From time to time inquiries appear on this list from young
persons asking which "museum studies" graduate professional program
is recommended, or how to turn a baccalaureate in x into a museum
career. I read this with a touch of sadness. They should read
the sobering realities. One of these is the government document
_Occupational Outlook_, which I believe is issued periodically
by either Commerce or Labor. Another obligatory read is "The
Great Skill Overkill," _Museums Journal_, Feb. 1996, 21-24.
The gist is a labor market oversupply. This is a UK journal and
is about UK conditions. However, Americans contemplating such
careers can be certain that they will find themselves in
competition for jobs with the labor oversupply from other countries,
using various dodges and strategms - such as the much-abused
"student visa," a major back door into permanent resident
status - to get around the INS.
In some of those countries the training structure and process
are much better organized than in the US (free-form is
defiantly touted as a strength of the US method, if method it
be). I could readily sympathize with any administrator,
presented with a hiring choice between a US candidate with a
correspondence credential, and a (say) ULeicester MA, doing
everything by hook or crook to get the latter.

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