Postgraduate study - why?

“Cultural leaders have the capacity to ask questions other people didn’t think of, turn these questions into a dynamic vision, and drive the vision forward through all the problems. The confidence to discover dynamic models and ideas from a range of places, apply them, but to throw them out again once they start to get in the way.” - John McGrath, Artistic Director, Contact Theatre

Edinburgh – the Festival City

World renowned as the festival city, Edinburgh is the perfect place to study for a postgraduate qualification in arts management.

On the east side of Edinburgh, by Musselburgh, Queen Margaret University offers two different postgraduate Masters Degrees in Cultural Management – the MA Arts and Cultural Management and MA Festival Management.

Both of these courses are delivered by QMU's School of Drama and Creative Industries.

An MBA in Cultural Management is also offered, although this is in collaboration with the School of Business, Enterprise & Management at QMU.

The courses within the programme have been designed to meet with the professional development needs of those wishing to improve their managerial or career prospects within the arts and cultural sectors.

Why study for a degree in cultural management

Aimed at graduates and those with equivalent professional qualifications and experience, the Masters Degrees in Cultural Management is suitable for Honours graduates who wish to provide a vocational emphasis to their first degree.

All entrants, whatever their background, will need to develop their ability to analyse the cultural management situations in which they find themselves. They will need to recognise large-scale issues and develop the capacity to evaluate appropriate principles and practices in approaching the resolution of the management issues they address in the most efficient and effective way.

The Masters Degrees in Cultural Management will allow you to develop an understanding of current cultural management approaches and the policy context in which you work.

The course is broad based. Read what our students have to say about the various courses in the post-graduate student case studies. It is intended that you will develop a deep understanding of broad contemporary issues in arts, cultural and festival management, their relation to day-to-day practice in cultural provision and their implications for the future. The programme will enable you to practice management in the cultural sector with an informed and creative approach, giving you the confidence to seek out and make the best of opportunities in the sector.

On successful completion of your studies, you will be in a position either to progress rapidly up the management ladder to senior management roles in established organisations, or to establish a cultural organisation.

Who studies for an MA in Arts and Cultural or Festival Management?

Individuals with different backgrounds and experiences enrol at Queen Margaret. This helps to create and develop a variety of different opinions and ways of interpreting and applying principles and theoretical perspectives. This type of mix has proved very fruitful in past sessions.

During the programme you will meet students who are studying other awards within the MBA and MA schemes, as two core modules are common to all awards. This also provides opportunities to discuss how the same principles, concepts and theories can be applied in different ways within different service and creative industries.

The Student Handbook for the MA Arts and Cultural Management/MA Festival Management

The handbooks for the Masters Programme in Cultural Management/MA Festival Management, which you will receive when you start the course, have been specifically prepared for those students following the Masters Programme in Cultural Management. It includes some of the University’s Masters Scheme documentation as this is common to all Masters programmes. It also makes reference to the University’s Student Handbook, which is issued by Registry to all students.

I hope it will whet your appetite for what you might learn on this arts management course at Queen Margaret University.

If you would like to find out more about the MAs in Cultural Management, please contact

Douglas Brown
Programme Leader