MA in the Conservation of Archaeological and Museum Objects

PLEASE DO NOT MAKE AN ON-LINE APPLICATION FOR THIS COURSE.
CONTACT HELEN WOOD, POSTGRADUATE SECRETARY AT: helen.wood@durham.ac.uk or 0191 334 1109 PRIOR TO MAKING ANY APPLICATION.

This two-year, full-time course, which educates and trains graduate students to a high professional standard as archaeological and museum conservators, will provide graduates with core skills in researching, analysing, cleaning, preserving and caring for a wide range of archaeological and museum objects.  Students undertaking this postgraduate degree will graduate equipped with a sound knowledge and critical understanding of current professional principles, good practice and contemporary debates in conservation.  

The MA course, is designed to develop professional skills in object research, the ‘hands on' techniques of conservation, environmental monitoring, the long term care of artefacts and professional conduct and within the first few weeks of the course students are engaged in hands-on work, recording, researching and conserving archaeological and museum objects.  They develop these skills in the first twelve months of the course, with expert in-house tuition, before opting in the second year of study for either a nine-month industrial placement in a conservation laboratory of a major British or overseas museum, or to undertake a conservation research project using the facilities of Durham University.

Before making an application to the MA in Conservation of Archaeological and Museum Objects course, please contact the Postgraduate Admissions Secretary at: pgarch.admissions@dur.ac.uk

The course is taught by:

Dr Chris Caple author of Conservation Skills: Judgment, Method and Decision Making and Objects: Reluctant Witnesses to the Past
Jennifer Jones, a practising archaeological conservator for over 30 years and until recently English Heritage conservator of the North of England
The course also uses a number of visiting lecturers, experts in their fields, as well as the staff of the Oriental Museum and Museum of Archaeology, notably Dr Craig Barclay and Helen Armstrong also teach on the course.  
Download the Course Information here

Fee Structure

The MA in Conservation has a different fee structure to other courses offered by the Department. As it is a two year course, a total of two years full time standard fees are paid, however, due to the heavy teaching and lab-based contact hours in year 1, three-quarters of the total fee cost must be paid in year 1 and the remaining quarter in year 2.

For application details please contact:

Postgraduate Admissions Secretary,
Dept of Archaeology,
Durham University,
South Road,
Durham
DH1 3LE, UK
tel: 0191 334 1109 (Monday - Thursday)
fax: 0191 334 1101
email: pgarch.admissions@dur.ac.uk

The course leader, Dr Chris Caple, is well qualified. He has successfully led the previous MA course, having masterminded the conversion from the Diploma course in 1990. He has responded to changes in conservation, and has himself been responsible for two key books on the subject as well as many contributions to journals and conferences. His wide experience as a digging archaeologist, a metals technologist and as a conservator uniquely qualify him as a teacher of this diverse subject.

External Course Validator, Mr Mike Corfield, previously Chief Scientist for English Heritage