{"id":72,"date":"2014-10-14T16:01:50","date_gmt":"2014-10-14T20:01:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/krieger.jhu.edu\/museums-society\/?page_id=72"},"modified":"2025-04-11T11:19:01","modified_gmt":"2025-04-11T15:19:01","slug":"independent-research","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/krieger.jhu.edu\/museums-society\/student-opportunities\/independent-research\/","title":{"rendered":"Independent Research"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Program in Museums and Society encourages students to engage in independent and collaborative research on the collection, display, and interpretation of material culture, and to present their findings in ways that are publicly engaged. Many courses involve students in research, and some students also choose to pursue research on their own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Independent research in museums and society can take many forms, including traditional academic ones, through an Independent Study (research papers, posters, presentations), and applied, hands-on approaches through the Senior Capstone option. When appropriate and relevant, the program director<\/a> also helps advise students on thesis work undertaken in their major field of study with faculty in the relevant department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For examples of past student projects, see Exhibits and Projects<\/a>. For more details on getting credit for independent research, see Requirements<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Get Started<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The program has partnered with the MSE Library to prepare a guide for research<\/a> on museum topics, with tools for searching articles and books. The library\u2019s subject guides for individual academic fields are also useful starting points for researching discipline-specific genres of collections and objects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Any student wishing to pursue an independent project must first identify and secure the support of a faculty member with appropriate expertise and, when relevant, find a suitable museum mentor. When attempting to identify potential faculty supervisors, it is best to consult departmental websites and other online information for research being conducted at Hopkins. Narrow your choices by looking at and reading faculty publications to gain insights into the types of research they conduct. You should also meet with and discuss your plans with your major adviser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you have identified a faculty member with whom you would like to work, prepare to meet with him or her by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n