Pennsylvania

The Department of Museum Studies offers three graduate programs of specialized museum studies: MA in Museum Education, and MA in Museum Communication, and an MFA in Museum Exhibition Planning and Design.

The Museum Education program offers a unique opportunity to obtain the theoretical and practical foundation as well as the experience necessary for your career in museums and galleries of all subjects — art, history, cultural history, science and more. A student body drawn from the arts, history, cultural history and the sciences makes for a lively exchange of ideas about the potential for museums. Student internships can be held in museums of natural history, science and technology, in art museums and galleries, historic houses and history museums, anthropology, archaeology, and culturally specific museums.

The Museum Communication program is a unique combination of coursework, studio training, independent research, internships, presentations and projects that will help further professional careers. Museum Communication is a field of study committed to exploring the transmission of information from, among and to cultural institutions, audiences, stakeholders and partners. By combining studio experience with other forms of instruction, the curriculum ensures that graduates are adept at using visual communication strategies to accomplish institutional objectives. Students develop the professional and intellectual skills needed to shape the future of museums. Graduates are employed by museums of anthropology, archaeology, fine art, history and natural history, science centers and zoos, national parks and arboretums, cultural arts organizations, government agencies, historical societies, historic sites and houses, and private and corporate collections and foundations.

The Museum Exhibition Planning and Design program prepares graduates to excel in the planning, content development and design processes implemented by professionals in the field of museum exhibition creation - from the first spark of an idea through research, prototyping, design, documentation, construction, exhibit opening to post-opening evaluation and beyond. The curriculum emphasizes concepts such as spatial sociology, color theory, education theory and sensory perception as communication tools, as well as drawing, building, computer skills, documentation and building techniques. Students also gain experience in critical analysis/synthesis and professional-level written and oral presentations.

The School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania offers an MS in Historic Preservation, a Certificate in Historic Preservation, and and Advanced Certificate in Architectural Conservation and Site Management for post-graduates. In addtion, the Historic Preservation Department offers dual-degrees with other departments in the School of Design.

Faculty and students in the MS program in Historic Preservation pursue all aspects of preservation-technical, material, humanistic, urbanistic, economic. The time-tested curriculum provides the essential foundations for preservation practice, many opportunities for specialized study, and hands-on experience through praxis projects. History, theory, documentation, technology, and planning are the core of the program. Specializations include site management, building conservation, landscape preservation, preservation planning, and preservation design. Students learn to identify and analyze cultural places and their historic fabric, determine significance and value, and design appropriate conservation and management measures. Graduates can look toward careers focused on the design and preservation of the world's cultural heritage including buildings, engineering works, cultural landscapes, archaeological sites, and historic towns and cities.

The Certificate in Historic Preservation provides an opportunity for students in the departments of Architecture, Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning, and City and Regional Planning to gain expertise in historic preservation while completing requirements for their professional degrees. The Certificate program also offers practicing professionals the opportunity to pursue specialization training in historic preservation within one semester full-time.

The Advanced Certificate in Architectural Conservation and Site Management is a one-semester program that provides post-graduate training focused on research or praxis for those who have completed the Master of Science in Historic Preservation. The Advanced Certificate allows graduates the unique experience of directed research and field work at home or abroad under direct professional mentorship.

Drexel's MS in Arts Administration program is run by the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design. It is an online program for working professionals. It integrates innovative management practice, arts administration theory, and practicum into this internationally-recognized curriculum. The program provides strong emphasis in management practice with a specific focus on the non-profit arts community. Marketing and policy development are explored in-depth as students prepare to solve the challenges facing the art community today and tomorrow.

The Master of Arts Management (MAM) program at Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College is designed to create innovative leaders in the visual and performing arts. The program combines rigorous finance, marketing and fundraising coursework with practical experience to prepare you to excel in a public, private or nonprofit arts environment. Heinz College's MAM program provides what other arts administration master's degrees cannot -- the solid foundation of quantitative management principles for which CMU is known globally. Students leave the University with the arts management and administration tools necessary to solve some of the most pressing economic and operational challenges currently facing arts organizations in the U.S. and internationally.