Museum Studies at the University of Iowa
The University of Iowa has offered professional training for work in museums since 1910.
The Museum Studies Certificate program combines history, theory, and experiential learning to create a forward-looking curriculum preparing professionals for graduate school or work in a wide range of museums and cultural institutions.
Courses are offered online and face-to-face each semester to meet your education and professional development needs.
About the Museum Studies Program
A certificate prepares students for entry-level positions in museums or for advanced studies in graduate school. Employment in zoos and botanical gardens; historical houses and science centers; local, state and federal parks and monuments; and libraries and archives are all possible.
In large institutions a graduate with a BA/BS degree combined with a Museum Studies certificate may find employment supporting the head of department (e.g., assistant collection manager, education coordinator, exhibit artist); in smaller institutions, the same credentials may enable entry with a higher title (e.g., curator, exhibit manager, director).
Graduates of the University of Iowa’s Museum Studies Program have become directors, curators, educators, and exhibit specialists in museums throughout the country. The Museum Studies program offers courses that are of value not only to students intending to pursue museum careers or continue their education, but also to those with a general interest in the arts, sciences, or humanities, as well as to those students who simply wish to know more about the workings of museums.
Whether you are taking online or face-to-face courses, you can expect to engage in a variety of activities.
Through lectures, discussions, visits to museums, hands-on learning, professional guest speakers, and museum-based projects students will learn about:
- The history and origins of museums
- Collections management and care best practices
- Audience and community engagement
- Nonprofit fundraising, grant writing and management
- Strategic planning and organizational structure
- Ethics and professionalism in the field
- Communication and collaboration best practices
Museum Studies certificate students also are required to complete an internship of 150 experience hours that gives them the opportunity to engage in professional work at a museum, gallery, archive, historical center, and/or historical home of their choice and in the location that is best suited for them.
The Certificate Program is open to any student, either non-traditional or undergraduate, with a minimum 2.0 GPA who is not enrolled in a graduate program in the United States. Students who have already earned a Bachelor’s degree or partial credit toward a Bachelor’s degree are also eligible to apply. Students can complete the coursework for the certificate online and/or on campus. You do not have to be admitted into a bachelor’s program or have earned a bachelor’s degree to enroll in the undergraduate, online Museum Studies certificate program.
Graduate students are welcome to take Museum Studies courses, but currently the Certificate is only offered at the undergraduate level. Graduate students have the option to enroll in the Certificate program after completing the graduate degree.
Yes! Many of the courses for the Museum Studies Program are offered online, allowing a distance-learning student to earn the Certificate in as little as four semesters. It is also possible to take a mix of online and face-to-face courses to meet the certificate requirements.
Online courses are typically semester long, with 16-week courses in the Fall and Spring, and 4-, 6-, 8- and 12-week options in the summer. You do not have to be admitted into a bachelor’s program or have earned a bachelor’s degree to enroll in the undergraduate, online Museum Studies certificate program.
If you are interested in applying as a new, online student who is only pursuing the Museum Studies Certificate, please follow these important steps:
1. Complete and Submit the Non-Degree Students Application.
- You can read more about this degree option here: https://admissions.uiowa.edu/apply/nondegree-students.
- Application form is available here: : https://apply.admissions.uiowa.edu/admissions/nondegree.page
* Please note that there is a $55 application fee and students will need to send a transcript for any undergraduate college credit they have earned.
2. When prompted in the application, select the following options:
- “What type of credit are you seeking”: Undergraduate Credit
- “To which Undergraduate College of the University are you applying?”: Liberal Arts and Sciences
- “Purpose of attending”: Undergraduate Online Museum Studies Certificate
* Please note that all off-campus students earning a degree or certificate online must declare the program of study through the online program for advising, enrollment, and tuition assessment purposes.
- “List the courses you plan to take at Iowa”: Museum Studies courses, including MUSM:3001.
- “I plan to take courses”: Online
* Please note that all off-campus students earning a degree or certificate online must declare the program of study through the online program for advising, enrollment, and tuition assessment purposes.
A total of 18 s.h. of work is required for the Museum Studies Certificate, including a 3 s.h. introductory course, 12 s.h. in Museum Studies Topic Areas Courses (one course from three of the four topic areas listed below and a fourth course from any topic area), and 3 s.h. in Internship and Professionalism credit. The program is flexible enough to meet your needs, and courses are offered regularly, allowing you to complete the program within one academic year for on-campus students and three semesters for online students.
Below is an outline of the courses offered and certificate requirements. You can read about specific museum studies courses in the general course catalog.
CERTIFICATE REQUIREMENTS (starting fall 2024):
* indicates online courses
Introductory Course:
MUSM:3001 Introduction to Museum Studies (3 s.h.) *
Internship and Professionalism Courses (3 s.h.):
CCP:1201 Academic Internship * (2-3 s.h.)
MUSM:3091 Topics in Museum Studies (0-1 s.h.)
Museum Studies Topic Areas (Choose one course from three of the four topic areas listed below and a fourth course from any topic area; 12 s.h.)
Collection Care and Management
MUSM:3003 Natural History Research Collections (3 s.h.)
MUSM:3200 Collection Care and Management (3 s.h.)*
MUSM:3115 Museum Education and Interpretation (3 s.h.)
MUSM:4200 Museum Object Preservation (3 s.h.)
Exhibition Development and Public Education
MUSM:3004 Exhibition Planning (3 s.h.)*
MUSM:3105 Engaging Museum Audiences (3 s.h.) *
MUSM:3115 Museum Education and Interpretation (3 s.h.)
MUSM:3125 Museums in a Digital World (3 s.h.) *
MUSM:4210 Museum Without Walls (3 s.h.)
History, Theory, and Culture
MUSM:2850 Museums and Social Justice (3 s.h.)
MUSM:3120 Museum Origins (3 s.h.) *
MUSM:3237 Politics of the Archaeological Past (3 s.h.)
MUSM:4081 The Art Museum: Theory and Practice (3 s.h.)
MUSM:4310 Slavery Museums, Memorials and Statues (3 s.h.)
Museum Administration and Management
MUSM:3100 Historic House Management and Preservation (3 s.h.) *
MUSM:3130 Topics in Museum Administration and Management (3 s.h.) *
MUSM:3131 Museum Evaluation and Visitor Studies (3 s.h.)
MUSM:3500 Nonprofit Organizational Effectiveness I (3 s.h.) *
MUSM:4045 Art, Law and Ethics (3 s.h.)
MUSM:4150 Introduction to Grant Writing (3 s.h.) *
MUSM:4150 Introduction to Grant Writing (3 sh) *
Museum Studies Certificate students must complete at least 150 hours of an internship at a museum, gallery, library collection, or historical society of their choice. Students can start an internship at any point during coursework, but are encouraged to wait until after completing the Introduction to Museum Studies course (MUSM:3001) approximately 12 s.h. of coursework, in addition to declaring a Museum Studies Certificate through MyUI or with their advisor. This will ensure that you have a Museum Studies advisor who can help you with this process.
For a list of pre-approved Museum Studies Certificate internship opportunities please contact Museum Studies Coordinator, Dr. Debra Trusty.
For current, full-time students: You can earn the Certificate Museum Studies on campus or online at no additional cost. It is already included in your tuition. Simply declare a Museum Studies Certificate by signing in to MyUI and clicking on “Programs of Study” in the “Student Information” section. Once on that page, please add “Museum Studies Certificate” to your list of programs.
Online, non-degree seeking students: You can earn a Museum Studies Certificate at the same cost as state-resident tuition + technology fee. Tuition and fees are the same for both resident or non-resident students. To learn more, click here (https://tuition.ais.its.uiowa.edu/rates) and select “College of Liberal Arts and Sciences”, “Museum Studies”, and “CLAS Museum Studies CER [online]”.
For the cost of other types of enrollment, please see https://tuition.ais.its.uiowa.edu/rates.
You can declare a Museum Studies Certificate by signing in to MyUI and clicking on “Programs of Study” in the “Student Information” section. Once on that page, please add “Museum Studies Certificate” to your list of programs.
If you experience any complications, please contact the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) Undergraduate Programs: 120 Schaeffer Hall; 319-335-2633; clasps@uiowa.edu and tell them that you want to declare the Museum Studies Certificate or talk to your advisor.
If you are already a UI student, You can declare a Museum Studies Certificate by signing in to MyUI and clicking on “Programs of Study” in the “Student Information” section. Once on that page, please add “Museum Studies Certificate” to your list of programs. If you experience any complications, please contact the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) Undergraduate Programs: 120 Schaeffer Hall; 319-335-2633; clasps@uiowa.edu and tell them that you want to declare the Museum Studies Certificate or talk to your advisor.
If you are interested in applying as a new, online student who is only pursuing the Museum Studies Certificate, please follow these important steps:
1. Complete and Submit the Non-Degree Students Application.
- You can read more about this degree option here: https://admissions.uiowa.edu/apply/nondegree-students.
- Application form is available here: https://apply.admissions.uiowa.edu/admissions/login.page;jsessionid=3E54A75DFD729803D8F3D98D84068975
* Please note that there is a $55 application fee and students will need to send a transcript for any undergraduate college credit they have earned.
2. When prompted in the application, select the following options:
- “What type of credit are you seeking”: Undergraduate Credit
- “To which Undergraduate College of the University are you applying?”: Liberal Arts and Sciences
- “Purpose of attending”: Undergraduate Online Museum Studies Certificate
* Please note that all off-campus students earning a degree or certificate online must declare the program of study through the online program. This allows distance learners to be identified easily and for related data to be collected.
- “List the courses you plan to take at Iowa”: Museum Studies courses, including MUSM:3001.
- “I plan to take courses”: Online
* Please note that all off-campus students earning a degree or certificate online must declare the program of study through the online program. This allows distance learners to be identified easily and for related data to be collected.
If you are not yet enrolled at the University of Iowa but plan to apply for a UI Bachelor’s degree (on-campus or online) while also earning a Museum Studies Certificate, please apply for your Bachelor’s program and declare a certificate after acceptance into the primary program.
Please contact anthropology@uiowa.edu for further information or watch this video for a recording of our information session (from fall 2023):
Useful Links and Resources
