Dear Mr. Handley, you certainly bring up valid points. I am curious
where the 7000 figure for the number of grad students enrolled in museum
studies programs comes from. Perhaps I've missed a piece of information in
this thread. Is that nationally (US) or internationally? The reason I ask
is because 7000 seems a bit high, although I could be off.
Regarding the issue of culling applicants nationally or locally, I think a
museum could very well advertise nationally and locally. What's to stop
local talent from applying for local positions? As we all know, many
museums advertise locally only, while others advertise their position
openings nationally or regionally in order to find the best possible
candidate whether he/she lives 2 miles or 2000 miles away.
Arlyn Danielson
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From: JHANDLEY[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Friday, February 06, 1998 2:10 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Museum jobs. *sigh*
You've stumbled onto one of the hard facts of the museum field today,
and I don't believe it will ever change. There are so many young
people coming into the field (is it true that there are some 7,000
students enrolled in museum grad programs?) who are willing to work
for low wages or as interns to gain experience. It makes it very hard
to enter the field (for that matter, it is hard for those already in
the field who just want to move on to a new position). I was one of
those interns once and worked for peanuts part-time so that I could
gain experience.
Here's another question that I struggle with. What I really don't
understand is why, when museums are so concerned about building local
community, do they immediately launch a national search for a position
that could easily be filled by someone living locally? It is one of
the great contradictions of the field.
John Handley
San Francisco
______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________
________
Subject: Museum jobs. *sigh*
Author: Museum discussion list <[log in to unmask]> at internet
Date: 2/6/98 6:36 AM
Is it fair to say that most museum jobs (even entry-level) require 3+ years
experience? How does one get museum experience without a museum job? I
see
a pattern of itinerant workers in the museum field: volunteer a few months
here, work on a project a few months there, etc. Stay at the same location
at most a year. It doesn't sound a very stable lifestyle for a
married/family person breaking into the field.
I'm not a total newcomer to the ideosyncrasies of museum studies.
Undergrad
degrees in anthropology and history, with some graduate work in archaeology
and museum studies -- I really wanted to pursue (and still think about) the
field(s). But it seemed too harsh. I ended up going back for an undergrad
in the computer sciences. Jobs abound, salary is good, but they're dull.
My dream job would be a database analyst/researcher for a huge
paleontological or archaeological collection. Full benefits package,
didn't
require 10+ years in a museum (2 years as a database administrator, and a
triple-major in anthro/history/computer science should be adequate). If
only
such a job were there. Would some kind soul e-mail me if it exists?
-Paul Bramscher
Information Technology Specialist
[log in to unmask]
http://www.freenet.msp.mn.us/people/bramschp/resume.html
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