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estargrl88

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    History/Public history

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  1. estargrl88

    Pittsburgh, PA

    I happen to live in Bloomfield and think it's is a pretty nice place to live. It is aesthetically much different from Squirrel Hill (lots of rowhouses, fewer trees) but there's still a main street on Liberty Ave. Grocery stores are convenient, there are good restaurants, a bar/live music stage, cafe, thrift stores, and various other stores. I think the location is great because it's also really close to Lawrenceville and the Penn Ave. Arts quarter, as well as Shadyside, Oakland, and East Liberty. There might not be as much as in Squirrel Hill, but it's all what you're interested in. One of the main weaknesses is that there aren't really any big parks nearby, which Squirrel Hill does have.
  2. Hi, I just applied to public history programs for Fall 2012. I think partially it depends what you want to do later on. I decided that public history would give me more historical background and also not limit me to museum work. I've heard that if you want to work in a museum, especially in something more like education, registrar, etc., that museum studies programs are better. But when I talked to public history professors, most all of them stressed the importance that having more academic history work can provide. As for programs, I tried to apply to ones that were more in my geographic area. I would definitely suggest getting in contact with some professors of the programs and talking to them. There are lots of programs out there and it came down to fit in terms of curriculum and money for me. I was also told to look for programs that are a bit more established and where there is more than one faculty member involved with the program. There are some programs which are supposed to be very good, but I never heard of any that were really to avoid. Here is a list with most all the public history programs: http://ncph.org/cms/education/graduate-and-undergraduate/guide-to-public-history-programs/.
  3. I'll be going to IUPUI this fall and am curious to know how easy it is to survive without a car in Indianapolis. If I go carless, what would be some convenient and affordable places to live with good access to campus and stores via public transportation, by foot, and/or by bike? A plus would be an artsier area and somewhere close to a park or woodsy area. From what I've read, several neighborhoods downtown including the area around Mass Ave. and Broad Ripple sound intriguing, but I'm not sure how they shape up transportation-wise. Thanks!
  4. estargrl88

    Pittsburgh, PA

    I would say that you're probably fine on Penn Ave. if safety's your concern. Just don't venture off too far in the direction of Homewood. Regular Point Breeze is a really nice neighborhood. If anything, I don't think there's a very close grocery store and other stores in general, but you should be right on a bus line so it's not too much of a trek.
  5. estargrl88

    Pittsburgh, PA

    Julianne Pigoon, I'm not super familiar with all the suburbs, but Edgewood and Swissvale have always seemed like nice places. They're right over the city limits from Regent Square and Squirrel Hill and have the same feel as these neighborhoods. I would say the Squirrel Hill has more families than Shadyside, but they're both nice places to live in. In terms of the Pittsburgh public schools, it's really a hit or miss. If you go the neighborhood school route, then it's best to live in a place like Squirrel Hill, Regent Square, or Point Breeze. I think that Highland Park might also have a good elementary school, but above that not so much. However, the magnet programs, like international studies or the arts, can also be a good route, especially if you choose to live somewhere where the neighborhood schools may not be as good. The one charter school I'm familiar with is the Environmental Charter school, which seems to be a nice place. I'm not sure if they've expanded into middle school yet though. Hope Feathers Insanity, while I don't have direct experience with the education at Minadeo, I've known a lot of nice kids who have gone there, and I believe it's supposed to be good.
  6. Hi, I'm also having the same dilemmas and I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one! There really doesn't seem to be a lot of easily accessible advice, which has been frustrating to me. Here are my current thoughts, so take what you will from them: With my interest in curation, I have decided that some type of public history MA makes the best sense at the moment because I can gain practical skills for a first job and then have an academic side which may eventually lead to a PHD. There are also a lot of History MA programs with public history concentrations out there which I think are also a good medium. I've decided that museum studies programs won't work for me because the focus is primarily practical. I think they probably work well for certain jobs within museums, and some programs are quite good, but if you want to have a more senior level historian position, you need more academic training. Someone also told me that practices change, but academic theory remains. Overall, I think it really depends on the type of organization you want to work for. The smaller they are, I think the more open they are to different degrees, but larger institutions probably require more academic and specialized staff. I would be interested in hearing anything more about what degrees or skills are most desired in curators. I have heard that it's good to be caught up on current trends (digitalization, for example), but does it matter if you've taken a course on it or not? Also, if anyone has any recommendations for specific programs, or, perhaps more helpful, any programs that are not recommended!
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