Greetings! Just a few observations which may or may not be useful to you in your search. It has been my experience that most museum professionals who are working with natural history collections have advanced degrees in some object-related field, like entomology, paleontology, herpetology etc. and that museums with active research in those collections often have close ties with academic insititutions where they may share professors and graduate students to research the collections. It is also true that often these same people have had little training (some have little interest!) in museum procedures that may involve object conservation, technical preparation of specimens, exhibit label writing, museum legalities regarding ownership etc.. I have to admit that most of my "museum training" was on the job, and after 25 years I'm still learning. With your degree in physics and biochemistry you may want to investigate employment opportunities in more of a science technology center (one whose emphasis is on the exhibition and explanation of processes and applied sciences, not the development and research of systematic collections), planetarium, or corporate exhibition space (one which creates exhibits to explain their mission to the public, like the Lawrence Livermore Labs or nuclear facilities). Some of the governmental agencies with high profile, high technology space programs (like NASA) might also be a good fit. I wish I could give you lots of encouragement. But, to be frank, the field is overloaded - especially in recent years with the downsizing of the US Geological Survey and museums across the country. I also think you'll find the pay scales to be less than satisfying with the exception of the largest institutions. However, you should try to do whatever it is that stimulates your creativity and satisfies your yearning for life-long learning. In the latter quest there is surely no finer place than a museum! Good luck with your search. If all people were discouraged by hardship and the strenuous journey we never would have reached the summit of the Himalayans. So, I say, go for it! And if, by chance, you find the "road not taken" brings you happiness and success, so much the better! Shirley Albright Assistant Curator of Natural History New Jersey State Museum "Stephen G.Thomas" wrote: > Hi all, > After a Ph.D. in physics and a post-doc in biochemistry I've decided to > get out of data collection and into museum work (science and/or natural > history). I've checked out museum certification programs, but was told by > Georgetown that I really didn't need a certificate with my background. The > folks out at SF wanted to know why the heck the drastic shift. I replied and > I've never heard back. I am doing the traditional job search on the web. This > has resulted in several rejections and a very encouraging phone interview > (won't hear about the job for 1 month). What else can/should I do to work my > way into this great field? I have few museum connections, but I just know I > would excel in a science museum exhibit researcher/curator > (eventually)position. Any and all advice would be welcome. Thanks in advance. > > Steve Thomas > > ____________________________________________________________________ > Get your own FREE, personal Netscape WebMail account today at http://webmail.netscape.com. > > 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).