MSLIS / MS History of Art
Courses are taught at NYPL Research Library, 42nd St., including: Art Collections, Map Collections, Special Collections and the Art World, Business & Information.
The MSLIS and MS/HA Department of Histry of Art and Design, require 30 credits each for a total of 60 credits. All courses are 3-credits.
This 60-credit dual-degree program is ideal for students interested in pursuing careers in academic and museum libraries as having the MSLIS and a subject masters represents the standard reqirement for these fields. With studies in physical and digital collections and real and virtual environments of art and information, SILS students are obtaining challenging positions in museum and academic libraries, historical societies as well as in the information industry and in new media.
For example, recent SILS graduates hold librarian positions at Yale and Princeton University, the Morgan Library, Brooklyn Historical Society, Brooklyn Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About the Program
Through the dual-degree, students become art historians and librarians and are able to carry out art historical research. They learn to design information systems and networks, use digital technology, apply the theories, research and practice of information science and use the Internet and Web to convey meaning and communicate content effectively and creatively in the arts across diverse cultures and societies of today's global digital landscape. Graduates of the dual-degree program have achieved positions with leading educational and cultural institutions such as: New York Public Library, Bard College Library Cooper-Hewitt Library Art Institute of Chicago, Princeton University and East Asian Library, Columbia University.
Among LIS schools, Pratt offers the most in-depth course offerings and programs in art and museum librarianship. Collaborating with New York's great cultural institutions such as NYPL research Libraries and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, students learn on location at the finest art and museum libraries, special collections and archives for authentic learning.
Curriculum
Course requirements - Master of Science in Library & Information Science
Core Required Courses - 12 Credits
LIS-651 Information Professions
LIS-652 Information Services and Sources
LIS-653 Knowledge Organization
LIS-654 Information Technologies
Recommended Electives, choose from 4 categories- 18 credits (six 3-credit courses)
- Arts & Information
Art Librarianship
Museum Librarianship
Performing Arts Librarianship at NYPL Lincoln Center Library
Art Collections at NYPL, HSSL; Ephhmera Collections at NYPL
The Art World Business & Information at NYPL, HSSL
Museum & Library Research at the Watson Library, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Special Collections at NYPL, HSSL
Florence Summer Program in partnership with SACI School of Art - two 3-credit courses: 1. Florentine Art & Culture: Museum & Library Research and documentation, 2. Cultural Heritage Conservation. - Knowledge Organization
Advanced Cataloging
Meta Data, Design & Access
Abstracting & Indexing
Thesaurus Construction & Design - Digital Technology - Information Design and Interaction
Information Architecture
Projects in Digital Archives
People-centered Design and Interaction
Usability Leadership
Web 2.0 for Library Professionals - Preservation/ Conservation - Conservation Lab; Digital Preservation; Cultural Heritage Conservation (Florence)
Course requirements - Master of Science, History of Art & Design
Core Required Courses - 9 credits
HA-602 Art Historical Methodology
HA-650 Material Techniques and Conservation (usually held at Brooklyn Museum Conservation lab)
HA 605 Thesis (Foreign language requirements must be completed before registering for thesis)
Other Courses must fulfill distribution requirements in:
* Film/ Design/ Photography
* Non Western design art and history
* Architecture
* Ancient/ Medieval World
* Renaissance / Baroque
* 19th / 20th / 21st centuries
Note: a course may fulfill more than one requirement.
Students in the dual MS/MS degree program in the generally take one or two classes in each program, each semester (3-4 classes a semester) to complete the program.
Scholarships and Fellowships for Art and Museum Librarianship
Students pursuing the dual-degree or students entering SILS with a master's in art or a related field are eligible to apply for special tuition and stipend awards for their second year of study (note - merit scholarships are available for the first year of study). These include:
- Courtauld Institute, London - Internship
- Metropolitan Museum of Art - Internship
- Twining Fellowship: Florence
See the Pratt Institute Bulletin (Catalog) for more program information, faculty biographies and full listing of courses and course descriptions.
For History of Art, see pp. 60-63 and pp.169-176; For SILS see, pp. 72-75 and
pp. 188-200
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