Let me suggest a somewhat different tack to this never-ending string.  Perhaps
the analysis should not be of who is either not being hired or having
difficulty being hired but rather of who IS being hired - and people are being
hired by museums.  What talents, skills, experiences, expertises, etc. do they
have?  How might museum studies programs create more competitive candidates,
if there are perceptible differences?

The museum industry of 1998 is measurably different from when I first
encountered it in the early 60s.  The progressive museums (the survivors) are
hiring very different people from when I began.  There seems to be a message
there.

So, as a profession, let's not be training people to drive steam engines when
jets are the preferred mode of transportation.

Mac West
Informal Science, Inc.
Washington, DC