Introduction

Museum studies curriculum rests at the center of the history department’s graduate program in public history—and has for thirty years. Our students take a series of courses on the history of museums, exhibits and education in history museums, and collections management. Students also take internships at History Colorado and other museums and historical societies, and a significant portion go on to work for these institutions or similar ones locally and across the country.

Upon successful completion of the certificate, students will:

• Understand the history of museums and theories behind exhibits, museum education, and care for historical objects, and digital museum methods
• Have hands-on experience curating exhibits, writing labels, interpreting artifacts, managing museum collections, and engaging in outreach and public programing
• Be familiar with the structure of history museum administration and business models
• Be familiar with issues of inclusions and diversity facing museums
• Have experience writing grants for museums and other cultural institutions
• Have collaborated with a range of professionals working in the world of museums
• Be familiar with local, national, and international museum organizations, and how to use them to find information and standards in the field

Students may take the Museum Studies Certificate independently or part of the Public History MA degree.

Program Delivery

This certificate is an on-campus program.

Declaring This Certificate

Students should meet with Professor Gross (rachel.gross@ucdenver.edu) or Professor Kopp (peter.kopp@ucdenver.edu)

These program requirements are subject to periodic revision by the academic department, and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences reserves the right to make exceptions and substitutions as judged necessary in individual cases. Therefore, the College strongly urges students to consult regularly with their History advisor to confirm the best plans of study before finalizing them.

Certificate Requirements

1. Students must complete a minimum of 12 credit hours.
2. Students must earn a minimum grade of B (3.0) in all course applied to the certificate and must achieve a minimum cumulative certificate GPA of 3.0. All graded attempts in required and elective courses are calculated in the certificate GPA. Courses taken using P+/P/F or S/U grading cannot apply to certificate requirements.
3. Students must complete all coursework with CU Denver faculty.
4. All prerequisites for program courses must be met.
5. All requirements must be met within a seven-year period

   Course List

   Code	Title	Hours
   HIST 5133	Management of Material Culture and Museum Collections	3
   HIST 5244	Interpretation of History in Museums: Exhibits and Education	3
   HIST 5939	Internship	3
   Select One Course:		3
   HIST 5227	American West
   HIST 5229	Colorado Historic Places
   HIST 5232	Historic Preservation
   HIST 5234	History at Work: Public and Community History
   HIST 5260	Introduction to Digital Studies
   HIST 5240	National Parks History