An addition to the comment that "volunteer work doesn't outweigh paid
expereince ..."

I encourage you to reconsider the enormous value of volunteer work: I
stepped into the PR management position of a large newspaper (450,000
readership in a two-county area) despite little paid experience ... because
I possessed talents that were refined through my extensive volunteer work.

Volunteering to tackle diverse and complex community activities gave me the
very skills I needed: tactfully supervising large numbers of volunteers;
coordinating work assignments and monitoring their timely completion;
recruiting speakers, including nationally recognized names; planning
facility logistics and event management for several hundred attendees at a
time; and so on. Volunteerism requires more consideration to others because
I can't ORDER a volunteer to perform!

As a volunteer, I received the opportunity to write and produce several
important videos in conjunction with two local cable stations ... because
United Way and the YWCA could not have otherwise afforded to do them. No,
my skills were not different because I was not paid. I did not have the
extensive experience of Charles Kuralt, but it was not needed to get the
job done. I knew how to tell an interesting story, even though I had never
done a video before, and it turned out well.

However, as an employer, the question I must answer is: Do you have the
skills to accomplish what I need? I consider volunteerism a bonus in
hiring: It shows the person has the heart to do what is right and
important, whether or not "there's something in it for me."



>I would say that employers value volunteer experience in an archival
>setting, particularly for entry level jobs.  Of course, volunteer work
>doesn't outweigh paid experience, but I would be more inclined to hire
>an assistant who had volunteered at a few different repositories than
>one who didn't have such experience. I feel that volunteering is a
>great way to break into the field.  It also provides experience that
>can be beneficial in managing volunteers later on.
>
>Eric J. Roth, Archivist/Librarian
>Huguenot Historical Society
>Library and Archives
>88 Huguenot Street
>New Paltz, NY 12561
>[log in to unmask]
>[log in to unmask]
>
>
>
>
>--- Adrienne Roberts <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>> Hi everyone.
>>
>> I need a bit of help here...I am currently starting
>> up, with a lot of
>> help, a newsletter for the archaeology unit at my
>> university, where I am a
>> Grad student.  I do a fair amount of volunteer work
>> for experience btu I
>> was wondering if a few of you wouldn't mind giving
>> me soem quotes about
>> the benefits of volunteer work for experience, and
>> for when it comes to
>> hiring practices.  or even, if anyone can suggest
>> what type of volunteer
>> work is better for anyone who wants a career in
>> museum, galleries, the
>> public heritage sector.
>>
>> any ideas, comments or suggestions would be greatly
>> appreciated.  myself
>> and the co-editor want to use this newsletter as a
>> means to combat all the
>> negativity within the unit aobut finding jobs and
>> the pessimissm that
>> seems to be growing when anyone talks about the
>> future.  whether or not it
>> will work, who knows, but at elast we're hoping to
>> lift the sprits just a
>> bit.
>>
>> Thanks in advance
>> Adrienne Roberts
>>
>> *************************************
>> Adrienne Roberts
>> Archaeology Unit
>> Queen's College
>> Memorial University of Newfoundland
>> St. John's, NF
>> Canada
>> (709) 737-8869
>> (709) 726-3703 (home)
>> [log in to unmask]
>> *************************************
>>
>> =========================================================
>> Important Subscriber Information:
>>
>> The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
>> http://museums.state.nm.us/nmmnh/museum-l.html. 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).
>>
>
>_________________________________________________________
>Do You Yahoo!?
>Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com
>
>=========================================================
>Important Subscriber Information:
>
>The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
http://museums.state.nm.us/nmmnh/museum-l.html. 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 "h
>elp" (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).
>


Karen Bradford
Senior Public Information Representative
The Western Center for Archaeology and Paleontology
Program Planning Office
University of California, Riverside
Riverside, CA  92521-0224
Office (909) 787-3517
Fax (909) 787-5934

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

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://museums.state.nm.us/nmmnh/museum-l.html. 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).