There has been alot of discussion on the List about having a Master's
degree; its value, its ramifications, etc.  Here is my dilemma.  I have a
B.A. but have been working in a rapidly growing museum for eight years and
am now overseeing several staff members with M.A.s.  I would like to
continue my education but do not necessarily want to do a correspondence
M.A. program because the generalized learning (say in history) that I would
gain would not really pertain to my job.  Are there other museum people in
this same dilemma?  Is there a need for a professional development program,
possibly administrated by the AAM or the AASLH that would allow people
currently working in museums to gain a "certificate." This type of
education could be in the form of a one week seminar or by internet
correspondence.  There could be several focuses such as basic conservation,
overseeing docent programs, publications, exhibit writing, etc., etc.
        With the emerging importance of Master's level educations in the museum
field, a program like this would allow working people to "keep up," and it
would allow people to more easily shift their focus within the museum
field, say from registrar to curation (which is what happened in my case).
I'm just curious if there would be a demand for this type of thing.  Please
respond to List.

Lisa Hancock, Curator
Aspen Historical Society