Good Afternoon All,
I agree with all of the writers of the postings on this thread.
RE: Jim Lyons's posting...... I am reminded of two pearls of wisdom I overhead over 25 years ago, from an elderly gentleman, who worked in our mailroom. Here are the quotes:
1. "It is not who you know....it is all about, who knows you!" (read: networking)
2. "A little bit of something, is a heck-of-lot better, than a whole lot of nothing!" (read: some volunteer experience is better than no work experience)
God Bless you Mr. Blount, wherever you are!
Best Wishes for Success,
Wesley
Wesley S. Creel
Administrator of Programs
Pink Palace Family of Museums
3050 Central Avenue
Memphis, TN 38111
Website www.memphismuseums.org<http://www.memphismuseums.org/>
Office 901.636.2370 new telephone number
FAX 901.636.2391 new FAX number
e-mail [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Please consider including the Pink Palace Family of Museums in your charitable giving plans
along with your other charitable interests.
Please visit all our great facilities as well as our website: www.memphismuseums.org<blocked::http://www.memphismuseums.org/> Our mission: The Pink Palace Family of Museums inspires people to learn how history.science, technology and nature shape the mid-South. Through rich collections, thought-provoking exhibitions, and engaging programs, we encourage our diverse community to reflect on the past, understand the present, and influence the future
From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Cass Karl
Sent: Friday, August 23, 2013 7:43 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] Getting around Lack of Experience
I must agree with Adrian. Lack of experience is a problem for new grads, but the bigger problem is too many people with graduate degrees competing for too few jobs. At a time when most museums are downsizing and current museum staff are reluctant to retire, Museum Studies programs are turning out more graduates than ever. Although volunteer experience will set you apart from other candidates, it simply cannot get you a job when there are no jobs to be had. Just my experience...
-Casandra
On Fri, Aug 23, 2013 at 7:52 AM, Adrian Miller <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote:
Hi
Great ideas Jim and I must jump in here with some of my own observations. Perhaps I am playing devil's advocate or just want to share what I have seen in the world of museums and historic houses:
--The job market is slim to none.
--The internships are usually unpaid and don't often lead to full-time, paid employment.
--Many entry level jobs require an advanced degree yet the pay scale is significantly lower than a comparable employee in the "for profit" world.
--You can prove your worth, volunteer your time and show how much you know and it can go nowhere.
--There is an incredibly large number of qualified and fabulous people out there doing much of what you said but it has gone nowhere fast.
--I'm in NY---huge market, huge potential.....Mmmm, not! No one is leaving their jobs, movement is minimal, budgets are frozen and people will work for peanuts.
I think your post has the potential to make it sound a tad easier than it is and I hope that the job searchers on this list know that we KNOW how darn difficult it is to get a toe, forget a foot, into ANY door.
Working in a museum is a passion and the passion makes all of the above totally okay...but is it really okay? Looking in from without, I think not.
Saying that, I am an eternal optimist but I always need to see both sides of the picture.
Thanks.
A.
Adrian Miller
Business Growth Architect
We help build your business.
516-767-9288<tel:516-767-9288> (office)
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On Aug 22, 2013, at 6:20 AM, Jim Lyons <[log in to unmask]<http://EARTHLINK.NET>> wrote:
After reading various threads on this Forum it's obvious jobs in museum work are hard to come by because new college graduates generally lack experience. It's that old Catch-22 bugaboo, you can't get a job without experience and you can't get experience without a job. That gave me an idea. Why don't you invent your own experience?
Am I saying lie about your lack of experience? Certainly not! I'm saying find something that will greatly enhance the museum experience for visitors that the museum doesn't currently do.
I'm a retiree and volunteer at our local medium-sized town museum. Our local town historian wrote one of the nifty Images of America (http://www.arcadiapublishing.com/) books a few years ago. Now the museum is looking for someone to write the second volume, covering the years since incorporation (1952).
What's in it for you, you ask? Suppose you live near by and hear of this. You run over to our museum, find out what's involved, and volunteer for the job. Images of America books are essentially picture books with suitable captions. You bone up on local history, do interviews with local old-timers and pick out some suitable pictures. You put out a nice book and what happens? The museum appreciates the work you did, you have become steeped in local history, and you have spent considerable time with the museum director and other towns-folks who matter (museum-wise). And of course you have a book signing at the museum. They now know you and the work you're capable of. In short, you have "experience". But don't stop now.
Having written the book, you do other volunteer things with the museum. (Not full time, just hours you can spare.) You help with the exhibits, maybe even plan a couple. You answer research queries (you wrote the book, remember?). You get to know people and collections in other area museums, and act as an informal intermediary, perhaps arranging an inter-museum borrowing system. You learn every department and area of your own museum and help out where you can. You try to be a part of their planning sessions. You arrange to place a few traveling museum pieces (with suitable captions) in local schools and businesses. You do what you can to get the museum's events noticed in the local newspaper (make sure you know the editor). You write a few booklets on local history & town pioneers that the gift shop can sell for a buck or two. You create the museum's oral history project. You devise a hands-on exhibit to occupy small hands (kids), consisting of a typewriter, a full-keyboard adding machine, a dial telephone and whatever else comes to mind. You're in charge of the yearly museum crab feed (this is a big money maker, not to mention publicity gatherer). You do other things you can think of that will add to the museum experience. And you learn the ins & outs of applying for grants and museum fund raising.
Now, sometime or another a job at the museum is going to open up. You apply for it. Is someone going to say you lack experience? Not if they're smart.
However, what if a position doesn't open up at your museum? That's taken care of because you have gotten "to know people and collections in other area museums". You've kept in touch with situations all over your area. If something appears on the horizon you're going to hear about it. And the other museums are already well familiar with your work with your own museum. (And maybe you've already done an Images of America book for them. A number of people have done several books for them.)
There are some ideas that come to mind. The moral here is: don't wait until they come to you, you go to them with something they may not have known they even wanted.
Here are links to the book lists at Arcadia and it's rival, History Press. Look them over and see if any book ideas come to mind.
Arcadia Publishing: http://www.arcadiapublishing.com/index.html
History Press: https://www.historypress.net/catalogue/bookstore/Series/Hidden_History/?pageNum_menuRS=1&totalRows_menuRS=64&p=Series/Hidden_History/
And remember, there are many more "get your foot in the door" ideas than I can think of. Think about it. Maybe we can get some ideas going on this forum.
-Jim Lyons
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