Designing spaces for community engagement and public dialogue. The University of San Francisco offers a unique master’s degree in museum studies where students prepare for leadership positions in artistic, cultural, and heritage organizations that operate in a constantly changing social dynamic.

Our sixteen-month curriculum is flexible, providing students with the comprehensive knowledge and hands-on experience to assume a variety of roles within cultural, artistic, and heritage organizations.

The program prepares students for positions of leadership in artistic, cultural, educational and heritage organizations and for long-term professional growth. The curriculum consists of core seminars, hands-on practica, one-on-one advising and mentoring, electives tailored to students' interests and a full-time summer internship in an institution of the student's choice.... [-]

Museum Studies is not something you may grow up wanting to study, however, it is a fantastic way to learn about art, aesthetics, archaeological objects, business, and history all in one subject. Even better, to be able to study it in a country that is rich with artefacts and culture. Each of our partners that offer Museum Studies, brings something different to their respective programs. It is important to know what you would like to focus on (art museums, business aspects of running a museum, classics, etc.) in order to make the right decision for yourself.

As an undergraduate student, you can expect more of a comprehensive program that focuses broadly on museums and another closely related subject. This could be History of Art with Museum Studies at the University of East Anglia or the University of Leeds or Museum and Classical Studies at the University of Reading. Interested in learning about and creating the exhibits that objects are displayed in? The University of Lincoln’s Design for Exhibition and Museums may be the choice for you. This is a really great course for those of you who are interested in a certain historical/art subject but would like to broaden the scope to master something else as well. It also opens the door to many different master’s programs in the humanities subjects.... [-]

The global scenario of the art system includes today a growing number of physical and virtual venues representing a wide range of curatorial projects opportunities: museums, exhibition areas, public and private galleries, biennials, fairs, platforms, websites, etc.

The Master course in Curatorial Practice promoted by IED Venezia is a programme that deals with the exhibition design direction and management related to the art field and beyond, training professionals ready to enter with full rights the art industry. The strong point is the prestige and uniqueness of Venice, main player of the current debate on curatorial issues, generator of professional excellence.

The international faculty is coordinated by Jonathan Watkins and includes leading curators, scholars in the humanities, artists, and art professionals, coming from many prominent institutions such as the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Foundation Pinault, Fondazione La Biennale di Venezia, Ruya Foundation, Beirut Art Center, and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid.... [-]

Masters students in conversation with Bose Krishnamachari, artist, curator, and founder of the Kochi-Muzeris biennale.

Specialisation in Curatorial Practice: Film, Media & Visual Arts is a two-year, full-time program designed to develop professional and academic excellence in the field of curatorial practice and theory. It is the first of its kind in South Asia, developed in collaboration with various arts and cultural platforms in the region. The program is founded on the premise that curatorial work requires a wide-ranging understanding of history, philosophy, aesthetics, and theory along with research and writing skills, as well as the more practical aspects of exhibition making and programming. The program specifically responds to the historical, political and cultural contexts of South Asia, and aims to generate thought-lexicons relevant to the region. The mode of learning includes a combination of taught modules, workshops, seminars, studios, and individual research/practice. Candidates on the program will be expected to execute an independent curatorial project or produce a substantial monograph/dissertation in the final semester. The course enables an understanding of the arts and culture ecology to equip professionals to work within the cultural and creative sectors as curators, researchers, gallerists, policy makers, consultants or entrepreneurs. Emphasis is placed on the requirements of our in-flux contemporary worlds, which demand inter-disciplinary methods and creative thinking, to address social and political issues through artistic and creative practice.... [-]

Image showing significant elements of architecture and landscapes in Hoysala, documented during the study tour (Source: SUI-Srishti; Dr. Jyoti Hosagrahar)

This program is one of the two postgraduate programs established under the UNESCO Chair in Culture, Habitat, and Sustainable Development at Srishti. The program is designed to deliver familiarity with international and national, norms and standards of heritage interpretation and management, based on the foundation of the World Heritage Convention. Furthermore, the courses will be driven towards exploring new processes of designing, managing and planning for preserving heritage sites and the surrounding milieu; such that the outcomes will benefit local communities, and nurture creative entrepreneurship within the eclectic cultural landscapes.... [-]

Mandatory Courses

Specialty in Museums

Paris-Sorbonne University (Paris IV) and the Ecole du Louvre offer a professional Master degree in the «History of art and museum studies », at the new Paris Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi campus on Al Reem Island. The collaboration between these two prestigious French institutions is unprecedented.

The city of Abu Dhabi alone is preparing to open not less than seven new museums, including the Louvre. In the coming years, qualified staff, trained in the fields of history of arts and in the various professions related to museum management, will be necessary to uphold the scientific and intellectual quality of these institutions. It is in this specific context and with a view to responding to these requirements, that this professional Master programme was designed.... [-]

The aim of the course is to provide graduates with the skills to design, manage and implement museum services, responding to market demand for people with specific managerial capabilities.

The Master Rehabilitation and Restoration of Heritage (MGICR) professionals in the field of rehabilitation and restoration with a high level of theoretical and practical knowledge in aspects of diagnosis, intervention techniques or knowledge of the injuries of the constructive elements of traditional systems form.

The program also responds to the current demand from the construction to have a professional with the ability to develop, with guarantees, management building process industry from a holistic perspective and with the particular focus of each of their specialties offer.

The Master is the 4th best in Spain for Real State Management sector according Eduniversal Ranking.... [-]

Our Master Course has a unique approach to museology in its most innovative trends, especially at the European level. It is carried on under the auspices of the European Museum Academy Foundation (NL) which contributes with its experts and with didactic resources. Online modules offer the chance to take part in this Course also to students abroad under an attentive Tutorship. The Summer School will be held at the IULM Campus in Milan, a worldwide capital of design and fashion and the most vibrant Italian town. Seminars are planned in Milan as well as in other European venues.

This Master Course is designed for those interested in acquiring expertise in contemporary museology and the interlinkages between museum and heritage as well as in new media and museum communication. Graduates from the course will be ready to pursue careers in museums and heritage institutions, cultural organizations, educational agencies dealing with heritage issues.... [-]

The M.A. in Museum Studies is offered by Marist College and Istituto Lorenzo de' Medici at the Marist-LdM Florence Branch Campus in Italy. This degree program has been designed to meet the academic needs of qualified students from around the world.

The M.A. in Museum Studies is an interdisciplinary advanced degree program which aims to provide students with an understanding of how museums operate within their social and cultural contexts. Drawing on faculty from the U.S., U.K. and continental Europe, courses are taught using a variety of innovative methods, yet they share two fundamental core principles which are embedded in the program’s philosophy: 1) museums’ engagement with the public is paramount and 2) museums vary greatly across the globe and therefore must be studied from an international comparative perspective.... [-]

The M.A. in Museum Studies is offered by Marist College and Istituto Lorenzo de' Medici at the Marist-LdM Florence Branch Campus in Italy. This degree program has been designed to meet the academic needs of qualified students from around the world.

The M.A. in Museum Studies is an interdisciplinary advanced degree program which aims to provide students with an understanding of how museums operate within their social and cultural contexts. Drawing on faculty from the U.S., U.K. and continental Europe, courses are taught using a variety of innovative methods, yet they share two fundamental core principles which are embedded in the program’s philosophy: 1) museums’ engagement with the public is paramount and 2) museums vary greatly across the globe and therefore must be studied from an international comparative perspective.... [-]

Master in Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice

The Master of Arts program in Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice combines the rigorous study of fashion and textile history with hands-on training in the analysis, conservation, storage, and exhibition of textile and costume materials, and in collections management and exhibition planning and design.

The hallmark of this interdisciplinary program is its blend of theory and practice. You’ll study the historical and cultural significance of fashion interpretation, and be trained to approach costume and textile history from various traditional and innovative perspectives. You’ll also learn practical skills, from how to identify fibers and treat various kinds of objects, to the proper way to roll a textile and dress a mannequin.... [-]

MA Curation

Curation is a process of mediation and creative thinking and this course will provide a direct experience of developing and managing this practice.

This MA is distinctive in that it will appeal to applicants who are creative practitioners and historians of art, design, and media as well as those from a humanities' or even a science background, who have interests in communicating visually through traditional and alternative spaces.

The course team views curation in its widest sense, and will support you in bringing together objects, still and moving images and/or texts into a coherent, contextualized and critical whole.

The exhibition may encompass a range of public outcomes across the areas of art, design, and media, from gallery-based displays to film programmes, from public art to open access archives.... [-]

Master of Arts (MA) in Museum Studies

Marist-LdM Graduate Degree Program

The Master of Arts in Museum Studies is offered by Marist College and the Lorenzo de' Medici Institute, starting in 2010, with courses taught at LdM Florence. The M.A. in Museum Studies offers students an advanced, in-depth exploration of how museums operate within their social and cultural contexts. Museums are studied from an international comparative perspective, with a special emphasis on examining the ways in which these institutions engage with the public. Guest lectures by museum professionals expose students to a wide variety of international perspectives, widening their horizons, while visits to museums, historical monuments, archives, libraries, and other institutions essentially use Florence as a classroom.... [-]