Book excerpt: A Survival Guide for Art History Students is designed to help students succeed in art history courses. The art history classroom is a unique learning environment that most students first experience in college. Survival Guide is sympathetic to this, offering practical instruction and guidance for every moment in students' coursework, from the initial disorientation of their first art history class ("art in the dark") to the challenge of the slide exam. Survival Guide gives practical guidance on how to take notes, write paper assignments, as well as how to study for and take exams. It deals with the kinds of questions that students commonly ask but professors seem hesitant to write about: "Isrit art history a gut course?", "What in the world do you do with a degree in art history?", "Is 500 BC later or earlier than 190 AD?", and "How can I take notes and look up at slides at the same time?" Designed for student readers, Survival Guide is written in a familiar and engaging tone. The images discussed and illustrated are primarily those of western art from the ancient to modern eras. By focusing on images that are taught in standard art history survey courses, Survival Guide reinforces and builds upon course materials.