I just finished up my Junior year at Ohio State and am now starting the stressful process of trying to plan the rest of my life. Yikes!! That’s scary.
I want to pursue a career as a museum curator, so I’ve been struggling with whether to get a masters degree in Anthropology (which is my major at Ohio State) or to get a masters degree in library sciences, which a friend of my parents said was a valuable degree to have if you are going to manage any type of collection. She’s a curator of a corporate art collection owned by a large bank. My parents are in favor of this route, I think because they think it will give me a fall back job if I’m not able to get a job working in a museum.
After struggling with this weighty decision myself, I had a Zoom call with my academic advisor who suggested I pursue a master’s degree in anthropology and get a certificate in library science. That sounds practical and covers all my bases.
I also spoke with the chairman of the Ohio State anthropology department. He suggested I do what I’m passionate about and what really interests me. If that’s anthropology so be it, but he didn’t think that pursuing a master’s degree in library science just to get a job was the right strategy. I like the sound of that because, while I see the value of a library science degree, it’s not what interests me.
I also spoke with my professor of ancient greek history (he’s a really great prof!). He was very helpful and connected me with a newly hired professor at Ohio State who earned her Ph.D. in anthropology and history from the University of Michigan. She shared her personal journey with me and provided me with some great advice. Thank you, everyone! Based on your advice and hours of internal debate I’ve decided to pursue a master’s degree in Anthropology (my passion) and get a certificate in library science (to hedge my bets).
Stay tuned for my next blog post where I share with you the different graduate schools I’m thinking about and why.
