This study aimed to discover the educational meaning of dual-major museology graduates by examining the story of their academic achievement process and career choice experience as well as to promote understanding of their concerns. This study started ...
This study aimed to discover the educational meaning of dual-major museology graduates by examining the story of their academic achievement process and career choice experience as well as to promote understanding of their concerns. This study started with the researcher’s thoughts on her personal career choice experience from her childhood to the present. Through the life stories of four research participants including the researcher, this study provides the story of the academic progress and career choices of S University ‘Dual Major Museology’ graduates who completed their studies to advance into a career in the field of museums.
The research questions set based on the purpose are as follows. First, ‘What is the experience of academic achievement of museology dual majors’? This question has meaning in discovering that the study participants feel differently about completing museology according to their different growth backgrounds and experiences in their first major. The second question is ‘What is the career choice and employment experience of the museology dual majors’? This study aimed to reflect on the lives of the study participants from their college days to the present and their career choice process, and to promote an understanding of their concerns about their career path. Lastly, through the question of ‘What is post-graduation life like for the museology dual majors?’, this research could find educational meanings from the common experiences among the research participants.
To recruit suitable research participants, one dual major museology alum who frequently shares career concerns with the researcher was directly selected. Two other research participants were introduced by the professor in the major, and data were collected through personal interviews, telephone interviews, and instant messengers. Recorded materials were transcribed and organized and kept in a personal folder to protect privacy. The researcher examined the background of growth, academic achievement, career choice, and social advancement through narratives told by graduates of museology dual majors who had different first majors. Their common experiences, emotions, and the concerns about choosing a career path were mainly described in the research.
The following educational meanings could be found in the common narratives derived from the study participants’ experiences. First, the necessity of learner-centered education is required at for museology dual majors. Through the interviews, they expressed that they had less experience and practice than theoretical learning in museology studies, hoping for more practical opportunities to grow into preliminary museum professionals. Second, from the perspective of lifelong education, systematic career education is required from universities. If students feel the need, they should take responsibility for continuing career education as a higher education institution through continuous monitoring after graduation. Third, the study participants spent time for self-reflection through the eyes of others while composing research text and cultivated a mature self. That they found growth in the process of forming and sharing a narrative came to the study participants as an education.
Finally, it should be noted that this study is not intended to evaluate or to find improvements in S University’s dual major program in museology. It is hoped that this study, written thanks to the courage and sincerity of the participants, will help to understand the difficulties of museology graduates with no choice but to face reality in choosing a career, and to give social and institutional interest in it. Moreover, through this study, it is hoped that higher education will provide students of museology with opportunities to explore various career paths and serve as a compass that can guide them as they move toward their dreams.
Keywords: Museology, educational experience, qualitative research, narrativeinquiry, career education, higher education