Call for placement hosts for MA students
Call for placement hosts for MA students
The School of Fine Art, History of Art and Cultural Studies would like to hear from art galleries, museums, heritage or arts organisations interested in hosting one of our MA placement students.
As part of the MA Art Gallery and Museum Studies and MA Arts Management and Heritage Studies courses at the University of Leeds, students have the opportunity to undertake a negotiated work placement to gain first-hand experience of contemporary museum and gallery practice.
The School has close links with many of the major cultural institutions and organisations in the region, meaning there are plenty of opportunities for students to explore. As part of the placement module, students return to the classroom each week to consider key aspects of professional practice, in sessions which are frequently led by experienced museum staff.
Students have completed placements in organisations such as Leeds City Museum, Leeds Art Gallery, National Science and Media Museum, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Royal Armouries (working with the Archives Digitisation Project) and with East Street Arts (developing a project in connection with the Art Hostel).
MA Art Gallery and Museum Studies alumna Hayley Reid said about her placement with East Street Arts, undertaken in 2016:
“During my time with East Street Arts I was introduced, from the beginning, to their exciting large-scale project: Art Hostel. Using the Art Hostel as a base I was able to see and often be a part of the development of the building and the art-filled rooms inside.
“I shadowed Nicola Greenan, a director of East Street Arts, and attended various meetings with funding bodies, Leeds City Council and cultural organisations in Leeds to get a taste of the type of varied work that a charitable arts organisation is involved with.
“An important aspect of the placement was to develop a project that I could work on independently and which would benefit the Art Hostel and East Street Art’s work. Together with Nicola, I decided to focus on a research project around the cultural regeneration of the historic street, Kirkgate, where the hostel is situated.
“This project gave me an important insight into the process of long-term projects from initial research, applying for funding, to finally seeing the realisation of the hard work.”
Helen Graham, Programme Director for MA Art Gallery and Museum Studies, said:
“The chance to undertake live projects with archives, museums, heritage and arts organisations is a crucial part of our MA programmes. We know students get an enormous amount from working with our partners, just as we know from our partners that they really benefit from fresh eyes, new perspectives and critical questioning of our students.
“We are always looking to engage with more arts and heritage organisations as part of our student placement module and would very much like to hear from anyone who can offer a placement in 2018.
“The student placement projects can start at any time in January 2018 and can extend to May 2018. They can be one or two days a weeks over a number of weeks, or can be more concentrated activity in shorter time periods, depending on the kind of project and the available commitment from the host organisation and the student. We very much welcome small group placements as well as individual student work placements.”
Organisations interested in offering a placement to MA students are encouraged to email Helen Graham by 15 November 2017. Please also get in touch with Helen if you would like any more information.
