“The program really helped me understand the many important working parts to a museum and how they contribute to how it functions as a whole. I’m qualified to aid in so many areas due to my experiences at Seton Hall.”

Sutherlyn Nichols, a 2024 graduate of the Master of Arts in Museum Professions program and the colleague of the year in her cohort, is yet another testament to the impact of Seton Hall graduates on museums worldwide.

A current Museum Development Assistant at the Heritage & Railroad Museum in Temple, Texas, Nichols credits the museum professions program with developing her into a multifaceted professional ready to work in the evolving landscape of 21st-century museums.

The museum professions program is designed to help students cultivate their museum careers, offering a comprehensive curriculum that uses practical and theoretical foundations to develop leadership qualities and creative problem-solving skills tailored for museum settings.

While in the program, Nichols was a graduate assistant in the College of Human Development, Culture, and Media. In the summer between her first and second year, she worked as an exhibits intern at the Dr Pepper Museum in Waco, Texas, putting into practice the coursework from her first year in the program through research for one of the museum’s permanent exhibits.

“I worked alongside the associate director in researching information for the upcoming fall exhibition based on the architecture of its original 1906 building, which will be one of their long-term exhibitions," she said. "It was fascinating and really rewarding working with primary research alongside the museum’s collection in order to design an exhibition that the museum could use.”

All students in the program take a 200-hour for-credit internship (three credits), as the museum professions faculty value the balance of rigorous coursework with hands-on experience.

Nichols noted that the program’s required internship and coursework more than prepared her for her role as a museum professional. Her primary professional duties include grant writing, research, outreach, and presenting project proposals. She also assists in education, visitor services, and curation/collections management.

“I enjoy assisting in all aspects of the museum,” said Nichols. “I give tours and do a lot of community outreach, I help install exhibits, I occasionally run the front desk, and everything in between.”

The museum professions program prepares students for all aspects of museum work in multiple industry-driven skill centers that reflect the complex, multipurpose nature of cultural institutions today. With the guidance of acclaimed faculty researchers, authors, and established professionals, students gain hands-on experience that prepares them for the complexities of museum education, management, registration, and exhibition development.

“I took many lessons and advice from my professors that I still remember while working in the field,” said Nichols. “I am truly grateful for the exposure and experience I gained in the program.”