The UMSL Difference
Three special characteristics distinguish the UMSL Museum Studies curriculum:Audience-centered museology
As a key element in the current processes of change, museums are reevaluating their relationships with the communities and audiences they serve and may serve. This curriculum prepares graduates to work within the emerging new model of museology which places the audience at the center of the museum's mission.
Theoretical foundations
When a field is changing, one needs theoretical tools for diagnosing the current situation, analyzing what is at stake, and envisioning creative alternatives. This program provides intensive training in process theories drawn from the social sciences, organizational studies, learning theory and creativity theory, with a particular focus on theories that illuminate the processes involved in fundamental change in social institutions and complex organizations. The choice and presentation of theories stress their practical application in organizational diagnosis and action.
Project management skills
Changing museums need people who can not only envision creative alternatives, but who have the practical skills to turn their visions into reality. This program stresses the project management skills involved in organizing and supervising interdisciplinary teams that collaborate effectively with audiences and communities.
