This Week's Alumni Spotlight...

  • Emily Owen

    Graduating Class (Year): 2019

    What you are up to now?

    I’m just starting a new position at the Corning Museum of Glass! Before that, I was the Collections and Exhibitions Manager at the Arnot Art Museum. 

    What led you into arts management?

    I’ve always loved art. I took a studio painting class in undergrad that really sealed the deal. At the same time, I was taking a really great art history course that led me into an internship at a museum. From there, I was able to get a guest services job at another local museum and just kept going after that! 

    Most memorable experience in the Program?

    The trips we were able to go on were really great. Getting out into the world and talking with people who are actually doing the work you’re aspiring towards is a wonderful way to learn. 

    Museums Advocacy Day in D.C. was also a really valuable experience. It introduced a whole new area of study. The policies and legalities surrounding  the arts and funding is an important part of the job that you might not think of when you’re starting out. 

    What do you wish you knew then that you know now?

    There’s a push and pull between old and new generations and their corresponding ideas that can be difficult wade through - I’ve found this in museums in particular. Also, there’s so many different ways that a job can be done, no one person has the perfect answers. 

    Advice for current/prospective students?

    Listen to people. So much of arts administration is listening, asking the right questions, and responding accordingly. Be humble and be willing to learn. Also have fun! 

    A portrait of Arts Management alumna Emily Owen.
    From an alum...

    The trips we were able to go on were really great. Getting out into the world and talking with people who are actually doing the work you’re aspiring towards is a wonderful way to learn. 

Featured Alumni

The UB Arts Management program has students located around the globe working at universities, in arts organizations, at support organizations and arts councils, and in related fields.  Here are a few alum stories to see what you could do with a degree from UB!

  • Megan Schmoll
    7/26/22
    "I loved the opportunity to peek behind the curtains at various arts organizations through the Program’s many field trips, especially when they involved an international perspective."
  • Dan Shanahan
    7/13/20
    "The program highlighted the delicate act of managing an artistic product that does not adhere to a standard economic model. At the same time the program placed a high importance on networking, and made sure opportunities were always available to meet leaders in the field."
  • Taylor Burrows
    7/21/22
    "When your professors tell you that as an arts manager you’ll “wear many different hats,” believe them! Arts departments are extremely interconnected. Even though I work specifically in development, I work very closely with the marketing department, too. That’s why it’s important to get a well-rounded education like the one I received through UB’s Arts Management program."
  • Robyn Busch
    7/21/22
    "The Arts Management program at UB offered an arts management program filtered through an international lens, where the focus was not on churning out administrators, but rather nurturing thinkers, creators and problem solvers."
  • Jennifer Swan
    7/21/22
    "I was interested in strengthening my experience in the field and firming up my career path by identifying exactly what I wanted to do. My BA was okay as a spring-board into my career, but I felt I needed something to excel my passion. The UB Arts Management Program would provide me a more defined path to reach my career goals and I was ready for that next step."
  • Joshua J. Myers
    9/12/22
    "The Program helped prepare me for my career by empowering me with the resources to think independently and speak authoritatively on social matters. Additionally, the diversity of the coursework helped to sharpen my professional acumen."
  • Tara Kosloski
    6/1/20
    "I entered the arts management program after graduation, and was able to explore the field through the curriculum and fieldwork. My first job out of the program was in the development department at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, NY, where I honed my skills in museum fundraising, marketing and event fundraising."
  • Xiaojuan Xie
    7/21/22
    "More experiences... the more exchanges with art institutions and the more exchanges with other countries the better the educational experience will be."
  • Michael Bagne
    7/21/22
    "My most memorable experience in the program was partaking in “Engagement – The New Art Institutional Paradigm” with instructor Dr. Miriam Paeslack. Something clicked for me in this class... I saw much of the course's subject material to be transformative and applicable to arts and cultural sectors on a global scale... Not only was this class intellectually challenging and stimulating, but I think it ultimately made me grow into a better version of myself."
  • Ahrum Oh
    6/15/20
    "It is important to have a broad view to thrive in this quickly changing environment. To this end, it is worthwhile to explore different disciplines and formulate your own values and direction which will lead you to a better possibility in the field where you want to work."
  • Shitong Xie
    7/21/22
    "During the program, I had many opportunities to read materials that looked at a given topic from different perspectives. It stretched my limits and gave me a new understanding. This perspective has had such a positive impact on my current work and life."
  • Faruh Kuziev
    7/21/22
    "It was in Buffalo where I experienced the social role of intellectual leadership and authority and how important it is to make knowledge and ideas widely available."
  • Armand Petri
    12/17/21
    "Arts Management is a wonderful program. Take advantage of all the UB has to offer and apply it to the program learning."
  • Angela Goldberg
    7/14/22
    "My biggest advice for students would be to really soak up all of the site visits, trips, and experiential learning that the program offers. These opportunities are incredibly unique and so valuable."
  • Emily Owen
    7/21/22
    "The trips we were able to go on were really great. Getting out into the world and talking with people who are actually doing the work you’re aspiring towards is a wonderful way to learn."
  • Justina Doyle
    9/1/20
    "I valued the opportunity to meet with staff members and tour facilities during organization site visits. It was inspiring to hear from professionals who were already in the field and doing the good work that we hoped to do."
  • Pamela Martin
    7/21/22
    "I really wanted to work at an art museum and I was not getting any traction applying to jobs at art museums with my BA in Print Journalism. I thought that a master's in Arts Management would help me break into the field, and I was right!"
  • Carrie Beth McGarry
    9/1/20
    "The program also afforded me the opportunity to attend the Broadway League National Conference where, amongst the many outstanding talks, I was able to witness a then “up-and-coming” Lin-Manuel Miranda debut what he then referred to as his “backstage projects” and meet the great Mel Brooks."
  • Sara Marie Arias
    7/21/22
    "The most memorable experiences for me were the field trips and visits to the different venues, museums, theaters, and the great professors that mentored us."