Program Overview

Certificate in Museum Studies

The Certificate in Museum Studies is offered by the Division of Interdisciplinary Programs within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. This online program combines history, theory, and experiential learning to create professionals for graduate school or work in a wide range of museums and cultural institutions.

Program Description

The Museum Studies Certificate program prepares professionals for graduate school or work in a wide range of museums and cultural institutions. The program combines history, theory, and experiential learning to create a forward-looking curriculum.

Online Curriculum

The online curriculum includes required courses and topic areas.

• Required Courses:
  • MUSM:3001: Introduction to Museum Studies (3 s.h.)
• Museum Studies Topic Areas: Students must select one course each from three of the four topic areas (9 s.h. total). They also must complete a fourth course (3 s.h.) from any of the topic areas.
  • Collection Care and Management:
    • MUSM:3003 / SEES:3003: Natural History Research Collections (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3200 / SEES:3200: Collection Care and Management (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3291 / ANTH:3291: Collection Care and Management (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:4200 / SEES:4200: Collection Care and Management (3 s.h.)
  • Exhibition Development and Public Education:
    • MUSM:3004: Exhibition Planning (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3078 / AMST:3078 / GWSS:3078 / SPST:3078: Archiving Women's History (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3105: Engaging Museum Audiences (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3115 / EDTL:3105: Museum Educations and Interpretation (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3125: Museums in a Digital World (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3145 / ANTH:3145 / NAIS:3145: Excavation to Exhibit: Making Artifacts Public (3 s.h.)
  • History, Theory, and Culture:
    • MUSM:2675 / GRMN:2675: The politics of Memory: Holocaust, Genocide and 9/11 (3-4 s.h.)
    • MUSM:2850: Museums and Social Justice (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3010 / ARTH:3010: Fakes, Frauds, and Forgeries: The Dark Side of Art History (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3120: Museum Origins (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3237 / ANTH:3237 / HIST:3137: Politics of the Archaeological Past (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3250 / HIST:3250: American Stuff: Discovering History in Things (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:4081 / ARTH:4081: The Art Museum: Theory and Practice (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:4310 / FREN:4210 / WLLC:4210: Slavery Museums, Memorials, and Statues in the United States, Europe, and the Global South (3-4 s.h.)
  • Museum Administration and Management:
    • MUSM:3100 / ANTH:3112: Historic House Management and Preservation (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3130: Topics in Museum Administration and Management (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3131: Museum Evaluation and Visitor Studies (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3500 / ENTR:3595 / MGMT:3500 / NURS:3595 / RELS:3700 / SSW:3500: Nonprofit Organizational Effectiveness I (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3710 / JMC:3710: Fundraising Fundamentals (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:3720 / JMC:3720: Nonprofit Communications (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:4045 / LAW:8164: Art, Law, and Ethics (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:4150 / EALL:4130: Introduction to Grant Writing (3 s.h.)
    • MUSM:4600 / MGMT:4600: Nonprofit Ethics and Governance (3 s.h.)

Museum Studies Internship

• Students must complete the following:
  • Either 2 s.h. in: CCP:1201: Academic Internship
  • Plus 1 s.h. in: MUSM:3091: Topics in Museum Studies
  • Or 3 s.h. in: CCP:1201: Academic Internship

Adding the Certificate to Your Program of Study

Students may add a certificate program to their plan of study at any time. Declaring a certificate will allow you to request a degree audit for the certificate requirements. There is no penalty to remove a certificate from a plan of study and one may be removed at any time.

Removing the Certificate from Your Program of Study

Current students can remove the certificate from their plan of study at any time. There is no penalty to remove a certificate program from a plan of study and one may be removed at any time.