Hi everyone! My name is Katharine MacLaren
(Kate for short), and I am a fourth year Museum Studies student. I started out
in the undecided program at RIT, with my varied interests leading me to classes
like Intro to Criminal Justice, Spanish, Cultural Anthropology, and four
biology classes. I discovered Museum Studies when I took Intro to Public History the spring of my freshman year, and I really enjoyed the class. By
the time I was a sophomore, I was toggling between Biology and Museum Studies
as potential majors. I ultimately chose Museum Studies because it provides
direction but does not limit the paths I might take in that direction. I can
work at a natural history museum, science museum, art gallery, living history
museum or historic house, and there are opportunities to specialize in many
different things. It was a career field that I knew welcomed my diverse interests
and skill sets.
Given my background in biology and
exposure to STEM concepts, I am interested in natural history museums. I am
also intrigued by architecture and historic preservation. This past summer, I
interned at the Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington, Connecticut and was fortunate
enough to explore the estate while cleaning and completing projects. I have
inserted a picture of the beautiful 1901 Colonial Revival home down below.
In addition to the internship, my other
museum-related experience includes: working at the Cary Graphic Arts Collection
and the RIT Archives, and volunteering in the archives at the Litchfield
Historical Society in Connecticut. With the majority of my work thus far
focusing on archives, I would like to learn and gain experience in exhibition design
and collections management in the future. Lastly, I love to write and study
language, so I hope to make use of those two passions wherever I end up.
I look forward to this semester!
The Hill-Stead Museum is gorgeous! I'd love to hear more about your experience there.
ReplyDeleteIt's really great that you have such a varied background coming into this field! I also love how interdisciplinary museum work can be, and having diverse interests and skills will be a huge asset to you!
ReplyDeleteI also liked that museum studies can encompass so many different jobs and opportunities, it's one of the reasons I chose this major as well. There are so many directions one can go with a museum studies degree and such a diverse set of different jobs and job types available within a museum setting. It's awesome that you were able to intern at the Hill-Stead Museum. I've never been but I have lived vicariously through photos! :) Like Jenn said, I would love to hear more about your experience, especially the exploring parts! :)
ReplyDeleteKate, it's great to see the range of experiences that you have had already, and to know that you have a list of potential ideas to move forward. Collections management, for instance, is so broad — can include inventory/catalogueing/database to full-on collections moves! Perhaps working with one collection and tracing its lifecycle, might be useful!
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