The Concept of the Master’s Programme

The key aim of the master’s programme is to provide a knowledge of modern socio-cultural and information technologies for the cultural industry for master’s students wishing to work in entrepreneurships, state or local service. The acquired competencies will assist the graduates in solving tasks concerned with regional, social and cultural development through the use of the those technologies.

The target audience of the programme are students with degrees in cultural studies, art history or museology. The programme is aimed at business competencies as well as the development of competency in cultural studies for those having education in the humanities but not specifically cultural sciences.

The task of the programme is to prepare graduates of two types: practitioners and researchers. Both components involve training for solving complex professional tasks as well as research in the selected area.

General characteristics of the programme contents and the curriculum

The key forms of education in the master’s programme are:

• Lectures
• Master classes
• Seminar classes
• Preparation of essays
• Practical ‘field’ trainings
• Homework
• Consultations by teachers and experts

In addition to the mastering of disciplines, it is considered very important to develop the students’ skills in independent scientific research. Generally, the students have over 900 hours of research work during a semester.

The programme includes the following research seminars:

• Art as an object for investment
• Correlation between the value and the price in cultural industries in the perspective of the sociological approach
• Interaction of economic theory and aesthetics in the development of the market of modern art
• Etc.

The following basic courses will be taught:

• Modern problems of cultural studies
• History and methods of cultural studies
• Management in culture and realization of cultural projects
• Etc.

Disciplines of specializations:

• State policy in cultural sphere
• Special methods of management in culture organizations. Marketing
• Special methods of management in culture organizations. Business planning and investment projecting
• Special methods of management in culture organizations. Administration of socio-cultural projects
• Etc.

The programme also includes some adaptation courses for students having no special education in cultural studies, such as subject special courses and courses in Modern Problems of Cultural Studies and History and Methods of Cultural Studies.

Requirements for the master’s programme graduates

Implementation of the master’s program in Applied Cultural Studies involves the preparation of specialists who:

• Have advanced knowledge in the problems of modern culture,
• Have advanced knowledge in history and the modern state of cultural studies,
• Have advanced knowledge in the management of culture,
• Have skills of project organization in culture,
• Have skills of fundamental research in cultural studies,
• Have skills of group analytical work,
• Are able to search for necessary information with the use of both traditional and cutting-edge information technologies,
• Are able to process and analyze various sources of information,
• Are able to present the results of their work in the form of reports, analytical papers, theses, abstracts, essays and e-presentations,
• Are able to independently develop as a professional and self-improve in their core areas.

Staff of the master’s programme

The master’s programme will be implemented mainly by teachers of the Faculty of Philosophy School of Cultural Studies in close collaboration with other specialized educational and research departments of the Higher School of Economics, mainly with the HSE Faculty of Philosophy, Department of Culture Pragmatics, Institute for Theoretical and Historical Studies in the Humanities, Faculty of Management (Department of Strategic Marketing), Faculty of Public Administration (Department of Theory and Practice of Public Administration) and Department of Philology. Some leading experts from other educational and research institutions will also be invited to read lectures and hold seminars, practical workshops and master classes.

In addition to this, we plan to attract specialists from applied spheres to teach special courses and master classes, such as:

• Critics from leading and specialized media,
• Coordinators of art and cultural events from Moscow and Saint Petersburg galleries, the State Center of Modern Art, Moscow Biannual Exhibition of Modern Art etc.,
• Managers of public cultural institutions (museums, libraries, academic theatres),
• Publishers, producers etc.