Museum Cultures with Collections Management,MA

Birkbeck, University of London

United Kingdom, London

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408

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Birkbeck, University of London

United Kingdom , London

Key Facts

Program Level

Master by Course Work

Study Type

Full Time

Delivery

On Campus

Campuses

Central London

Program Language

English

Start & Deadlines

Next Intake DeadlinesOctober-2026

Apply to this program

Go to the official application for the university

Duration 1 year(s)

Tuition Fee

GBP 22,980 / year

Next Intake October-2026

Museum Cultures with Collections Management,MA

About

Course Overview

Our MA Museum Cultures with Collections Management combines study of the history and cultural significance of museums with opportunities for you to gain professional museum experience. You will explore the processes that lie at the heart of collections management by which museums ascribe value and meaning to objects, and the ideas, values and ethics which underpin these.

Why choose this course?

This MA gives you the chance to acquire key foundational skills in collections management and a solid grasp of the related issues, learning from leading scholars in the field.
It also offers you the chance to undertake a work placement in a museum, gallery or archive.
You will visit leading London museums and galleries and meet a range of collections management experts to discuss their work, as well as engaging in hands-on activities relating to documentation, object handling and care.
This course benefits from our close links, in teaching and research, with numerous museums, galleries, archives and heritage organisations across London and beyond.

What you will learn

You will master the wide range of methods and sources, including archives, collections, historical and contemporary texts, needed to understand how museums operate and how their role - and the role of the collections manager - is shifting in the twenty-first century. You will also draw upon museum theory and sector guidelines to document a bequest to museum accreditation standard and critically reflect on this process. This will give you advanced skills, much desired by many employers, in analysis, argument and communication.

You will be introduced to many critical issues facing the museum today and be able to take specialist option modules allowing you to explore a subject in depth. Subject-specific training in research skills is also provided.

How you will learn

This course is available to study full- or part-time. Regular classes, consisting of short lectures, seminars and small-group discussions and activities, are held in the evenings. The collections management module is taught during the day and intensively over a one-week period during the spring term. It includes organised visits to museums, galleries, archives, collection stores and heritage sites in London where you will have the opportunity to meet experts in the field.

You can then follow your interests choosing from a wide variety of option modules that may include organised visits to museums, exhibitions and cultural sites of interest. We also offer an exciting study trip abroad every spring, with cities we have visited previously including Paris, Venice, Rome, Florence, Berlin and Moscow.

You will devise your own research project for your dissertation, supervised by one of our specialists.

Discover the career opportunities available by taking Museum Cultures with Collections Management (MA).

Requirements

Entry Requirements

Our standard postgraduate entry requirement is a second-class honours degree (2:2 or above).

For students with a degree in a subject outside the arts and humanities, the one-year part-time Graduate Certificate in Art History can be used as a conversion course. Students who successfully complete the Graduate Certificate with Merit will normally be guaranteed a place on this course.

Applications are reviewed on their individual merits and your professional qualifications and/or relevant work experience will be taken into consideration positively. We actively support and encourage applications from mature learners.

On your application form, please list all your relevant qualifications and experience, including those you expect to achieve.

Apply now to secure your place. The earlier you apply, the sooner your application can be considered and you can enrol. You do not need to have completed your current qualification to start your application.

English Program Requirements

If English is not your first language or you have not previously studied in English, our usual requirement is the equivalent of an International English Language Testing System (IELTS Academic Test) score of 6.5, with not less than 6.0 in each of the sub-tests.

If you don't meet the minimum IELTS requirement, we offer pre-sessional English courses and foundation programmes to help you improve your English language skills and get your place at Birkbeck.

Visit the International section of our website to find out more about our English language entry requirements and relevant requirements by country.

Career

On successfully graduating from this MA Museum Cultures with Collections Management you will have gained an array of important transferable skills, including:

a sophisticated use of written and spoken English
an advanced critical ability in understanding and applying theories
facility and precision in the use of analytical tools.

Graduates can pursue career paths in the museums and heritage sector; arts management, conservation and policy; education, marketing and publishing; and research and academia. Possible professions include:

museum or gallery curator
museum registrar or collections manager
arts administrator
researcher
advertising account executive
lecturer in higher education.

Jobs gained by some of our BA and MA graduates include:

Collections Officer, City of London
Head of Learning, Design Museum
Curator, Schools Programmes, Tate Modern
Curatorial Assistant, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco
Curatorial Officer, National Army Museum
Documentation Officer, V&A
Project Curator, British Museum
Collections Systems Lead, Victoria & Albert Museum
Head of Campaign Management, Science Museum
Curator, Handel House MuseumHead Curator, National Maritime Museum.

Read blogs by former students Danny Birchall, the Wellcome Collection's Digital Manager, and Carla Valentine, author and mortician.

We offer a comprehensive careers service - Careers and Enterprise - your career partner during your time at Birkbeck and beyond. At every stage of your career journey, we empower you to take ownership of your future, helping you to make the connection between your experience, education and future ambitions.