This program will begin in the fall 2025 semester. Applications are currently being accepted.

Admission deadlines: Fall - April 1 (February 1 for fellowship consideration)
Spring - October 1
Standardized test scores: The GRE general exam is not required.
The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the academic International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or the PTE Academic is required of all applicants except those who hold a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree from a college or university in the United States or from an institution located in a country in which English is the official language, provided English was the language of instruction.
Minimum scores for the program are:
- Academic IELTS: an overall band score of 7.0 with no individual score below 6.0;
or TOEFL: 600 on paper-based or 100 on Internet-based;
or PTE Academic: 68
Recommendations required: Two letters of recommendation are required
Prior academic records: Transcripts are required from all colleges and universities attended, whether or not credit was earned, the program was completed, or the credit appears as transfer credit on another transcript. Unofficial transcripts from all colleges and universities attended must be uploaded to your online application. Official transcripts are required only of applicants who are offered admission.
If transcripts are in a language other than English, English language translations must be provided. The English translation alone should be uploaded into your application.
Statement of purpose: An essay of 500-750 words on your background and interest in the program
Prerequisite requirements: Bachelor’s degree in arts, humanities or social sciences
International Applicants only: Please review International Applicant Information (https://columbian.gwu.edu/international-graduate-applicants) carefully for details on required documents, earlier deadlines for applicants requiring an I-20 or DS-2019 from GW, and English language requirements.

This program will begin in the fall 2025 semester. Applications are currently being accepted.

The following requirements must be fulfilled:

The general requirements stated under Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, Graduate Programs.

36 credits, including 6 credits in required methodology courses, 6 credits in selected museum skills courses, 3 credits in applied work, a 3-credit capstone project, and 18 credits in elective courses.

Required
Methodology courses
AMST 6100Scope and Methods in American Studies
or HIST 6005 Introduction to Historiography
CMST 6107Museum Ethics and Values
Museum skills selected courses
Two courses (6 credits) selected from the following:
CMST 6101Museum Management
CMST 6201Introduction to Museum Collections
CMST 6301Museum Exhibition Curatorial Research and Planning
Applied work
CMST 6501Museum Studies Internship
or CMST 6304 Exhibition Development and Scriptwriting
Capstone project
One 3 credit semester course approved by the director in which the student produces a capstone project. *
Electives
18 credits (six courses) in a combination of Museum Studies (CMST), History (HIST), and American Studies (AMST) courses selected in consultation with the program director.

*The capstone course usually will be AMST 6195 Research Seminar in American Studies or a History (HIST) course designated as a research seminar. Students can arrange to use an independent study to fulfill the capstone requirement with the approval of the program director and a specific professor. The final project completed in a course listed above also could be used to fulfill the requirement for a capstone with the approval of the program director; in such cases the student must take an additional elective course within one of the participating departments.