A. While arts management programs and other similar courses are often seen as a requirement to be eligible for jobs such as museum curating, in fact they ought to be considered optional: a degree in management studies is by no means a necessary qualification for the understanding of art.
Correct. "while" means contrast here. "they" refers to "arts management programs". "a degree in management ... of art" is an example to support the previous clause.B. Though arts management programs and other similar courses like them are often seen as a requirement to be eligible for jobs such as museum curating, they should in fact be considered optional, a degree in management studies is by no means a qualifying necessary qualification for the understanding of art.
"similar ... like ... " is redundant.C. A degree in management studies is by no means a necessary qualification for the understanding of art, thus arts management programs and other similar courses are often seen as a requirement to be eligible for jobs such as museum curating, but in fact they ought to be considered optional.
This choice conveys illogic meaning. First clause means that management programs are unnecessary, but second clause, with conjunction "thus", means that management programs are required.D. Though a degree in management studies is by no means a necessary qualification for the understanding of art, it should, in fact, be considered optional: arts management programs and other similar courses are often seen as a requirement to be eligible for jobs such as museum curating.
This choice conveys illogic meaning. "though" means a contrast, but "not necessary" and "optional" seem not to have contrast in meaning.E. Arts management programs and other similar courses are often seen as a requirement to be eligible for jobs such as museum curating, but a degree in management studies is by no means a necessary qualification for the understanding of art: in fact, they ought to be considered optional.
"they" at the end of this sentence is ambiguous.