University at Buffalo-SUNY

Arts Management Program

Arts Management Program
608 Clemens Hall
Buffalo, NY 14260-4640
United States
Main Phone: 716-645-2437
Main E-Mail: ub-artsmanagement@buffalo.edu

Degree/Credential: Graduate (MA in Arts Management)
Web Site: http://www.artsmanagement.buffalo.edu/

Program Director: MPaeslack [link available to AAAE members only]

Program Goals and Objectives

Arts management matters because the arts manager is the final mediator between art and the public. The challenge for us today is to find ways of forging independent links between each artwork and its true audience, while negotiating the increasingly complex legal, political and economic bonds that now constrain the management of the arts.

The intention of UB's graduate Arts Management Program is to equip students to become effective arts managers. The curriculum is designed to increase the student's ability to identify and solve the complex, interdisciplinary problems and tensions that are inherent in the areas of arts management and cultural policy making.

Administration of the Program

The UB Arts Management Program is housed in the University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences and is affiliated with both the Schools of Management and Law.  Program Director Dr. Ruth Bereson holds a PhD from the Department of Arts Policy and Management at City University London.  Faculty for the Program come from diverse backgrounds in scholarship and practice in Arts Management and related fields of advocacy, law and management.  The program is international in scope and extends invitations to distinguished scholars to provide a current and lateral understanding of the subject.  The student population comes from throughout the United States and abroad, reflecting the international nature and aims of the Program.

For more information on our faculty, please visit http://artsmanagement.buffalo.edu/faculty/

Curriculum

The Arts Management Program offers a dynamic two year course of study comprising core courses in the subject as well as additional courses tailored to students’ individual interests.

A 39 credit hour two year full time course, all students will take subjects such as:  Arts Management and Society, which investigates the relationship between the Arts and Society over time; Why Manage the Arts? which has as its point of departure the very question which we all must address as arts managers; Arts and Cultural Policy and Diplomacy which provides an international understanding of the role of policy and diplomacy in arts and cultural institutions and their relationship to the state.  Fieldwork in Arts Management is also part of the course of study where students work with arts organizations on a semester long project in the field.  Students will also undertake specially designed Management and Law courses which provide them with the skills and insights needed to become effective arts managers.

All of the above are core courses but we also offer electives which students may select from in areas such as Issues In Museum Management, International Issues in Theatre Management, Music Management and may choose an elective from across the University in order to augment their specialist interest or join us on our International Summer Program which is held annually in the summer semester.

All students will be prepared in their third semester of study with Research in Arts Management which is designed to assist students in their final thesis or project and covers central questions and methodologies within the discipline.

For more information, visit http://artsmanagement.buffalo.edu/about/

Admissions

The applicant pool will be evaluated and some applicants will be chosen for interviews.  Applicants will be informed if they are selected for interview.

On your application you will be asked to provide the following information.  Please note that there is a USD75 fee for applications which must be received in order for your application to be considered:your resume, an essay of no more than three pages on any topic in the field of arts management which interests you, a statement of Educational and Career Goals, two references, and official transcripts from each college or university that you have attended as a full-time student.  International students will also need to submit English Proficiency Scores and an International Financial Form (available on the application). 

For more information, please visit http://artsmanagement.buffalo.edu/apply/