I agree with Mark. I am currently in the process of hiring a new curator for our museum and I'm more interested in what they know how to do first hand rather than the theory of. We are of course looking for someone with a museum degree or other related field so a thesis helps but for my needs as an administrator and employer I need experience.
 
Diane
 
Diane Hutsell
Executive Director
McMinn County Living Heritage Museum
423-745-0329
www.livingheritagemuseum.com
----- Original Message -----
From: [log in to unmask] href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">natalya hopper
To: [log in to unmask] href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">[log in to unmask]
Sent: Wednesday, September 09, 2009 4:34 PM
Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] Question for the Professionals

Garet,

Does the thesis option replace the internship requirement?  In our program if you decide to do a thesis it is in addition to the required internship.  Just curious.

Thanks,
Natalya

> Date: Wed, 9 Sep 2009 14:41:13 -0500
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] Question for the Professionals
> To: [log in to unmask]
>
> Hi Garet,
>
> I believe the best advice would be to do what you think interests you and serves your personal desires for your degree most. That will ultimately be the most beneficial thing for you and your long-term career. Neither option is going to help or hurt you more than the other in the general sense, even though some hiring professionals may prefer one path over another. I do not think there is a good way, nor is there a good reason, to try and predict that ahead of time.
>
> I personally took the non-thesis (internship) option for my masters in Museum Science. There was the choice between a thesis and a paid internship. I took the internship(and report) option because I felt that the real experience would benefit me more than writing another research paper. I do not believe the choice hampered me in any way in my pursuit of my PhD, nor did it close any doors that would otherwise have been open to me.
>
> Nonetheless, I do believe that making that choice has shaped my career. A thesis would have kept me on campus for another semester or two, in the museum and at the university, rather than out in the museum world. That would no doubt have redirected me in my choices for a first job, where to look, and what path I might like to take, in addition to the actual opportunities available to me when I was ready to enter the field.
>
> Good luck.
>
> Mark Janzen
> Registrar/Collection Manager
> Ulrich Museum of Art
> Martin H. Bush Outdoor Sculpture Collection
> 316-978-5850
>
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