Arts Administration

• MET AR 510: Arts Leaders Forum
  The "Arts Leaders Forum" consists of a series of conversations with arts leaders, including entrepreneurs, community leaders and established industry experts. Each week guests will share their experiences with the class. In addition to guest speakers, students will focus on leadership skills and exercises through readings and cases. The goal of this course is to give students insight into the pressing issues of managing arts organizations, to gain leadership skills and to provide insight into career options.
• MET AR 550: Raising Funds and Grant Writing for Nonprofit Organizations
  An examination of ways to raise funds from government, foundation, corporate, and individual sources. The following topics will be addressed through lectures and case analysis: the history of philanthropy, the planning and research process, proposal and grant preparation, program evaluation, and the role of the board and staff in developing effective fundraising strategies.
• MET AR 577: Comparative Cultural Policy and Administration
  This course examines the nature of cultural policy in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, and the European Union from 1945 to the present. Through lectures and readings (drawn from public policy and economics), lectures by leading arts administrators and policy makers in Dublin and London, and visits to important international cultural venues, this course will examine the impact of cultural and national differences on the cultural policy making process. We will meet several times on the Charles River Campus before travel to Dublin and London.
• MET AR 587: The Arts in Barcelona
  This course will look at the ways in which the arts have played a key role in the history of Barcelona and by extension, Catalonia. To understand the city and its inhabitants and their sensibility one needs to have some knowledge of history -- particularly 20th century history. To the Catalonian, Spain is to some degree an intellectual and political construct. With its own language, culture traditions and cuisine the Catalonian sees himself as distinct from the Castilian Spanish speaking population of Spain. As a culture that experienced considerable oppression -- especially during the Franco regime, Catalonians are eager to celebrate and preserve their distinct customs and traditions. This has become particularly important in recent years as the movement for Catalan independence has gained momentum. The course will meet several times on the Charles River Campus before travel to Barcelona.
• MET AR 690: The Art World
  An examination of the arts institutions, issues, and forces that shape the contemporary art world. Surveys the institutions and actors that comprise the ecology of the art world, and examines significant recent trends within a model of four interrelated spheres: 1) Individuals; 2) Government; 3) the Nonprofit Sector; and 4) the Private Sector. Explores how stakeholders connect and interact with each other while engaging with significant institutions and the public to affect the cultural history of our time. This is the gateway course in the Arts Administration Program, and is usually taken in the first semester. Non-Arts Administration students contact the Arts Administration Program, 1010 Commonwealth Ave.
• MET AR 711: Capital Campaigns
  This course is designed to broaden the student?s understanding of capital campaign fundraising. Topics include: feasibility studies; strategic planning and budgeting; private and public phases; ethical responsibilities; staff, donor, volunteer, board, and trustee management; major gift solicitation; campaign communications; trend analysis; and evaluation. The course curriculum will include readings, case studies, guest speakers, and analysis of current capital campaign projects.
• MET AR 720: Marketing and Audience Development for the Arts
  This course is designed to provide fundamental background in the theory and principles of arts marketing and audience development used by nonprofit performing and visual arts organizations. Case analysis will be employed to review strategies and practices currently used in the cultural sector. Students will be expected to develop their own marketing plans for an arts organization.
• MET AR 722: Educational Programming in Cultural Institutions
  This course will review the history, theory, and practice of educational programming and audience engagement in both museums and performing arts organizations. Emphasis will be on analysis of program design, implementation, and evaluation, teacher training, and creation of youth and adult learning programs.
• MET AR 723: Individual Fundraising
  This course will address the full range of issues related to attracting financial support from individuals. Topics will include: raising dollars annually for operations, raising funds through special events (fundraisers), cultivating and soliciting major gifts, and the basics of bequests and estate planning as well as ethical issues and working effectively with donors and volunteers. Course work will include readings, case studies, and guest speakers.
• MET AR 730: Political and Public Advocacy for the Arts
  This course will address the politics of arts and culture through seminars with political and cultural leaders, class discussion, readings, and research. Students will develop advocacy campaign plans and analyze how cultural organizations interact with all levels of government.
• MET AR 740: Technology and Arts Administration
  The ever-evolving nature of computer technology presents opportunities and challenges in the work of arts administrators. This course will examine a range of technologies employed by arts organizations to improve their practice and extend their reach, including customer relations management, fundraising, collaboration management, ticketing, project management, and social media management. Students will examine emerging products and trends, interact with technology providers, engage in hands-on trials, and develop technology plans for specific organization scenarios.
• MET AR 749: Research and Program Evaluation in Arts Administration
  This course is designed to equip students with the tools and critical thinking skills to identify and apply appropriate methodologies to support the work of their organizations as practitioners and consumers of research. We will review the major approaches to social science research, including a range of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methodologies, and consider the relevance of each research framework to specific questions in the arts. The course will consider the role of arts research in domains such as audience development and marketing; program evaluation and assessment; social and economic impact; decision-making and reflective practice; collaboration and creation; case making and communication with the public.
• MET AR 750: Financial Management for Nonprofits
  Analyzes issues of accounting, finance, and economics in the context of the nonprofit organization. Stresses understanding financial statements, budget planning and control, cash flow analysis, and long term planning.
• MET AR 766: Arts and the Community
  An analysis of issues that involve the engagement of cultural institutions with their immediate community. Includes examination of local arts centers, local arts councils, arts service organizations, agency/government relations, urban issues, multiculturalism, and festivals.
• MET AR 771: Managing Performing Arts Organizations
  A review of topics essential for successful management of performing arts organizations. Examination of both facilities management and company management. Studies include organizational structure, trustee/staff relations, marketing, audience building, fundraising, tour management, box office management, budgeting, mailing list and membership management, human resource management and contract negotiation, performance measurement, and strategic planning.
• MET AR 774: Managing Visual Arts Organizations
  A review of topics essential for successful management of visual arts organizations. Emphasizes museums, but also includes a review of alternative spaces, commercial galleries, and auction houses. Topics include the changing role of the museum, exhibition planning, fund-raising, crisis management, audience development, and strategic planning.
• MET AR 779: Public Art Program Administration
  A hands on project-based collaborative class that will conceptualize, plan, and execute a public art project during the semester. Students will develop an understanding of the various challenges administrators face in all phases of a project, especially from the creative vantage of the artist. We will explore project funding, case study analysis of public art management, artist selection, and the unforeseen.
• MET AR 781: Special Topics in Arts Administration
  The Special Topics course offers an opportunity for program faculty to focus on significant areas of current interest in the field of arts administration. Topic for Summer 2019: The Global Landscape of Philanthropy. Philanthropy is defined by unique cultures and local traditions of giving. North American fundraising models and tactics are occasionally adapted in other countries. But, each culture has its own expressions of generosity, resulting in diverse approaches throughout the globe. This course will examine how individual giving, community giving, institutional giving, and governments thrive differently in different places. Drawing on contemporary texts and with input from experts around the globe, students will be engaged in a discussion of mission, management, and fundraising around the world.
• MET AR 789: Cultural Entrepreneurship
  TThis course explores the emerging field of cultural entrepreneurship and covers a variety of topics, including: the artist as entrepreneur; new business models for creative entrepreneurs; branding, storytelling and design; the artist and social impact; and the role of entrepreneurs in cultural organizations. Through case studies, guest speakers, readings, and group exercises, students learn about innovative entrepreneurial initiatives that straddle the boundaries between the private, nonprofit, and public sectors. Guided exercises enable students to assess and develop their skills as future change agents and entrepreneurs.
• MET AR 802: Internship in Arts Administration I
  This course provides provide guidance in identifying, securing, and preparing for your internship experience. There will be three class meetings that operate on a seminar model. Students will have the opportunity to discuss their plans and concerns as they begin the process of identifying an internship site and applying for internships. Class sessions will also include specific instructions on preparation of resumes, job-hunting techniques, effective presentation, and the like. There are two Saturday morning workshops, one devoted to resume preparation (required) and one on making effective presentations (optional but strongly recommended). Arts Administration degree students only.

Back to full list of Courses