Sheffield, comparing cultures, and a teapot

Not doing so well with updating my blog as you can see.

Anyway, just a post about another Postgrad day I went on today!

I finished my second year exams on Saturday so I'm back home in Sheffield for a few days. I looked round Sheffield University, at the American History course I might apply for. It wasn't an open day specifically but they do 'visit days' that they don't advertise, but if you search on their website they offer a day every month for people to look round and meet faculty and students.

I'd organised a meeting with Catherine Fletcher from the History department when I booked a place on the visit day months ago. But fortunately Susan-Mary, my scholarship supervisor at Newcastle, had requested library access for me for this summer while I do my research, at Sheffield University, and did so through contacting Dr Andrew Heath, an American History lecturer there. So I emailed him and said I was going to look round the University and he invited me to his office for a chat before the tour started, so that was brilliant.

He was a very lovely guy and really helpful giving me information about the MA course, and was interested in my project this summer in Charleston. I then went on a campus tour of the University, and had a general MA/finance talk, and lastly met with Catherine who was also extremely helpful. We actually ended up discussing career options, and how beneficial further study would be for my aspiration to work in museums.
She suggested looking into summer internships (most of them paid) in the US in museums, which got me really excited. Or even doing a PhD in the US, as again, it's standard for Doctorates to be paid; rather than you paying to study like in the UK. Very tempting, and certainly something to think about!
Part of what also sells the course to me is that there are modules I could take on public history, or do a work placement, that are obviously more vocational based and could give me an edge in a museum career without doing a museum studies MA directly.
Catherine warned me that to get a good job in the sector it is becoming increasingly advantageous to have a PhD.

On a sidenote, while I was sat eating my lunch two girls came up to me and asked if they minded if I sat with them, so of course I was pleased to chat to them. It turns out they are from the US on an exchange program; Lauren is from Atlanta and Torrin from Minneapolis! They have been in the UK only about a week. So obviously I was really interested in them. We sat chatting nonstop for so long I was actually late for my tour, which I didn't really care about because I made some lovely new friends! We were all interested in eachothers cultures, and how the UK/US are perceived by eachother. They asked me so many interesting questions! Anyway, they wanted to know things to do in Sheffield, and I recommended Meadowhall as they said they love shopping, and I told them about the museums and that I volunteered there. And as I was saying bye they asked me if I would take them on a tour of the Sheffield museums! I was surprised haha but it was so nice of them to want to meet up! So we have eachother's numbers and are facebook friends and hopefully I can give them a satisfactory tour!

Overall, I was extremely impressed with the University. I was born in Sheffield and it will always be home to me. Coming back to study an MA in the thing I am most passionate about is a pretty good option for me right now. Depending on finances of course! And I am still thinking of doing it over two years.
Manchester and the museum studies course was wonderful, but I think my heart wants to carry on studying US History, regardless of whether it is the safer option for job prospects.

And to round off my great day, I bought a gorgeous teapot for £1.50 from a charity shop. I have a bit of a thing for sunflowers, and anything brightly coloured.
I know it might not be everyone's cup of tea...

Journey to Justice has well and truly kicked off

(I really should have written this blog post earlier when everything was fresher in my mind, but still, better late than never.)

On the 4th April 2015 I attended the launch event of Journey to Justice in Newcastle's Discovery Museum. It was a really wonderful and inspiring event. There were many incredible speakers, notably Marcia Saunders and Archie Sibeko who spoke emotively of their experiences fighting injustice and standing up for their beliefs, in the freedom summer in Tennessee and South Africa respectively. Both were wonderful speakers who had the audience enthralled at every word.

There was also music performed from NESS, Kingsmeadow Community Choir, Crossings, and legendary folk musicians Johnny Handle and Benny Graham. These singers and musicians sung about freedom and hope, and made every member of the audience believe that they too could transform someone's life for the better through the power of music and words.

Carrie, the director of JtoJ, had worked incredibly hard to get this dream off the ground, and she was spoken highly of throughout the event. Bethany also did a brilliant job as compere, introducing acts and leading the choirs. Clearly the whole team has done so much work to realize a very important idea.

Last night I attended the 'Pits and Protest' event with Joseph and a family friend Brian; an evening of folk music with Johnny Handle and Benny Graham at the Mining Institute. This was another of Journey to Justice's events. I had not been inside the the building before; it is beautiful and really something special. The concert itself was both funny and very poignant. Johnny and Benny sang, read poems, and recited stories of mining disasters and hardships, and it was a very enjoyable evening. Journey to Justice is about the wider world's fight for freedom, but they are also telling the stories of local injustices, such as the lost of the mining communities round Newcastle.

I am only a volunteer, but I have made an effort to be involved at every stage I could and give my support and feedback, and Carrie herself emailed me this morning saying 'You are one of our greatest supporters and that is wonderful to see/hear!' which really made my day! 
I cannot stress enough that what Journey to Justice is doing is incredibly vital in today's world. There is still injustice and exploitation, and we do still needs projects and messages such as this to let people know that it is not ok, and we will not continue to stand by and let it happen.

I'm not an expert at reviewing events and this is only brief, but this blog is about things that I think are important. And the launch event of Journey to Justice was just the beginning of a long and very special journey that is doing a lot of good for so many people. 

[photos to come soon]

AGMS or AmHist?

I attended the Manchester University Postgrad open day yesterday which was really fantastic.
I looked round the Uni about 3 years ago when I was applying for a History BA, but it wasn't right for me at the time and I obviously chose Newcastle in the end.


Now however circumstances are different; I was aiming to move to Manchester after I've finished in Newcastle before I even considered doing an MA, because it's closer to home, it is a vibrant arts and culture city which is an environment I want to work in, and Joseph still has a year of his degree left in Manchester when I'm finished in Newcastle. So this time around, this city feels more right for me and what I want to get out of it.
The course I would apply for is the Art Gallery and Museum Studies (AGMS). The lecturers were fantastic and incredibly knowledgeable and approachable. We had a 2 hour session with them, and listened to presentations from current students on their experiences and projects undertaken which really inspired me. A nice surprise was to see a Cello teacher from Sheffield Music Academy which I used to attend. She is currently doing the Arts Management side of the course (very similar to AGMS but approached slightly differently, with exactly the same optional modules) and it was really interesting to chat to her and see what voluntary and paid opportunities she has had through studying there.


The course looks absolutely brilliant and along the lines of what I want for my own career. The modules to choose from in Semester 2 cover a vast range of things including a professional practice and events management project, digital heritage, business strategies in the Arts, museum archaeology and ethnography, and more.


I would apply either in 2016 straight after my undergraduate, or to take a year out of studying to earn money, and apply for 2017.
I am also considering doing the course part time, both to give myself longer to reflect on my time and goals in Manchester, as well as being able to work alongside studying.


I suppose the thing that needs considering here is that museum jobs do not make you rich. But I know that in a career I want something both personally and academically enriching in the arts and culture sector, that is related to History and enables me to build on skills I am acquiring now through the volunteering which I love, and for me this ticks all the boxes. Who really need to be rich anyway?

And yet, after all this and how brilliant I thought Manchester was, a part of me is still saying 'or should I do the American History MA at Sheffield?' Because American History is my passion, and the fuel that keeps me going through my undergraduate degree. I'm currently having to do things I'm not as interested in, because until next year I can't focus entirely on American History. Of course I love all History, but if I had the choice I would do all my courses on North America because it's what I'm best at - my highest marks have been in US modules - and it's what I love.

I have time to make a decision. So we shall see.