Museum Studies Minor

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The interdisciplinary minor in Museum Studies combines practical courses in exhibit preparation and object study with theoretical and liberal arts approaches to museum interpretation and management. Those students for whom this minor is appropriate include those interested in museums of all sorts, from art to history, from national parks to zoos and botanical gardens, to many other types of educational display facilities. The minor requires two courses that are dedicated to museum studies utilizing facilities and materials at Truman, one required internship in a museum setting of the student’s selection, and two more courses chosen to fulfill competencies identified by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) as required components for the education of a well-trained museum professional.

Program Requirements (15-18 credits):

No more than two courses (maximum of 8 credit hours) may double count with a students major or any single minor.

IDSM 360 - Museums: Object and Collections Management Credits: 3
IDSM 361 - Exhibition and Museums: Planning and Practice Credits: 3
Practicum/Internship (3-4 credits, credit and assessment overseen by department of supervisor and/or major)

Competencies:

Two additional courses (min. 6 hours), no more than one per category and one per disciplinary prefix (several disciplines have courses in more than one category) to encourage breadth of experience and competency.

[NOTE: Courses listed below have prerequisites required, indicated by an asterisk (*). These courses may not be appropriate for non-majors, and may have multiple prerequisites. Few or no seats may be available for non-majors.]

Museology Competencies

Knowledge and skills in the application of intellectual foundations of museum work.

A second museum-based internship may be used to fulfill this competency if the initial internship required for the minor has been fulfilled. These internships should be different from each other (in other words, a six credit hour internship cannot be used to fulfill both requirements). The two internships should either be in different museums, or in different departments, or focused on different tasks/learning goals, so that the intern will gain a new experience and competence in addition to that from the first internship.

Management Competencies

Knowledge of and skills in the theory and practice of museum operations.

Select one of the following (3 or more credit hours):

Public Programming Competencies

Knowledge of and skills in serving the museum’s communities, including communications and exhibitions.

Information and Collections Management Competencies

Knowledge of and skills in creating, preserving, and sharing museum resources and collections.

Note:

In addition to the listed courses, students may petition the committee to have an additional course fulfill a competency requirement. This could include a course from a study abroad program, a Topics section that deals with a specific approach to (for example) material culture or management, or an independent study or directed readings, and/or a JINS class that falls under a template that is not always focusing on relevant material, among other possibilities. The decision will be made with the approval of the majority of the voting members of the Museum Studies committee. For any course that a student wants to use that is not on the pre-approved list, the student must provide a description of the course, relevant supporting documentation, and a statement explaining how the course fulfills the competency category with which the student would like to be credited. The petitioning letter and accompanying documentation will be reviewed by the Museum Studies Committee, which will vote to approve, disapprove, or reconsider the application after additional supporting material is provided.