I'm sorry to be pessimistic, but while volunteering can be a great way to
find a permanent, paid position within the museum world, it is more often
than not, I think, that volunteering/unpaid internships do not turn into
full-time positions.  It is an incredibly demoralizing problem with museum
work (probably any non-profit work.)  My perspective of this is having a
masters, several internships and volunteer experience, as well as teaching
experience.  This was all done while keeping a full-time position to pay
the bills.  For me, the internships, volunteering and teaching have not
paid off in a museum job even though I have been actively pursuing them.
My point of this tirade is this:  carefully weigh the time an energy it
takes to do these "volunteer" bits with a full-time job with the realities
of getting--and being happy in--a museum job.  Carefully research various
institutions in your area in terms of salary, upward movement within the
museum (or, at least, increasing responsibility and challenge), how often
the institutions hire from volunteers/interns.  Also, consider wider
opportunities within your skills--editorial work, PR, advertising agencies
work with museums and non-profits as well.  There is A LOT of idealism with
people who want to get into museum work, but, too often, that idealism is
not grounded in the realities of finding a job, living on the salary of
that job, and being happy with the upward mobility (or lack thereof) of
that job.  For me, it hasn't worked out, but I'm not saying that it won't
for others.  Just make sure you think carefully about the realities of the
choice to go into museum work.

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