Museum+Curator

//__** Museum Curator **__ //

//**__Job Description:__ ** Curators// administer museums, zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, nature centers, and historic sites. The head curator of the museum is usually called the //museum director//. Curators direct the acquisition, storage, and exhibition of collections, including negotiating and authorizing the purchase, sale, exchange, or loan of collections. They are also responsible for authenticating, evaluating, and categorizing the specimens in a collection. Curators oversee and help conduct the institution’s research projects and related educational programs. Today, an increasing part of a curator’s duties involves fundraising and promotion, which may include the writing and reviewing of grant proposals, journal articles, and publicity materials, as well as attendance at meetings, conventions, and civic events. Most curators specialize in a particular field, such as botany, art, paleontology, or history. Those working in large institutions may be highly specialized. A large natural history museum, for example, would employ separate curators for its collections of birds, fishes, insects, and mammals. Some curators maintain their collections, others do research, and others perform administrative tasks. In small institutions with only one or a few curators, one curator may be responsible for a number of tasks, from maintaining collections to directing the affairs of the museum.

__//**Personality Characteristics: **//__Museum Curators should have advanced 'people skills.' This means that workers desiring this position should be able to communicate and deal well with other colleagues, peers, juniors, and seniors. This is vital because curators must often negotiate with other people and establishments for their museum display contents. Curators must also be able to work well under pressure, stress, and responsibility as oftentimes very old, expensive, or priceless items are under their care.

__//**Working Conditions: **//__ The working conditions of archivists and curators vary. Some spend most of their time working with the public, providing reference assistance and educational services. Others perform research or process records, which often means working alone or in offices with only a few people. Those who restore and install exhibits or work with bulky, heavy record containers may lift objects, climb, or stretch. Those in zoos, botanical gardens, and other outdoor museums and historic sites frequently walk great distances. Conservators work in conservation laboratories. The size of the objects in the collection they are working with determines the amount of effort involved in lifting, reaching, and moving objects. Curators who work in large institutions may travel extensively to evaluate potential additions to the collection, organize exhibitions, and conduct research in their area of expertise. However, travel is rare for curators employed in small institutions. __//**Places of Employment: **//__ Museums are primarily located within large cities. There are currently 261 museums within the state of Pennsylvania, many of which are located in or around very large cities such as Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Seventeen of these museums are dedicated to science-related topics. Five of these science museums are located within the city of Pittsburgh.

Job openings for curators are expected to grow as fast as the average for all occupations through the year 2014. Art and history museums remain the largest employers in the museum industry. The number of museums built in the future and the expansion of current museums will be affected by a reduction in federal funding, so competition for curator positions will be stiff. Workers with good business and administrative skills will have the best employment opportunities. Employment of archivists, curators, and museum technicians is expected to increase 18 percent over the 2006-16 decade, faster than the average for all occupations.

//**__Salary Information: __**// The mean salary of Museum Curators (as of 2004) is $43,920 annually.

__//**Recommended Education and Training: **//__

For employment as a curator, most museums require a master’s degree in an appropriate discipline of the museum’s specialty—art, history, or archaeology—or in museum studies. Many employers prefer a doctoral degree, particularly for curators in natural history or science museums. Earning two graduate degrees—in museum studies (museology) and a specialized subject—gives a candidate a distinct advantage in this competitive job market. In small museums, curatorial positions may be available to individuals with a bachelor’s degree. Because curators, particularly those in small museums, may have administrative and managerial responsibilities, courses in business administration, public relations, marketing, and fundraising also are recommended. For some positions, an internship of full-time museum work supplemented by courses in museum practices is needed. Curatorial positions often require knowledge in a number of fields. For historic and artistic conservation, courses in chemistry, physics, and art are desirable. Like archivists, curators need computer skills and the ability to work with electronic databases. Many curators are responsible for posting information on the Internet, so they also need to be familiar with digital imaging, scanning technology, and copyright law. Curators must be flexible because of their wide variety of duties, among which are the design and presentation of exhibits. In small museums, curators need manual dexterity to build exhibits or restore objects. Leadership ability and business skills are important for museum directors, while marketing skills are valuable in increasing museum attendance and fundraising.

__//**Bibliography: **//__ "Archivists, Curators, and Museum Technicians." __U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics__. 20 Apr. 2009 []. "Museum Curator Job Description, Career as a Museum Curator, Salary, Employment - Definition and Nature of the Work, Education and Training Requirements, Getting the Job." __Job Descriptions and Careers, Career and Job Opportunities, Career Search, and Career Choices and Profiles__. 20 Apr. 2009 []. "Museum Curator Job Description, Career as a Museum Curator, Salary, Employment - Definition and Nature of the Work, Education and Training Requirements, Getting the Job." __Job Descriptions and Careers, Career and Job Opportunities, Career Search, and Career Choices and Profiles__. 20 Apr. 2009 [].

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