MA Museum Studies

This module allows you to develop a focused project on a single topic in museum studies, consolidating the skills and approaches you have developed throughout your programme by applying them to a single output. Your output can be an essay OR an exhibition proposal with object captions. 

You will attend several online and face-to-face workshops to select a topic, appraise appropriate sources, research and deliver your final output. This is an opportunity for you to pursue a singular, focused passion, communicating and consolidating your understanding and critical engagement with the content of the Postgraduate Diploma in Museum Studies programme.

This module introduces students to the foundations of curatorial work and covers a range of theoretical, practical and applied skills. Students will learn best practices for the cataloguing, care, and curation of museum collections, including critical issues of international museum standards, risk management, and collection management systems, via a combination of immersive lectures and seminars delivered by leading museum practitioners and scholars, and focused exercises exploring specific case studies. 

To enrich the learning experience, this module is further supported by professionally curated video content produced in collaboration with SOAS and museum professionals from the UK and other regions. The videos will centre on permanent and temporary displays they curate, research and care for.

This module is designed to provide students with foundational study skills and vocational insights in the context of museum studies. Through focused case studies, students will develop essential academic skills while also exploring their practical applications within the field of museum studies, including curation, interpretation, conservation, collection management, exhibition project management, and learning and audience engagement.

New technologies are reshaping the way we interact with museum collections, displays and spaces. Digital technologies have catalysed a dramatic reimagining of what a museum can be in the 21st century. This module explores how this dramatic moment of change is reshaping the museum sector today. With a range of theoretical and practical content, this module will give you experience and confidence to meet the digital challenges of museum work today and in the future.

This module enables students to reflect on the formation of the museum's collections, the various ways they can be activated and used, and the requirements for their care. This theoretical foundation is supported by a rigorous, practical foundation in the requirements of museum work, with an emphasis on curatorial roles, collection care and management, and the organisation of museum displays. 

Also included are considerations of museum standards, accessioning and deaccessioning, documentation and collection management systems, as well as disaster planning, risk management and significance assessments. Through a mix of theoretical lectures, reflective seminars, and practical hands-on experience this module provides a rigorous foundation for those who wish to understand how museums operate, and who wish to pursue professional opportunities in this sector.

This module is designed to provide students with advanced knowledge and skills in understanding, engaging, and expanding museum audiences. In an era of rapidly evolving cultural institutions, this module equips students with the theoretical foundations and practical tools necessary to enhance the accessibility, relevance, and impact of museums in the 21st century. This module explores advanced topics in museum studies, focusing on audience engagement and accessibility. Students delve into audience analysis, segmentation, and visitor studies to gain insights into visitor motivations and preferences. They learn storytelling techniques for creating engaging exhibitions and programs, ensuring the representation of diverse perspectives.

The dissertation can be an essay on a topic or theme selected by the student OR an exhibition proposal with object captions. Assessments include an annotated bibliography of 700 words and a dissertation of 9000 words. 

Face-to-face workshops will be taught by the module convenor in Saudi as well as online one-to-one supervisory meetings and online group sessions.