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Museum Studies

Learn the techniques and histories of creating exhibits that teach and inspire

Step into a world of hands-on collaboration, combining primarily art history, anthropology and history, in this exciting minor that will nurture your desire for experimentation and innovation.

You’ll do more than peek behind the curtain of museum exhibits. At Susquehanna, you’ll learn to research, curate and display artifacts and histories in a lively and informative way through the interdisciplinary museum studies minor.

And you can do all this closer to Philadelphia, New York City and Washington, D.C., than any other school that offers an undergraduate museum studies program.

You’ll take courses that explore visual display practices relevant to museum studies and its history.
You’ll complete projects involving analysis and implementation of museum collecting and display processes.
And you’ll develop in-demand research skills vital for success within the museum field.

Choose from a collection of elective classes in art history, anthropology and art history or a course offered through one of several Global Opportunities (GO) programs to shape your interests and specialization.

We’re also uniquely positioned to provide you with internship opportunities with the Lore Degenstein Gallery on campus; local museums and historical houses; or other important museums, exhibitionary spaces, archives, and state or national parks with public exhibition or commemorative spaces.

When you enroll at Susquehanna, you’ll be paired with an advisor and application tool to guide you in your course planning and scheduling. The following is an excerpt from the complete course catalog. Enrolled students follow the requirements of the course catalog for the academic year in which they declare each major and/or minor, consult with their advisor(s) and the Academic Planning Tool.

This 20-credit minor in museum studies is designed for students interested in creating a foundation for future graduate work in museum studies or a career in museums and other public exhibitionary spaces, in conjunction with a major or minor in an academic field most often associated with museums, such as anthropology, art, art history, education, history, English, publishing and editing, business administration, or one of the natural sciences. The minor draws on its component strengths to offer students experience in both the museological (the study of museums as a site for critical study/reflection on the act(s) of representation) and the museographical (the practical study of museum practices, such as the doing of exhibitions in all of their aspects) facets of museum studies. Students pursuing the museum studies minor will complete an internship in a museum. This component includes opportunities with the Lore Degenstein Gallery on campus, local museums and historical houses, or other museums, exhibitionary spaces, archives, and state and national parks with public exhibition or commemorative spaces. Internship possibilities will be reviewed and approved by the program’s director, in consultation with the Museum Studies Advisory Board, chosen from faculty in the art history, history, and anthropology programs.

Minor in Museum Studies

Students must complete 20 semester hours of coursework, which includes ANTH-237 Museums and Anthropology, MSUM-400 Museum Studies Internship, MSUM-500 Directed Research and Exhibition Project, and 8 semester hours chosen from the following: ANTH-322 Visual Anthropology: Imagining the Other, ARTH-101 Introduction to World Art I: Prehistory to 1400, ARTH-102 Introduction to World Art II: 15th Century to 20th Century, ARTH-310 Modernism and the Avante-Garde, ARTH-303 Socially Engaged Art Practice, ARTH-412 Contemporary Art, HIST-300 History Methods, a pre-approved course from a GO Long program, and other courses approved by the director.

Double-counting restriction for interdisciplinary minors

Only 4 semester hours of this minor may be double-counted toward the student’s major.

The internship for museum studies is designed for students who wish to develop and apply skills related to the museum and public exhibition-related professions (for example, a museum-related, non-profit agency or government office, a museum publication or periodical, a position related to museum or library conservation, exhibition sites in state or national parks, or other similar institutions). Students will gain experience in real work situations and will work under the supervision of a professional in his or her chosen field. Overseeing faculty and their departments offer help in locating and applying for appropriate internships, but students are also encouraged to propose and develop their own positions, subject to approval by the director of museum studies.

MSUM-500 structures the completion of an exhibitionary project at an approved campus venue. The format of the course depends on individual consultation with the instructor on all aspects of the exhibition: planning, design, problem-solving and creativity, accessibility (both physical and intellectual), interpretation, and evaluation. Completion of the project includes written documents, a set of concept drawings, other support materials necessary to communicate project ideas effectively, and the installation of the exhibit.

This is a new program, but we’ve built a solid base of outcomes with students who took classes that would have led to this minor. These alums have interned or are working and going to graduate school at places like: