AcademicsUndergraduate AcademicsArt Therapy Online

Bachelor of Arts in Art Therapy Online

Transform the world from anywhere on the planet with Naropa University’s Online Bachelor of Arts in Art Therapy. Compassion, mindfulness, and contemplative exploration are at the core of this bachelor of art therapy, a program unlike any other.

Naropa’s online Bachelor of Arts in Art Therapy will merge your artistic process with the study of traditional and Eastern psychology for a deeply mindful approach to art therapy. In your own vibrant, organic space, you will grow as an artist as you explore the healing power of art. 

This innovative art therapy program will put you on the cutting edge of revolutionary therapies and discoveries through a rich curriculum grounded in art therapy, visual arts, contemplative psychology and studio practice at the only Buddhist-inspired accredited university in the United States. Naropa’s art therapy program is dedicated to innovation in the artistic process and in our approach to teaching the psychology behind transformative art therapy.

Among colleges with a major in art therapy, Naropa uniquely offers both an undergraduate art therapy program and a graduate art therapy program, resulting in rich opportunities for mentorship and career guidance. Explore the depths of your own art—and your own heart—as an art therapy major.

Are you ready to be the change you want to see in the world? Start now 

Art Therapy Online

Quick Facts

51

Credit
Hours
To Graduate in Art Therapy Online

2

Including an
Internship
or Field
Placement
Transformative
Capstone
Experiences

8

In Studio Art,
Art Therapy & Psychology
Unique
Milestone
Courses
Olivia Phipps headshot

Connect

with your counselor

Olivia Phipps

Admissions Counselor

For Students Applying for Fall 2024

Jenna Priest head shot

Connect

with your counselor

Jenna Priest

Undergraduate Admissions Counselor

For Students Applying for Spring & Summer 2024

Art Therapy Online Courses

Learn the practice and theory of art therapy at an art therapy school that puts mindfulness at the core of its curriculum. Engaging course work in studio art, art therapy, and contemplative psychology offers a visionary approach to using art as a tool for healing. As you earn your undergraduate degree in art therapy online, you will master studio techniques, explore Buddhist psychology, collaborate with motivated peers, and engage in fieldwork in the surrounding community.

Courses within the major in art therapy online include:

The Naropa Difference

If you’ve been searching for art therapy schools with curricula that address heart and spirit along with mind, you’ve found your home. Naropa’s unique Bachelor of Arts in Art Therapy Online offers a vibrant arts community, experiential learning, and a deeply introspective undergraduate curriculum aimed at healing you, your future clients, and the world.

 

Community Engagement

The online undergraduate major in art therapy offers students unique opportunities to engage and serve in their home communities through the COL 450E: Internship course, the one course that currently satisfies the “Leadership & Service” core curriculum credit. Coordinated through Naropa’s Career and Life Development (CLD) office, students can select sites in their local communities and partner with them to provide socially relevant learning in art therapy and integrate community-oriented skills such as grassroots organizing, grant writing, and policy research.

For seniors moving on to careers as art therapists or to graduate art therapy schools, the Internship is a powerful, collaborative opportunity to synthesize their contemplative art therapy education.

Forty-three percent of art therapy bachelor’s degree students are hired following completion of a senior internship.

Contemplative Education

The Naropa Bachelor of Arts in Art Therapy Online is not a typical art therapy program, and Naropa is not your typical school. As the West’s founding school for contemplative education, Naropa integrates mind, body, and soul in a holistic education aimed at transforming students, communities, and the world.

The undergraduate major in Art Therapy Online instills mindfulness as a valuable tool for approaching art, relationships, and self-knowledge through courses like Buddhist Psychology: Mindfulness Meditation and Contemplative Ceramics: Form and Human Contact. Students cultivate their inner lives to prepare for meaningful lives beyond art therapy school.

Mentorship Opportunities

As one of the country’s few undergraduate art therapy programs paired with a graduate art therapy program, the Bachelor of Arts in Art Therapy Online is uniquely positioned to provide mentorship opportunities. A graduate mentor will guide you through your major in art therapy, serving as sounding board, coach, and support.

Naropa’s art therapy mentorship program, unique among art therapy schools, prepares undergraduates to excel in the graduate art therapy program, to pursue master’s degrees in studio art or mental health, or to step into meaningful careers as art instructors, art coaches, or mental health workers.

Student Transformed

Student Transformed

What to Expect

Receive mindful mentorship that gives you a head start in graduate school.
Graduate School
Readiness
Learn to look inward as a first step in reaching out to help others.
Mindfulness
Refine communication skills through hands-on learning in diverse settings.
Relational Skills
Cultivate confidence and dignity in your work as artist and art therapist.
Self-Awareness as an Artist
Follow in the footsteps of art therapy pioneers.
Foundation in Studio
Art Therapy

Search Naropa University

YOU ARE READY.

This is where experiential learning meets academic rigor. Where you challenge your intellect and uncover your potential. Where you discover the work you’re moved to do—then use it to transform our world.

“*” indicates required fields