Master of Arts in Jewish Cultural Arts
Unique Program Combines Jewish Culture with Business Expertise
“There’s been an explosion of Jewish creativity in the arts in recent years but training in Jewish culture and business know-how was virtually non-existent.”
—Joy Levitt
Executive Director, Manhattan JCC
The George Washington University now offers an exciting new MA program to meet the needs of the American Jewish community’s steadily growing interest in Jewish culture. As opportunities in the cultural sector continue to multiply, this two-year master’s program prepares students for careers in the management of museums, theaters, YMHAs, Jewish community centers, foundations, and Jewish film, dance, literary, and music festivals. The MA is also designed to enhance the skills of professionals already in the field.
Students will have the opportunity to pursue one of three tracks:
- Arts administration
- Experiential education
- Museum management
Program Highlights
The 36-credit MA program combines the practical with the academic, providing students with the hands-on skills and intellectual capital to respond innovatively to new opportunities in the field of Jewish culture. Among the highlights:
- Internships and cultural collaborations with such prestigious and innovative institutions as the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Sixth and I Historic Synagogue, the DC-JCC, Theatre J and Pro Musica Hebraica
- Training in fundraising, brand marketing, fiscal management, and audience development
- Immersion in the history, ethnography and sociology of Jewish culture
- Week-long summer institutes in cohort building, leadership training, and mentoring
Fellowship Funding Available
The MA in Jewish Cultural Arts has a number of special funding packages available that provide a $10,000 fellowship as well as 9 credits (one semester) of free tuition per year for qualified students. For more information about these funding packages, please contact Program Director Jenna Weissman Joselit.
Core Courses
Judaic Studies 6201: Jewish Life in Contemporary America
Judaic Studies 6211: Displaying Jewish Culture: Landmark Exhibitions on Judaism and the Jewish Experience
Judaic Studies 6298: Behind the Scenes: Learning from the Artist (Capstone Seminar)
Museum Studies 6102: Fiscal Management of Nonprofit Organizations
Public Policy and Administration 6032: Managing Fund Raising and Philanthropy
Marketing 6255: Strategic Brand Management
Six credit hours of internships and a final project culminating in the planning and execution of an arts event for the GW community are also required.
Electives
Elective courses draw from law, business, museum studies, history, Judaic Studies, media affairs, theatre and dance, and the fine arts.
Renowned Scholar of Judaic Studies Brings Fresh Perspective to New MA
We sat down with Jenna Weissman Joselit—the Charles E. Smith Professor of Judaic Studies and director of Columbian College’s Judaic Studies Program—to learn more about the new MA in Jewish Cultural Arts and the motivation behind its creation.
The application deadline is March 15th.
In the News
- "Do These Amazing Jews Have 'Displaced Talmudic Energy?'" The Huffington Post, April 10, 2012
- "Jewish Culture Gets a 'Master Class," The Jewish Week, February 10, 2012
- "What Is Jewish Culture?," The Huffington Post, February 6, 2012
- "New Program Mixes Management and Culture," The Forward, February 3, 2012
- "The Study of Cultural Expression," GW Today, January 16, 2012