Andrew: Unless people have offered you advice (not program advertisements)off-line , I don't think that anyone has answered your questions. There are two current museum studies tracks, which I am sure you are aware of: you can obtain a museum studies certificate in conjunction with an academic discipline such as history, art history, or anthropology or you can pursue a master's level museum studies degree at one of about 23 universities in the United States. Most of the latter let's you specialize in one particular area of museums such as education or exhibits. You will receive MANY opinions as to which is the best type of program and almost every graduate of either type will staunchly support their alma mater. It comes down to what YOU want. If museums (and related institutions/businesses) are THE place you want to work in for your chosen professional career and you have no qualms at all about pursuing this course, then pursue a degree in Museum Studies. If, however, you want to continue in your academic discipline but want the option of working in a museum or perhaps a university or college, then I suggest you pursue a certificate in Museum Studies. Both have pluses and minuses that you must weigh for yourself. Since I have worked in a major natural history museum for over 15 years, I can speak to your second question. For employment as a curator in a scientific department of a Natural History museum, they require that you have a master's or PhD degree in an academic discipline. For a job as a registrar, collections manager,etc. they prefer you have an academic area and museum training through a certificate or master's level program. Requirements vary from museum to museum. As far as jobs in high demand at this time: directors/CEOs/presidents; educators; museum marketing; development (fundraising); and people who know how to develop and use technology whether its through exhibits or education or a related field. Here is my two cents. I am sure that my colleagues out there may have slightly different opinions. Dawn Scher Thomae Collections Manager/Associate Curator - Anthropology Milwaukee Public Museum and Coordinator and professor- UW-Milwaukee/Milwaukee Public Museum Museum Studies Graduate Certificate Program (since 1963) -----Original Message----- From: Andrew Harrington [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: Monday, October 21, 2002 10:16 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Museum Studies Programs Hello, I was wondering if I could get anyone's opinion regarding museum studies programs. Currently I am looking into graduate schools that offer some type of museum studies. My bachelor's degree is in Anthropology/Archaeology and I have an interest in archaeological collections and curation/research. I am trying to decide whether it would be more beneficial to get a master's degree in Anthropology with a concentration in Museum Studies or if it would be better to get a master's in Museum Studies with a concentration in Anthropology. Does anyone have an opinion on which option is more marketable to museums (especially natural history museums) when looking for jobs? Also, I was wondering if there are any jobs within museums that are particularly in demand at this time. Any information or advice you can give me will be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Sincerely, Andrew Harrington __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Autos - Get free new car price quotes http://autos.yahoo.com ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes). ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).