MA Conservation of Cultural Heritage

Program Overview

Lincoln's MA Conservation of Cultural Heritage provides students with expert instruction and hands-on experience in the preservation of cultural artifacts. The program offers a comprehensive curriculum, including both theoretical and practical modules, and utilizes historical materials from museums and private collections. Students benefit from the university's reputation in the cultural heritage sector, gaining access to internships and work placements with leading institutions. Graduates pursue careers as conservators in museums, galleries, and other heritage organizations both nationally and internationally.

Program Outline

Degree Overview:

Lincoln's MA Conservation of Cultural Heritage provides students with hands-on experience and expert instruction in the field. The program aims to equip students with practical, theoretical, and research skills necessary for a career in heritage conservation. The program is ideal for students interested in remedial treatment, preventive conservation, or collections management. It includes both theoretical and practical modules, delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, workshops, independent study, practicals, work placements, research, and one-to-one learning.

Course Schedule:

• Taught Theory Modules: Delivered in four intensive non-consecutive weeks, offering a flexible learning approach combining face-to-face teaching with online sessions.
• Practical Modules: Take place in purpose-built facilities on campus, where students work with historic objects and cultural heritage materials provided from museums and private collections.

Individual Modules:

• Conservation Practice (Core): This practical module covers the conservation treatment of one or more complex object(s) of cultural heritage.
The exact content depends on the object type chosen. Students can specialize in a specific material discipline or pursue broader options.
• Conservation Practice and Sharing Knowledge (Core): This practical module covers the conservation treatment of one or more complex objects of cultural heritage.
The exact content depends on the object type chosen. Students can specialize in a specific material discipline or pursue broader options.
• Conservation Skills in Context (Core): This module complements skills learned in other core modules.
Students learn through project-based activities, critical reflection, and co-creation. It builds on background understanding and experience to increase confidence and skills, preparing students for a broad range of career possibilities.
• Investigative Techniques in Heritage (Core): This module develops knowledge of investigative techniques and their relevance to conservation and heritage science.
Students learn about analytical methods and digital tools for monitoring and analyzing cultural heritage materials.
• Material Culture, Conservation, and Significance (Core): This module challenges conservation students to think broadly about the objects they conserve.
It encourages students to explore the process of assessing significance, supporting institutions in understanding objects and their values for different audiences. The module helps students develop analytical skills to assess the value of an object and its place within the heritage industry. Assessments encourage students to produce professional museological documentation and relate the module's content to collections management.
• Research Project (Dissertation for MA Conservation) (Core): This module provides students with the opportunity to apply and develop their existing knowledge and skills to an independent research project in an area of their choice.
Students develop, design, and implement a research project in consultation with a supervisory tutor, reflecting critically on a specialist area of cultural heritage related to their Masters program. Students are expected to cover their own travel, accommodation, and general living expenses during the research project. It introduces students to the "life-cycle" of museum objects and covers key issues concerning collections development, management of the internal and external environment, collections documentation, and care. Procedures such as collections surveys, risk management, and emergency planning are considered.
• Digitising Cultural and Heritage Collections (Optional): This module addresses key issues in collections management, focusing on digital collections.
It introduces key theory and concepts and includes a practical dimension, allowing students to participate in the production of metadata, the development of a content management system, and the application of a content management system to support exhibition development.

Assessment:

Assessment methods may include presentations, essays, reports, practical work, journal articles, websites, or blogs. Students on the blended learning option are required to submit a monthly report to monitor their progress, and online tutorials are offered by the module tutor. The University of Lincoln's policy on assessment feedback aims to ensure that academics return in-course assessments to students promptly, usually within 15 working days of the submission date. To obtain the MA, students must submit a 15,000-word dissertation.

Teaching:

Most Conservation tutors and technicians are qualified conservators with extensive professional experience in the museum and heritage industry. Blended learning opportunities combining flexibility, support, and academic rigor also exist for those already working in the sector.

Careers:

Graduates have gained employment as conservators in museums, galleries, historic houses, and conservation agencies, nationally and internationally.

Other:

The University of Lincoln is home to Lincoln Conservation, a company that combines research, teaching, and commercial expertise. Students may have opportunities to apply to work on live projects during the year, providing professional experience and contextualizing learning.