Museum Exhibition Planning + Design, Master of Fine Arts

Programs > Programs in the College of Art, Media, & Design
Contacts Description Program Requirements

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College of Art, Media & Design

Contacts

James Savoie \ jsavoie@uarts.edu \ 215.717.6393
Interim Chairperson, Museum Studies

Polly McKenna-Cress \ pmckennacress@uarts.edu \ 215.717.6328
Director, Museum Exhibition Planning and Design

Description

Representatives of cooperating museums and the University faculty offer a curriculum for Museum Exhibition Planning and Design that addresses the conceptualization, research, organization, design, and production of museum exhibits and educational presentations, utilizing a variety of techniques and media. It also explores exhibit programming, evaluation, and management methods applicable in a wide range of museum situations. Visiting experts teach many aspects of museum presentation, education, and management. Students make formal visits to design departments, production shops, galleries, exhibits, programs in numerous museums, service providers, and consultancies in Philadelphia, the Mid-Atlantic Region, Washington, D.C., and New York. Students undertake a substantial thesis project and a supervised museum internship related to their career interests during the second year of the program.

Program Requirements (60 credits)

Required Courses (52.5 credits)

GRID 508 Design Research and Synthesis 3 credits
DESN 540 Drawing As Design Thinking Tool 1.5 credits
DESN 610 Design Seminar: Concepts and Contexts 3 credits
DESN 620 Team Building 1.5 - 3 credits Complete this course for 1.5 credits
Select
GRAD 655 Graduate Seminar: 18th-21st Century Cultural Ideas
or
GRAD 656 Graduate Seminar: Topics in Cultural Issues
3 credits
MSEM 602 Museum Seminar: Museum in Practice 3 credits
MSEM 603 The Museum Audience 3 credits
MSEM 609 Museum Exhibition Design Studio 4.5 credits
MSEM 611 Museum Exhibition Design Studio 6 credits
MSEM 614 Museum Graphics 1.5 credits
MSEM 615 Museum Lighting 1.5 credits
MSEM 616 Exhibition Materials and Methods 1.5 credits
MSEM 617 Exhibition Materials and Methods 1.5 credits
MSEM 621 Media for Museum Communication 3 credits
MSEM 711 Museum Exhibition Design Studio 6 credits
MSEM 781 Thesis Development: Museum Exhibition Planning & Design 3 credits
MSEM 782 Thesis Development: Museum Education Planning & Design 3 credits
MSEM 797 Museum Exhibition & Planning Internship 3 credits
Students with at least six months of direct exhibition-related experience in a museum, equivalent institution, or a museum consultancy may substitute one three-hour elective for the internship requirement.

Electives (7.5 credits)

Complete 15 credits of graduate level elective coursework. This requirement is satisfied by 500, 600, or 700 level courses.