Diploma in Arts and Cultural Management

at MacEwan University Canada

MacEwan's Travel program takes you places. This two-year diploma program is condensed into an accelerated 13-month format so you can fast track your studies to get right to work. In this program you'll study the ins and outs of the travel industry: from sales and tickets to managing suppliers and agents. You'll also receive hands-on experience with the actual computerized reservation systems used by the travel industry.

Get an in-depth look at the world's most important tourist destinations, and learn what motivates travelers to frequent them. Learn how to deal with everything from international border crossings to environmental and social concerns. Develop an understanding of the evolving travel market and the technology used to document and sell North American and international travel.

MacEwan University’s innovative and dynamic two-year 60-credit diploma in Arts and Cultural Management will prepare you for a career in arts management. Whether you are a practicing artist looking for the skill set to manage your own career or someone who loves supporting the creation and development of arts and culture in your community, this diploma will prepare you to take on administrative and management roles in the creative and cultural sectors. Building on the success of almost 40 years of arts management training at MacEwan University, you will leave the program with the skills you need to begin an exciting career in arts and cultural management.

Through the program, you develop close ties to the arts and cultural community, and emerge from your studies ready to assist organizations in the areas of fund/resource and audience development, publicity and media relations, human resource management, special event planning, project management, and much more.

After completing the academic portion of the program, you will practice what you have learned in an exciting two-month field placement with an organization of your choice. This practical experience comprises six credits in the credential and is a key factor for your successful transition into paid employment in the sector.

A variety of international educational opportunities are available to students throughout their course of study, including cultural study tours and international exchange opportunities.

If you have other post-secondary education and want to start working sooner, you may choose to exit the program with a certificate after one year of study.

The Public Relations diploma offers a unique opportunity for people with previous post-secondary education to ready themselves for an exciting new career in communications in less than a year.

Public relations is a vibrant, dynamic field in the business environment, simply because organizations are being challenged by their publics – clients, shareholders, communities, employees – to do a better job of communicating.

This program has an excellent, nationwide reputation in the business community. It focuses on training students to be functional, entry-level practitioners the minute they leave the program. While theory receives the necessary attention to develop the students’ understanding of the “big picture” and the potential for growth, the primary goal of the program is to give students the practical tools and skills to make an immediate, positive contribution.

Critical-thinking skills, problem-solving ability, creativity and the ability to rise to a challenge are all valuable assets in this fast-paced program. Group work is extensive and students must work effectively in a team setting. Students should have excellent language skills and be prepared to excel in writing.

International business and cross-cultural skills are fast becoming a requirement in today’s global economy. The Asia Pacific region is Canada’s second largest trade partner. Success in this region requires employees with international business skills and knowledge of the cultural and business environment in Asia.

The Asia Pacific Management diploma is a two-year, international business program designed to prepare Canadian and international students to launch a career in international business and management. The program of study cultivates the skills and insights required to be successful in domestic and international economies. Students can expect a range of academic business courses, specialized practical coursework in Asian culture, language, intercultural communications and international business principles.

The major in Journalism provides students with a strong set of writing, research, reporting, and digital media production skills. Option courses let students specialize based on their interests: online digital storytelling, television production, arts and culture reporting, feature writing, current affairs reporting, or investigative reporting.

Bachelor of Communication Studies
In our fast-paced world of evolving and conventional media, communication is key to interpersonal, organizational, and career success. The Bachelor of Communication Studies program provides students with a solid foundation in the fundamental skills of critical thinking, writing, editing, and research. Common coursework for professional communication and journalism majors builds a foundation in language, composition, visual communication, communication theory, communication law and research methods, supported by a liberal arts framework. The courses in the majors offer depth, specialization, and choice. The minors provide additional scope and depth to your studies. The program offers many opportunities to integrate what you have learned in the classroom with real-life projects that engage the community and provide students with an enhanced learning experience. The field is forward-looking, and so is this program of studies.

Years 1 and 2 include common coursework for both professional communication and journalism majors that builds a foundation in language, composition, visual communication, communication theory, communication law, and research methods. Years 3 and 4 provide specialization in editing, strategic communication, technical communication or film studies (in the professional communication major), or in news gathering, digital media production, or film studies (in the journalism major).

Project-based course work, creative research, visiting artists, off-campus activities and arts and culture venues—as a Studio Arts major at MacEwan University, you receive a truly hands-on education. Let your artistic expression soar, while learning to manage the many paths your career will take you.

Our dedicated faculty maintain a range of professional art and research practices, sharing their skills in performance and sound art, painting, drawing, video, sculpture, fibres and more. In this interdisciplinary environment, you are challenged to think critically and creatively about contemporary art.

What to expect
After building a rigorous and comprehensive foundation in the first two years of the program, you can choose from three pathways in the Studio Arts major:

• Two-dimensional art
• Three-dimensional art
• Intermedia/extended media art

The technical and theoretical foundations supporting each pathway prepare you for both traditional and emerging media and concepts.

Starting in the fourth term, you choose to focus in one area or to combine paths for greater breadth. As you progress academically and develop the flexibility and fluidity prevalent in contemporary art practice, you also take courses from the other arts and communications disciplines.

In your final term, you undertake a project that prepares you for a contemporary, multi-dimensional career or for future studies at the graduate level.

Learn how to creatively transform a message, to craft a visual statement that persuades, informs, motivates or entertains. A balance of practice-based, hands-on research and theory-driven coursework prepares you to design effectively and solve communication problems to improve people’s lives.

In our four-year degree, you will be introduced to new ways of seeing and thinking about design. You will learn how to creatively transform a message, to craft a visual statement that persuades, informs, motivates or entertains. Select a focus in visual communication design or user experience design or a combination of courses that suits your interests.

For more than 44 years the Office Assistant program has been providing quality graduates. Today’s office assistants are highly accomplished software experts who use their skills to help other staff get the most from a computerized office. In addition, office assistants are involved in managing the organizational affairs of their areas that include handling public enquiries, managing computer and paper files, organizing schedules, arranging meetings of senior staff, as well as providing strong customer service and problem-solving skills.

The Office Assistant program is ideal as a foundation for other careers or as a complement to prior training and experience. It runs for 10 months from September until June, ending with a field placement. It is a comprehensive program that offers students the opportunity to specialize in one of the following three majors:

• Administrative Major
• Legal Major
• Medical Major

The program is well suited for individuals with strong organizational skills,  an attention for details, familiarity with computers and software, a professional manner, and excellent verbal and written communication skills. Graduates are often required to work independently and in a team environment, so students who are positive and self-motivated do exceptionally well. The program has built a solid reputation with employers, resulting in a job placement rate near 100 per

The Arts and Cultural Management major prepares students for a management career in the creative sector and encompasses all things arts and culture: working in music, theatre, dance, galleries and museums, archives and heritage conservation, and the literary arts. Students will learn the practical skills and specialized knowledge they need to enhance an organization’s creative capacity—or to take their own career as an artist to the next level. The core of this major is leadership and project management, supported by community-engaged learning, including eight weeks of practical, hands-on work in the field.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
In this major, students will:
• Critically reflect on the role that artists and cultural organizations play socially, culturally, and politically.
• Advocate strategically for the importance of arts and culture in society.
• Identify and secure a diversity of revenues and resources to support strategic initiatives.
• Exhibit the financial literacy necessary to manage the long-term sustainability of cultural organizations.
• Plan and implement strategies that increase community engagement, public interest, and patron participation.
• Analyze the production and consumption of culture nationally and internationally.
• Plan and promote programs, spaces, projects, and social events related to the arts and cultural sector.
• Anticipate, identify, and respond to trends that impact the cultural sector.
• Prepare, present, and implement strategic operational plans of the arts and culture organization.
• Manage and support human resources in the cultural sector within a variety of governance structures.
• Lead and support others in an accountable, sustainable, and ethical manner.

The Bachelor of Social Work program provides 3rd and 4th year undergraduate degree studies and will be of interest to Alberta Social Work diploma graduates and other students who have completed 60 university level Arts and Science credits. The School of Social Work offers transformative, collaborative and supportive education to prepare students for leadership roles in meeting the social justice mandate of the profession of social work. As professionals in a country that upholds respect for diversity, and in keeping with democratic rights and freedoms, social workers respect the distinct systems of beliefs and lifestyles of individuals, families, groups, communities and nations without prejudice (United Nations Centre for Human Rights, 1992). Specifically, social workers do not tolerate discrimination based on age, abilities, ethnic background, gender, language, marital status, national ancestry, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation or socio-economic status (CASW Code of Ethics, 2005).

Unique to this degree is the focus on sustainability — how social, environmental and economic issues interrelate, and how we fit into the larger community. Students have the opportunity to focus their studies around a number of themes, including working with children and families, working with Indigenous people, health and mental health, and community social work practice. Students learn from faculty who are engaged in research, blended learning and all areas of social work practice.