Today we will talk about the museum studies (museology).We talked with Dr. Maria Stefko, Acting Head of the Department of Museum Studies of the Faculty of Art History.
—What is museology?
— Museology is an interdisciplinary field of knowledge that studies the processes of preserving and transmitting socially significant information by specific means (museums).
— What undergraduate programs are offered by the Department?
The Bachelor's program "Exhibition Activities" is focused on training specialists who develop exhibition projects: from research to special project documentation, educational and educational programs implemented on the basis of exhibitions.
Last year, we opened the “Heritage and Cultural Mediation” program in response to the growing interest in cultural and natural heritage in our country.
— What Master's programs are offered by the Department?
There are two Master's programs: “Museum in the Digital Age: Traditions and Innovations” usually chosen by those who are interested in museum collections and how to work with them in a museum in the context of digital transformation.
The program "Sociocultural Projects in Museum Practice" is for those who understand the potential of mutual influence of the museum and society and want to learn how to use the tools of sociocultural design to develop them both.
— What is student life like at the Faculty?
— Two points are fundamentally important for us: the inclusion of students in the academic life of the Faculty and a gradual insertion of them into the professional community. For bachelors and masters, twice a year we hold conferences based on the results of summer and winter internships.
The Faculty has four ongoing academic seminars: "Cultural Heritage: Theories and Practices", "Collection and Collector in the Context of the Era", "Historical Museology" and "Modern Technologies of Museum Activity: Theory and Practice".
Our students are regular participants in the competition of student projects at the Crimean Museum School "MUSEUM STUDIO".
Our most ambitious project this year is the Summer Museological Student Camp, which was organized jointly with the Totma Museum Association with the support of the Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives.
— Where do students go for internships?
The range is quite wide. Bachelors go for archaeological internship in real expeditions on the territory of Moscow. Museums offer an opportunity to get acquainted with the work of museums from the inside.
Most graduate students already have experience working in museums. Our programs, which focus on research and project work, give them an opportunity to develop their professional competencies.
— Where do your graduates work?
All the major Moscow and federal museums in Moscow routinely hire them: State Historical Museum, State Central Museum of Contemporary Art, the Pushkin Museum, the Tretyakov Gallery, the Polytechnic Museum, the Museum of Cosmonautics, the Cinema Museum, Kuskovo, Ostankino, the Museum of Moscow, the list is long. Also, our graduates work in the relevant departments of the Ministry of Culture and the Government of Moscow, in the Russian Committee of the International Council of Museums.
