Read an interview all about the new program!
The two-year master’s degree in Museum Studies is a unique cooperation between Central European University and the Wien Museum, providing students with rigorous academic training in historical studies combined with practical, hands-on museum experience. It combines opportunities for experiential learning at Europe’s leading museums with both foundational coursework in the history and theory of museums, and the multidisciplinary study of the past. The program provides students with the skills, experience, and professional knowledge needed in today’s museum. This English-language program will prepare students for a wide range of careers in museums and memory institutions across the world.
Candidates from any country can apply for CEU financial aid in this MA program. The application deadline for this program including financial aid is 1 February 2024. Learn more about how to fund your studies here.
Learning at the Museum
All students will take courses taught by staff of the Wien Museum, with a focus on practical work in museums today. Students will learn about every aspect of museum operations, from curatorial research, to creating educational programs, to marketing and fundraising. The courses are structured around hands-on projects and independent museum work, providing students with valuable skills for their future museum careers. Courses include:
Museum Studies Foundation Week
Principles of Museum Education
Principles of Museum Communication
Learning at the University
The program combines practical training with CEU’s student experience, offering research driven and public-facing university education to a new generation of museum workers. Students study the history and theory of museums and other memory institutions and pursue two years of elective coursework from the Department‘s interdisciplinary curriculum in historical studies, ranging from late antiquity to the present. Students can specialize in any period of history, focus on specific regions, or deepen their understanding of particular topics in the study of the past and their expressions in art, scholarship, and public discourse. They develop expertise in the field of their own interest, working closely with expert faculty to apply this knowledge in the museum world and engage different audiences. Courses include:
Archives as Memory Institutions
Historical Studies Electives (browse here and here for courses on offer 2023/24)
Working at the Museum
Students will undertake two internships during the course of the degree program. In the first year, students will do an internship at a Viennese museum, working in various departments, offering insight into the everyday work of the museum. In the second year, students will take part in an intensive internship at a museum of their choosing where they will work on a capstone project for the degree.
The program cooperates with partners in Vienna's and the wider region's rich museum scene. Students have the opportunity to apply for internships at:
Albertina| Albertina Modern
Architekturzentrum Wien
Belvedere
Carnuntum
DÖW – Documentation Center of Austrian Resistance
Foto Arsenal Wien
Freud Museum
HGM – Heeresgeschichtliches Museum
Jüdisches Museum
Kunstforum Wien
Kunsthalle Wien
Kunsthaus Wien
KHM – Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien
Künstlerhaus
Landesmuseum Niederösterreich
Leopold Museum
MAK – Museum of Applied Arts
Mumok – Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien
Museum am Dom St. Pölten
NHM - Naturhistorisches Museum Wien
Philieas
QWien - Center for Queer History
Stadtmuseum St. Pölten
Technisches Museum Wien
Vera and Donald Blinken OSA Archivum Budapest
Volkskunde Museum
Welt Museum
ZOOM Children’s Museum
Program Entry Requirements
In addition to meeting the general CEU admissions requirements, applicants must provide:
CV
Contact details of two referees
Proof of English proficiency
Statement of Purpose
The Statement of Purpose (500-750 words) should explain your interest in the Museum Studies program, demonstrate your motivation for a professional career in the museum world, and provide further details on:
- ideas for an individual museum project
- internship interests
- previous experience in museum work (if any, not required)
- research areas you see particularly relevant to your interests
APPLY NOW
Contact: Jessica Knowles (KnowlesJ@ceu.edu)
Program approved and registered in the United States by the New York State Education Department and subject to accreditation by the Agency for Quality Assurance and Accreditation Austria (AQ-Austria).