Arts Administration and Leadership Integrative Concentration
Arts Administration and Leadership is an integrative concentration that examines curricular and experiential pathways toward administrative and leadership careers across a variety of artistic fields, from museum and venue administration to orchestra management to theater and dance production to the film industry.
A tech rehearsal for All’s Well That Ends Well in Oberlin’s Hall Auditorium.
Photo credit: Jennifer Manna
Overview
This concentration allows students to pursue curricular pathways that prepare them for administrative careers in the performing, creative, and fine arts. The course offerings expose students to the business and organizational aspects of arts management and production. Students will acquire both an intellectual and practical foundation in arts management while also exploring enrichment experiences on stage, in museums, and in other co-curricular activities available in the College and Conservatory.
Students will also engage in the equivalent of at least eight weeks of work with an arts organization. This can be on-campus or off-campus work in the United States or abroad. This professional experience will provide students with the knowledge to become generative citizens in the fields of arts administration.
Students wishing to complete the Arts and Administration Leadership Integrative Concentration should consult with a member of the curricular committee, and complete the Declaration of Arts and Administration Leadership Integrative Concentration form.
Sample Courses and Integrative Elements
If a student wishes to count a course or experience that is not listed below toward the concentration, they can petition the concentration chair(s) for approval.
Management/Business/Finance (3 classes)
- ECON 099 - Principles of Accounting
- THEA 240 - Arts Management I
- ENTR 100 - Introduction to Entrepreneurship and Leadership
- STAT 205- Statistics and Modeling
- BUSI 101 Introduction to Business
Values/Social Engagement (at least 1 class)
- PACE 220 - Arts Behind Bars
- PROF 171 - Practicing Music Journalism
- PHIL 122 - The Nature of Value
- SOCI 250 - Sociology of Popular Culture
- CAST 200 - Theories and Methods in American Studies
On-campus Co-curricular Opportunities
- Demonstrated leadership role in on-campus arts-related organization.
- Museum Docent Program
- Radio Station
- Theater and Dance Productions
- Concert Board
- Concert Production
- Programming-focused student organizations such as Modern Music Guild, Oberlin Guitar Society, Oberlin Jazz Society, Oberlin Flute Association
- Curatorial opportunities on campus (e.g. libraries, conservatory spaces, GalleryOC)
Off-campus Opportunities (fundraising, public relations, operations)
- Internships/winter term projects in Cleveland such as SPACES Gallery, Cleveland Museum of Art, Music Settlement, Cleveland Orchestra, Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland
- Internships/winter term projects in Oberlin such as NOYO, MAD Factory, FAVA
Requirements
Students complete the integrative concentration by satisfying each of the following requirements.
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Three classes in management/business/finance.
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At least one class in values/social engagement area.
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Two classes in an art-related discipline (practice, theory, or history).
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One on-campus and one off-campus integrative element.
Students will also develop a learning portfolio with substantive pieces of work from each of the classes taken to fulfill the integrative concentration, as well as relevant materials from their co-curricular experience. The portfolio must also include a reflection piece that explicitly connects learning outcomes in the different courses, as well as the curricular and co-curricular experiences.
Faculty Liaisons
- Eric Steggall
Managing Director for Theater, Dance, and Opera Lecturer - Susan Ellinger
Associate Director of Conservatory Professional Development