Vilnius University
Kaunas Faculty of Humanities

HISTORY

The Department of Philosophy and Cultural Studies was founded in 1989 as the Department of Philosophy and Political science. Its lecturers delivered humanitarian courses to all students of the faculty. In 2002, Bachelor’s degree programme in Cultural Management was developed and the Department was reorganised into the Department of Philosophy and Cultural studies. The Department was headed by the assoc. prof. Rūta Samulionienė, assoc. prof. Jūratė Černevičiūtė, and is now governed by the assoc. prof. Jūratė Svičiulienė.

Nowadays highly qualified lecturers of humanities and social sciences work at the Department:

• 10 lecturers with doctoral degrees;
• 2 of them are associated professors;
• 3 assoc. prof. having a scolarly educational degree.

STUDIES

Bachelor’s degree programme in Cultural Management for which the department is responsible aims to prepare professionals of the social studies that have diverse education in humanities, comprehend the situation and tendencies in contemporary culture. Graduates of the programme are capable of the development of cultural activity covering organization of various events, the preparation of projects, and working with media. The programme stresses the primary importance of the development of graduate’s practical skills. Proper readiness of a specialist of culture market is gained through practice in culture and leisure facilities, radio, TV, clubs. The experience is gained through studies of modern information technologies, practical investigation of socio-cultural phenomena (students are taught special cultural exploration and management techniques). Furthermore, students obtain the main professional skills necessary in managerial activities.

After graduation students can work in departments of culture in various public offices, theatres, museums, leisure and entertainment fields, organise pop culture events, tours of artistic collectives, activities of cultural clubs, cultural and recreational tourism. Furthermore, they can work in the advertising field and media, organise free-standing business, and supply cultural market with a range of various services. Thus, graduates of the programme independently carry out complex organizational tasks, related with personal responsibility in the cultural market, establish and supervise cultural enterprises, perform cultural market research, analyse and evaluate products of the cultural market, find and choose appropriate business strategy in various segments of cultural industry.

General courses that are delivered by the lecturers of the Department of Philosophy and Cultural Management:

• History of Philosophy;
• Philosophy;
• Ethics;
• Aesthetics;
• Sociology;
• Politics theory;
• Gender Sociology;
• History of Lithuanian culture and business;
• Cultural history;
• Religions’ study;
• Psychology;
• Psychology of communication;
• Comparative civilization’s history

PROJECTS

Lecturers of the Department take part in the SPD project Integrated Studies Programs for Enterprise Development (for Measure 2.4. Development of Conditions for Lifelong Learning), and are concerned with the implementation of the project Schoolgirls and students in exact sciences conducted by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Lithuania. 

SCIENTIFIC WORK

Lecturers of the Department conduct research in the scientific work referring to Society, Culture, and Consumption. Gender research and research of trends of a changing concept of social culture have been implemented, the development of culture business in Lithuania has been analysed, the role of cultural and creative industries in the social space of a town (region) has been discussed, and consumer behavior research has been carried out.

CONFERENCES

The Department organises scientific conferences to present research results. In 2007 the conference on Gender Studies in the Baltic States Region was organized. In 2008 the conference Cultural Industries: Challenges and Perspectives took place.

Department organizes these continuous scientific conferences:

• Values: conflict or coexistence ( November 20, 1998);
• Republican scientific conference Culture and consumption (September 27, 2002);
• Republican scientific conference Pop culture: production, consumption, wellbeing (September 26, 2003);
• Republican scientific conference Woman in postmodern culture ( March 17, 2006);
• International scientific conference Gender studies in Baltic region (November 29 – 30, 2007);
• Republican scientific conference Cultural Industries: Challenges and Perspectives (November 28, 2008);
• Unconventional spaces for visitors of Kaunas Old Town (November 27, 2009).

SCIENTISTS

The Department is proud of prominent scientists that have worked and still works in the Department: assoc. prof. Rūta Samulionienė, assoc. prof. R. Mikuckienė, assoc. prof. Nijolė Vasiljevienė, assoc. prof. Jūratė Černevičiūtė, assoc. prof. Gintaras Žilinskas, assoc. prof. Virginija Jurėnienė, assoc. prof. Jūratė Svičiulienė, Dr. Audronė Rimkutė, Dr. Ina Pukelytė.

PUBLICATIONS

The community of the Department publishes the results of scientific research in monographs, educational and methodical publications:

• A collection of scientific articles Cultural Industries: Challenges and Perspectives. Vilnius: Vilnius University Press;
• Jurėnienė, V. (2006). Lietuvos moterų judėjimas XIX amžiaus pabaigoje – XX amžiaus pirmoje pusėje. Vilnius (in Lithuanian).

STUDENTS’ PRACTICE

Students of the programme of Cultural Management practise in Lithuanian and foreign cultural institutions, study in Sweden, France universities under Erasmus study exchange programmes, continue postgraduate studies in Lithuanian universities, as well as in universities in France and Great Britain. In addition to that, students with their lecturers take part in collaborative projects, among which are SILUETAS LT (2009) dedicated for the commemoration of the Millennium of Lithuania (leader assoc. prof. V. Jurėnienė), Encouragement of Youth Initiatives in Abandoned Kaunas Old Town Zones (leader Dr. I. Pukelytė), etc.