Decorative Arts Study Options Non-Credit Workshops Optional workshops are offered during the semester that supplement the curriculum. Students may also elect to attend the Parsons summer program in Paris in which the two-week curriculum examines the history of French decorative arts from the 16th through the early 20th centuries. The practical focus of the curriculum on research, interpretation, materials and technique, affords graduates of the program a broad spectrum of career opportunities within the museum, commercial, education and publishing fields. Research Opportunities Program Reciprocity Students in either the New York or Washington, D.C. program may elect to spend a semester at the other locale. Independent Study Students who wish to pursue a specific interest, beyond what is available in any existing course, may do so independently, following a proposed course of study, under the supervision of a faculty member or museum curator.
Students can take up to two independent studies.
Internships Students who wish to acquire additional professional and practical experience in the field may intern at an institution or business. The internship supervisor assigns projects that give the student training and hands-on experience in the area of the supervisor's expertise. Library Consortium New York students have stack access and borrowing privileges at the libraries of New York University, Cooper Union, New School for Social Research, and Parsons School of Design undergraduate library, which collectively comprise nearly three million volumes. The Washington Research Library Consortium is also available, and includes the libraries of American University, Catholic University of America, Galluadet University, George Mason University, George Washington University, Marymount University, and the University of the District of Columbia. The program offers a two-week intensive summer course in both London and Paris.