 Abstract Expressionism: Action Painting, Color Field, and Staining
Abstract Expressionism with action painting, color field and staining, Pop Art by Warhol and Lichtenstein, and Minimalism, process art, earthworks and Conceptual Art: the Postwar to Postmodern area, 6% of the exam.
- 13.2 Pop Art: Warhol and Lichtenstein
- 13.3 Minimalism, Process Art, Earthworks, and Conceptual Art
Chapter 14 Contemporary Art
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14.1 Postmodernism: Appropriation, Feminist Art, and Installation
Postmodernism, appropriation, feminist art and installation, Judy Chicago, Cindy Sherman and Barbara Kruger, and memorials and museums by Maya Lin and Frank Gehry: the Contemporary area, 5% of the exam.
- 14.2 Judy Chicago, Cindy Sherman, and Barbara Kruger
- 14.3 Maya Lin and Frank Gehry: Memorials and Museums
Practice exam Practice final exam
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Practice final exam
A practice final at the end of the course. Take it before you book the real exam to see where you stand.
These chapters make up the DSST Art of the Western World exam prep course.
Take the DSST exam for the fastest route to 3 credits. If it doesn't go your way, your plan also includes a backup course that earns the credit through coursework.
See pricingColleges that accept DSST Art of the Western World
DSST is recognized at more than 1,500 U.S. colleges, but each one sets its own minimum score and decides how many credit hours to award. Check yours before you book the exam.
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Practice tests and study guides
Five questions in the style of the DSST Art of the Western World exam. No sign-up needed — see where you stand before you buy.