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UCC Museum Studies MA students curate exhibition at Cork Public Museum

12 Aug 2025

• Landmark 80^th anniversary exhibition is a collaboration between Cork Public Museum and UCC鈥檚 Museum Studies MA students.
• The exhibition equips students with career-ready expertise, sharpening their skills in curation, public education, and audience engagement.

Postgraduate students from UCC鈥檚 Museum Studies MA programme have curated Cork Public Museum鈥檚 landmark exhibition, 1945 Uncorked: The Founding of Cork Public Museum, now open to the public and running until Spring 2026.

Working in partnership with the museum鈥檚 curatorial team, the students designed and developed the exhibition from concept to completion, gaining first-hand experience in curating for a leading cultural institution. From object selection and interpretation to creating multimedia displays and outreach activities, the 2025 class has brought fresh perspectives and creativity to this celebration of Cork Public Museum鈥檚 80-year history.

The exhibition offered MA Museum Studies students the opportunity to work on every stage of the process, including:

• Curatorial research into the museum鈥檚 origins and its early collections.
• Designing interactive experiences, such as a 鈥渃urate your own display鈥� desk.
• Producing multimedia content, including films and slideshows about the museum鈥檚 founders and historical highlights.
• Education and engagement initiatives tailored for visitors of all ages.

Dr Griffin Murray, Programme Director for Museum Studies at UCC鈥檚 Department of Archaeology, said: 鈥淭his collaboration is unique in Ireland, offering our students exceptional, real-world experience in museum management, curation, and education. They leave with skills that is not only vital to the museum and heritage sectors, but highly transferable to a wide range of careers in Ireland and abroad.鈥�

Dan Breen, Curator at Cork Public Museum, said: 鈥淭his exhibition marks the 10th year of collaboration with the students and lecturers of the MA Museum Studies in the Department of Archaeology. The museum has a long history of working closely with the Department of Archaeology that dates all the way back to our beginnings in 1945. Therefore, it is very apt that we get to mark the 80th anniversary of the Cork Public Museum with another collaborative exhibition with the students of the 2025 class.鈥�

The exhibition invites visitors to explore Cork life in the early 20th century, discover the archaeological finds that shaped the first collections, and see how the museum鈥檚 original displays broke new ground. An eclectic mix of objects is paired with film, photography, and interactive stations to tell the story of Cork Public Museum鈥檚 beginnings in 1945.

Museum Studies MA students and members of exhibition鈥檚 education team, Kirstyn Shortall and Eleonora Ginevra, said: 鈥淲ith this exhibition, we offer something for all ages. Visitors can take a seat at M.J. O鈥橩elly鈥檚 desk and become a detective of the past, or you can curate your own display with a variety of objects! For a more leisurely experience, you can pick up our latest newspaper and sharpen your mind with some games tied to the storied beginnings of the museum.鈥�

Museum Studies MA students Jake Martin and Amy O鈥橣lynn said: 鈥淥ur programme has a mix of Irish and international students, so this has been a great opportunity for all of us to really explore Cork鈥檚 history and the valuable role of the city鈥檚 museum. We hope visitors have as much fun exploring these stories as we did.鈥�

runs until Spring 2026.

Museum Studies at UCC

The MA in Museum Studies at UCC is a one-year, full-time taught master鈥檚 (NFQ Level 9) delivered by UCC鈥檚 Department of Archaeology. Combining academic study with practical experience, the programme trains students in every aspect of museum design, management, and education, while encouraging critical reflection on the role of museums today.

Open to graduates from archaeology, history, and related humanities and social sciences, the course prepares students for careers in museums and heritage centres in Ireland and internationally, or for further research at PhD level. Learning is grounded in hands-on experience, including supervised museum placements, the curation of an exhibition, and the completion of an independent research dissertation.

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