I couldn't agree more.  Coincidentally, I have such a position open in my
department right now.  It has been posted to this list already.  It is an
Assistant Registrar position and, I think, is an ideal position for someone
who has their degree, who has had an internship or has done some volunteer
work and is looking for a job where they can do a wide variety of things,
learn a lot, make a significant contribution to a museum, and build their
resume as they plan their career.  It's not that I don't want someone
long-term, it's just that there is little room (we are a mid-sized museum)
for significant promotion so I know that once someone has been in the
position for several years, they will want to move onward and upward.  The
person in this position takes care of accessions, deaccessions, loans,
catalogs, learns how to pack and transport specimens for travelling
exhibits (occasionally curriering same), gets supervisory experience (by
supervising part-time assistants, interns, and volunteers), teaches
workshops, has publishing opportunities, and can spend a couple of weeks in
the field each summer with a curator if they want to do fieldwork (which I
highly recommend; it allows the collections staff to experience all phases
of specimen acquisition, from collecting through cataloging and housing
when they come back from the field).  In other words, the person in this
position gets hands-on experience in just about everything that the
Collections Department is involved with.  This is one of the bonuses in
working for a mid-sized museum.

So, here's a position, where are all of the applicants?

Dr. Elizabeth A. Moore, Collections Curator
Virginia Museum of Natural History
1001 Douglas Avenue
Martinsville, VA  24112
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----------
> From: Ellen Holdorf <[log in to unmask]>
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: more! seeking ENTRY-LEVEL JOB
> Date: Thursday, June 18, 1998 7:37 PM
>
> Just to beat a dead horse   :) ..........
>
> In this discussion, I've heard many of you adivse to work as a
> volunteer/intern----and to try starting in smaller museums.
>
> I agree wholeheartedly. A couple of years ago my first internship was at
a
> very small (but great) museum, and I was paid a *very* small amount.
>
> I also got to create the entire collections management system for them---
from
> generating all gift/loan/condition report documents, to devising the
numbering
> and classification system, to drafting a collections management
> policy-----everything, all at my first museum job. I could never have had
such
> an exciting and creative experience anywhere else.
>
> Most museums already have these collections systems in place, of course.
But
> an intern or volunteer at a small museum still has a great opportunity to
get
> there hands into a little bit of everything.
>
> I later found that, in many ways, this experience that was more enticing
in
> terms of experience to employers than my subsequent work.
>
> Ellen