But for some perspective--- it's not only the museum field that has too few
jobs. Have you seen how many lawyers the law schools are turning out?
Speaking of bloating the market. I had a waiter the other night who was
waiting tables while he looked for a lawyer job! I know people looking for
jobs in fields such as environmental policy, legal, economics, international
trade, geography and all sorts of entry level positions.

And where are there jobs? And will you be happy with them? You can get an
extremely well paying computer job if you know how to double click. But do
you want to stare at a screen and type code all day? Construction's
increasing, but can you do it? There's always a need for nurses, but can you
stand blood and suffering? And we won't mention the growth in the
military...

The economy is shifting around. In many ways I would argue that the museum
field is growing more than others-- professionalism in the last 30 years has
been increasing, requiring more trained museum people. True, the number of
"curator" jobs aren't increasing, but what about jobs in education,
community outreach, fundraising? And what about museum consulting firms?
For-profit museums? Sure, those pre-celtic impressionist curator positions
aren't growing, but there are lots of other positions. When you look at the
Aviso ads, look at all the jobs. The number of ads has been growing and the
types diversifying. Who knows, maybe your museum niche is in the security or
elderly programs.

You can still find cheap Rolling Rock in places (but the $2 PBR pitchers
seem to be gone!) so have fun, be flexible and explore various fields while
you still have the flexibility. No one expects you to be in your career
right out of college, so enjoy it while you can.


Pamela

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Indigo Nights [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Wednesday, May 12, 2004 9:30 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: experience for entry level positions
>
> Anne, I understand your frustration and why you would
> take umbrage to such a comment.  You've worked hard to
> fulfill a dream that may have dissolved--for
> now--because life is not always fair.
>
> But there is and was a way you might have anticipated
> some of this.  I offer this to you as a bandage and a
> way of looking for something that will have more
> potential until you can go back to this dream
> (optimistically, I'm hoping you will be able to, but
> nobody has a crystal ball with respect to this
> economy--and some will depend upon what happens as
> soon as the November elections).
>
> Are you familiar with the Bureau of Labor Statistics?
> They're a part of the Department of Labor, and they
> publish what jobs are on the rise, and what jobs are
> falling.
>
> http://www.bls.gov/oco/home.htm
>
> You may wish to "map" your education and see if you
> can overlay it against some of these other jobs while
> volunteering at a museum near you (for those who would
> say, "Yes, but, I have kids, I can't
> volunteer"--that's a question of choices.  Those who
> choose to have kids, regrettably, may be disadvantaged
> by those who do not and have time to spare to do these
> things.  And before you bite me for saying this, as
> someone who raised two kids a majority of the time
> without their dad and his child support, I've been
> exactly where you are, and I know how unfair it is at
> the time.)
>
> I would just suggest to you that you are shooting the
> messenger here.  Deb and I didn't create the crazy job
> market of today.  In 1999, I left a job of 24 years
> and had to become aware of what my options were going
> to be.  I spent a heck of a lot of time doing market
> research in this regard, and what I have offered you
> is based, in some respects, in the continuing research
> I do for the MuseJobs folks.
>
> A very wise, much older boss used to tell me that
> "Life isn't always fair, it just is."  I used to
> retort, "But it doesn't have to be that way."  If you
> feel this strongly about the potential to find gainful
> employment in the museum world, it may be the time to
> start writing to your elected officials to see what
> they might be willing to do to support the arts.  If
> that's the case, take a look at Thomas:
>
> http://thomas.loc.gov/
>
> Find your Congresspersons and start lobbying.
> Exercise the power of your vote.  It may be the only
> way to make it better.
>
> Sorry you're so frustrated.  I understand.
>
>
>
>
>
> --- Anne Sawicki <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> > And I really take umbrage at the comment that as
> > recent grads, we all "blew
> > it" because we believed in our  dreams of becoming
> > museum workers. Let me just
> > say that none of us are fortunetellers and that
> > there were a whole lot of
> > really smart economists out there who didn't see
> > this negative trend coming
> > either. I bet that many of them are unemployed right
> > now too. As a matter of fact,
> > at last count, there are about 8.2 million people
> > out of work right now in the
> > United States. That's a lot of folks. Did all of
> > those 8.2 million people
> > "blow it" too? Somehow, I don't think so. The truth
> > is that a lot of different
> > people in many different fields have been affected
> > by economic circumstances that
> > are way beyond their control.
>
>
>
> =====
> Indigo Nights
> [log in to unmask]
>
> Looking for a Job?  Try Got Links?, Your One-Stop Portal
> http://victorian.fortunecity.com/stanmer/414
>
> =========================================================
> Important Subscriber Information:
>
> The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-
> faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by
> sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The
> body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
>
> If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to
> [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read
> "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).