Statement and Goals for Continuing Education

My goals for continuing education focus on my professional development by gaining more expertise in curation, collections care, exhibit development, and visitor engagement. I am open to pursuing a PhD in Anthropology or Art History, but at the moment, I am unsure whether I will need to obtain a PhD. I firmly believe that we are constantly learning in life, and that if you want something, you must work hard to achieve it. Because of this, I am deeply committed to ongoing professional development and education in the museum field, not only to gain more knowledge and expertise, but also to take advantage of new learning opportunities that may come my way, ultimately helping me reach my end goal: becoming a curator. However, once I achieve that goal, my learning will not stop there; it will continue. 

To further my education after graduating from the MAMS program at OU, I will join organizations such as the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), which offers professional development programs including recorded webinars, training, annual meetings, and tactical toolkits. Other memberships I will join are the Association of Registrars and Collection Specialists (ARCS), which offers professional development opportunities, including workshops, seminars, webinars, and conferences on various topics, along with the American Association of State and Local History (AASLH), which provides a wide range of resources to help professionals enhance their skills, including events, recorded webinars, and audio recordings to expand their professional toolkits. Additionally, Connecting to Collections Care equips professionals with resources to support their development through free webinars, courses, and discussion forums, as well as the Museum Learning Hub, which offers a forum, learning modules, and resource toolkits, and hosts free webinars. These memberships and organizations will provide access to workshops, online webinars, resources, blogs, and opportunities to attend conferences on a wide range of topics, both in-person and online, as well as networking with museum professionals. Some of these webinars are free or at a very low cost. Each of these organizations offers development opportunities led by experts in the museum field, spanning from leadership to education, preservation, and more. Overall, I aim to attend at least one conference or workshop (online or in-person) per year.

In addition to joining these professional organizations, I am eager to engage with museums and gain more hands-on experience through fellowships and volunteering at local museums and the Smithsonian Transcription Center. I also hope to connect with someone in the museum field who is willing to serve as my mentor, as well as gain additional certifications that will enhance my resume. In the next 3 to 5 years, I envision that by joining these museum associations, I will further my learning, network with peers and potential mentors, and continue to grow professionally. All of this will help ensure I am up to date with information relevant and impactful to the museum field, further enabling me to be an asset and contribute in meaningful ways in my future career.