Caleb Whittington

MA Graduate Student, Florida State University

Hometown: Hazlehurst, MS
BA in Classics with an emphasis in Latin; minors in Anthropology and Museum Studies (2022)

 

 

Why did you select the Museum Studies minor?
I originally chose the minor because I decided to pursue museums as a career option after discussions with my classics professors. I wasn’t thrilled about the idea of pursuing a teaching career with my classics major and wasn’t quite sure where I could go with it, and the Museum Studies minor came out of the dark like a knight in shining armor for me. It was just perfect for my career plans and in terms of providing me the opportunity for a career that seemed perfectly suited to my tastes and talents.

What were some of your favorite aspects of the program?
I gained knowledge about the subjects of museum administration, exhibit design, ethical quandaries, and methods of studying artifacts. I enjoyed the ethics of museums and administration; understanding what museums have to consider, such as finances, donors, public outreach. They also have to decide what to do with cultural and sacred objects. Not to mention repatriation.

The discussions from guest speakers were the height of the experience. Interaction with professionals is the best way to grow to understand a profession, and the experts brought in for our classes provided invaluable experiences and chances to ask important questions that you aren’t always able to ask. Also, the minor incentivized me to take classes I wouldn’t normally take and step out of my comfort zone to acquire other  experiences. I think it really rounds out your knowledge and experience in a way that other majors/minors might not. Finally, the internship is a great requirement and I think that more majors/minors should require something like it. Such a great opportunity.

What are your educational/career goals?
At the moment I’m mostly focused on getting out of this master’s program alive. I also hope that by the end of it I’ll be able to move on for a PhD. As for an actual career, I desperately hope that I’m able to find a museum, university affiliated or not, that will allow me to work with objects from Mediterranean antiquity and also carry out excavations. I also hope to design exhibits somewhere and have the freedom (and funding) to do it in a way that is totally honest and gives the visitor the most accurate sense of what it was really like to be there.

Why study Museum Studies?
I believe that students should pick up this minor because it provides invaluable information about the topic of museum studies, something that most people wouldn’t pick up incidentally. The topics have a lot of depth and really do deserve to be explored – in a classroom setting, and with professionals and other students.

Museums really are very important, a foundation stone for our culture. Even if you don’t end up being employed in museums, the minor will teach you much about the concerns of museums and the way they operate so that you’ll be able to engage with them in ways you never though you could before. You’ll be able to absorb more information and understand how the museum is trying to influence you and what it’s trying to teach you. In a way, you’re arming yourself to consent to being educated, since you’ll know what to expect and how the process works.