Postgraduate Diploma in Museum and Heritage Studies

This Post-Graduate Diploma is the first year of postgraduate study in the field of museum and heritage studies. It provides a broad programme in heritage training for those already in the sector as well as those who wish to enter this field. The Diploma is intended to open up for those who acquire it, vocational possibilities in the heritage, museum and tourism sector. The principle aim of the Diploma is to ensure that students have the opportunity to explore a range of approaches to heritage and museum studies, while enabling them to combine electives in areas of particular interest to them. It provides students with an intellectual training at a fairly advanced level in the key debates, facing heritage in a transforming and democratising South Africa. At the same time it equips students with the necessary skills in managing heritage structures and institutions.

Admission to the Diploma is by application and selection on the basis of evidence of ability to succeed in the courses offered and a commitment to the field. The ability to succeed in the Diploma and commitment to the field is evaluated by formal assessment by the Convening Committee of the Diploma before admission. The Convening Committee consists of three members from the University of Cape Town, three members from the University of the Western Cape, three members from the Robben Island Museum and three members from practitioners in the museum/heritage sector. The Convening Committee is answerable to the Senates of UCT and UWC and is chaired by a member of one of the two universities.

Entrance qualifications

A degree on Bachelor level

Recognition of prior learning

Non-graduates should ideally have at least five years of work experience of which a significant proportion is in the museum and heritage sector. The application procedure enables such students to demonstrate that what they have learnt in employment in the sector has made them eligible for study at the post-graduate level.

The graduate in Museum and Heritage Studies is competent to

1. Understand and interpret museum and heritage displays
2. Conduct research in the field of Museum and Heritage Studies
3. Produce academic papers that reflect an ability to interrogate the professional literature and engage in critical debate
4. Find and process information of professional relevance efficiently and independently
5. Examine and evaluate different theoretical paradigms
6. Communicate different heritage messages to the public effectively
7. Support heritage managers, festival organisers, tourism authorities and national parks in accessing, interpreting and presenting heritage.

General Outcomes

The graduate in Museum and Heritage Studies is competent to

1. Articulate his or her understanding of an area of museum and heritage studies at a high level of abstraction
2. Independently apply knowledge in the heritage field to conceptual and practical problems
3. Identify and solve heritage problems by using critical and creative thinking
4. Work efficiently with others in the heritage sector
5. Collect, analyse and critically evaluate information
6. Communicate effectively as a heritage professional
7. Demonstrate an understanding of heritage and its relation to other facets of our world
8. Contribute, as a heritage practitioner, to the social and economic development of society and have the ability to explore further heritage opportunities that will add value to the current context.

Specific Outcomes

The graduate in Museum and Heritage Studies is able to

1. Formulate a sophisticated argument drawing on appropriate theory and practice
2. Produce critiques of museum and heritage theory and research
3. Evaluate and interpret heritage displays
4. Participate in a research project to answer questions around the production of heritage
5. Develop strategies for the collection, management and display of heritage
6. Show an understanding of the representation of heritage products
7. Demonstrate an understanding of the history and ethics of heritage collections
8. Analyse visual presentations of history and culture through tourism, monuments, festivals, museums, photographs and natural landscapes

1 Demonstrate higher library and information service skills

2 Teach information literacy skills

3 Organise school libraries

4 Manage school libraries in South Africa and internationality

5 Demonstrate understanding and knowledge on a broad spectrum of issues related to school librarianship

Formative assessment

Continuous assessment through

• Essay-type papers on approaches to heritage studies
• Written exercises on texts and displays
• Research projects on heritage display and management
• Practical assignments on developing heritage displays
• Oral presentations
• Class participation and group work

Summative assessment

Extended essays that draw together theoretical and practical concerns.

Written examinations

Integrated assessment

The integrated assessment of the Postgraduate Diploma in Museum and Heritage Studies includes measurement of foundational, practical and reflective competencies, taught through formative course work. The student is required to complete a series of exercises that serve to integrate theoretical and practical skills learned during the year.

In all assignments and practical work performance will be assessed on the basis of the student's ability to (1) organise ideas and facts logically and coherently; (2) anticipate the responses and objections of an imagined reader and/or viewer; (3) incorporate relevant technical data into descriptive and argumentative writing; (4) cite references accurately and consistently; (5) draw upon a range of practical examples to sustain and develop arguments; (6) solve problems in the curation and management of heritage.

At the summative assessment of the programme the student produces an extended paper which demonstrates the capacity for independent thought and theoretical and practical knowledge of the subject and of the scholarly literature. The following are integral parts of the extended paper:

1. Analysis, synthesis, handling of concepts, identifying and questioning assumptions, problem solving
2. Clarity in communication, succinctness in presentation and proficiency in referencing
3. Mastery of texts or information, engaging with different points of view, tracing relationships and showing relevance
4. Displaying independent learning
5. An awareness of ethical and moral implications