Cultural project management is an exciting field for people who want to work in the world of culture on the organization and promotion side rather than the artistic side. Cultural management, administration, and communication offer many opportunities, given how varied cultural events and organizations are. The range of cultural project management programs and the various degrees that train for the cultural sector is spread across distinct levels, types of institutions, and specializations. Several personal or strategic criteria will help you choose your program well.
What degrees exist in cultural project management?
Higher education degrees in Arts and Culture are organized in two cycles: the first cycle at the 3-year postsecondary level and the second cycle at the 5-year postsecondary level.
Bachelor or Bachelor’s degree in arts & culture
University bachelor’s degrees (licences) are 3-year university paths offering theoretical teaching through a program of lectures and tutorials. Culture-focused Licences are available in a few major French cities and are accessible only through Parcoursup: Licence in Cultural Studies or Licence in Humanistic and Scientific Culture.
The Bachelor is a 3-year postsecondary degree that validates the knowledge acquired during the first 3 years of study at a specialized school.
It allows students to receive general training in the targeted fields through an approach that is both theoretical and practical. It offers a program geared toward professional skills by emphasizing the hands-on aspect of the teaching as well as the mandatory experience: internships or a work-study contract.
Most Bachelor programs offer a specialization in the 3rd year on the model of the professional bachelor’s degree. This is the time for students to immerse themselves in the professional world and put into practice what they learned during the first two years.
At IESA:
Bachelor Years 1 and 2: Cultural and Creative Industries to acquire a general foundation and knowledge of the sector and its players.
Bachelor Year 3: Cultural Production and Mediation or Cultural Communication depending on the orientation and specialization chosen by the student.
Take a Cultural Project Management Program
Arts & Culture Masters
There are two types of Master: university Masters taken at a university (Master in Culture, Arts Management), and specialized school Masters that aim to train professionals who are already experienced upon graduating.
The Master emphasizes the professional and operational aspect of a field of specialization by combining theoretical teaching, practical scenarios, and periods within a cultural department, organization or company as an intern or work-study student.
MS programs cover various specializations; at IESA 9 specializations are offered:
General 5-Year Programs in Cultural Management
The University Master’s
General cultural management programs are offered at Master’s level at some French universities as well as at schools. University Master’s degrees are open after a bachelor’s degree in a related field. However, these tracks give little attention to the professional side beyond an end-of-study internship, and are known to offer limited job market entry. A motivated student can nevertheless arrange internship periods between classes to open up opportunities.
The Professional Master’s
Specialized higher education schools remain the reference for training and careers in the Arts and Culture sector.
IESA offers a Professional Master Cultural Project Management that covers cultural management in a comprehensive way in order to address all artistic fields.
At the same time, students are trained in professional practice through an alternating rhythm that opens the doors of cultural institutions and organizations to them as interns or work-study students.
The 2-year Master combines a multifaceted approach with field experience in order to develop students' operational skills. They enter the cultural sector job market with an already rich professional network, experiences to highlight and a genuine professional stance.
Choosing Your Cultural Management Program According to the Type of Cultural Field
In specialized schools such as IESA, the training tracks match the different professions or professional fields so that students graduate fully ready to work.
The choice of track depends on the student’s career plans and interests:
- Performing arts: theater, dance, circus, performance,
- Visual Arts: Audiovisual, film, television, video and digital media.
- Music
- Art Market: Art exhibitions in museums and galleries, painting, sculpture, photography, art installations
- Heritage promotion
They allow students heading toward Cultural Management careers to benefit from a dedicated curriculum and significant professional experience that opens the doors of their preferred sector. They begin their careers with serenity and confidence.
The student combines their academic path with their professional work-study experience within an organization in the chosen field. The organization thus benefits from the presence of a student in training, and the student gains an enriching experience for their professional practice and their résumé.
Why choose a work-study program in cultural project management?
Work-study tracks allow students to benefit from a dual approach: classroom teaching at the school and practical application in the professional field within an organization.
Work-study students are considered employees who split their time between school and the host company or organization under a professionalization or apprenticeship contract.
Work-study entitles host organizations to advantageous aid: a flat-rate subsidy and exemption from social contributions. The work-study student receives a salary and benefits from the funding of their studies.