Explore.
Michigan State University is home to millions of artworks, artifacts, specimens, and more that make up our diverse campus collections. Collections build connections, empowering us to consider other perspectives and offer new ways of experiencing and understanding the world around us.
The Beal Botanical Garden is home to a collection of over 2,000 plants that contribute to research and teaching, and illustrate the interconnection between people, plants, and place. The garden emphasizes the importance of native plants through continuous and thoughtful evaluation of its collection.
The MSU Broad Art Museum’s collection of over 10,000 works represents a wide array of artistic production from the ancient to the present, the world over. The collection continues to grow and diversify, with an emphasis on collecting the art of our time.
Michigan State University’s campus is adorned with a collection of over 20,000 trees, some hundreds of years old. New trees are planted each year and are databased and mapped as part of this living, growing collection.
Since 1857, the MSU Museum has been collecting materials that reflect our shared histories and experiences. The collection of over a million objects and specimens spans a diverse range of disciplines including anthropology, archaeology, natural history, cultural heritage, and beyond.
The MSU Libraries are home to several curated collections, including but not limited to the Art Library collection, the G. Robert Vincent Voice Library Collection, the Music Library collection, and the Stephen O. Murray and Keelung Hong Special Collections, which is home to the largest and most comprehensive collection of comic books in the world.
MSU’s 5,200-acre campus is home to a collection of over 150 works of art acquired through the Public Art on Campus program. Works are selected to reflect MSU’s diverse community, representing a range of artist backgrounds, themes, mediums, and perspectives.
Thousands of creative careers await you after graduation, but your journey to land the job of your dreams can start right here at MSU. From fellowships to internships to hands-on jobs, these practical, professional experiential learning opportunities provide MSU students with pathways to build viable careers and to network with creatives from around the country in ways that are fully integrated with the Spartan experience.
Around 300 students across multiple majors and colleges work annually in paid, mentored jobs ranging from roles in education, curation, research, conservation, communications and marketing, operations, visitor experience, technology, and beyond. MSU alumni that worked in the arts on campus have gone on to careers with the Brooklyn Museum, Live Nation, Peabody Essex Museum, and more.
The Sharing Expertise and Exploring Knowledge (SEEK) program is designed for doctoral students who wish to discover ways to communicate knowledge to broader audiences. Many opportunities are available at arts organizations across MSU.
Learn MoreBuilding intentional pathways from career exploration opportunities to internships for both advanced high school students and MSU undergraduates, this cohort-based program offers high-impact experiential learning, mentoring and skills-based training. Be part of the future of the arts!
Integrating the arts into teaching can create memorable moments that inspire lifelong learning. The arts at MSU offer ways to continue your own professional development so you can help equip your students with skills that extend far beyond the classroom.
The Act One School Series brings K–12 classes to Wharton Center to experience national and international touring performances for youth. In addition to access to professional performing arts, the Act One School Series provides curriculum-linked activities.
Field Trips at the MSU Museum provide K–12 classes barrier-free opportunities to openly explore, express, and experiment with ideas across disciplines and interests, and indulge their natural curiosity about the world.
The MSU Broad Art Museum partners with MSU’s African, Latin American and Caribbean, and Asian Studies Centers, and LATTICE: Linking All Types of Teachers to International Cross-Cultural Education on this three-month K-12 educator fellowship. The program is anchored in artworks from the museum’s collection and designed to broaden understanding of global diversity, equity, and inclusion.
K–12 educators can bring art and creativity into the classroom through this virtual field trip program. Using art on view at the MSU Broad Art Museum, explore curriculum-integrated themes and help students develop their creative thinking and explore diverse perspectives.
Wharton Center participates in the Partners in Education program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which is designed to assist arts organizations throughout the nation to develop or expand educational partnerships with their local school systems.
The MSU Museum has curriculum–integrated learning resources for all ages available for loan to Pre-K–12 schools. Educators can choose from a range of subjects, including science, social studies, culture, and technology.
It’s never too early to spark curiosity and ignite creativity. MSU is often the place where children encounter visual and performing arts for the very first time through summer camps, youth performances, family events, and more.
Act One Family Series performances provide fun and engaging national and international touring shows at Wharton Center, specially designed for young audiences and their families.
Family Day takes place on the first Saturday of every month from 11 a.m.–3 p.m. at the MSU Broad Art Museum! Family Day is always free and invites visitors of all ages to explore the many ways that art reflects the world around them.
Learn MoreThis isn’t your average summer camp! Each summer, creative kids gather to experiment, imagine, and create at the MSU Broad Art Museum for these weeklong, hands-on camps.
The Wharton Center Institute for Arts and Creativity offers many ways to inspire the mind and move the soul through arts engagement and arts education. They are committed to shaping our world into something remarkable through performing arts and arts education, and feature a wide variety of programming for youth annually, including the Sutton Foster Awards, the Young Playwrights Festival, Take It From the Top musical theater workshops, and more.
Learn MoreMusic has the ability to transform lives. Young music students who were struggling academically, have found the confidence and resolve to succeed in school. Other students have found their professional calling and gone on to study music at the collegiate level. Michigan State University’s (MSU) Community Music Schools in East Lansing (CMS) and Detroit (CMS-D) are outreach units of the MSU College of Music, and bring music education and music therapy programs to individuals of all abilities and ages starting as young as 0.
