Student Information for Museum Careers

Helpful information for students who are interested in a career in the museum profession.

What is a museum? Although there are varying answers, in general a museum is an organization committed to public service, education and inclusion grounded in stewardship and scholarship.

As you start your museum career, remember the Oklahoma Museums Association is the primary provider of professional training and technical information to staff, board members and volunteers of Oklahoma's 500 museums, historic sites, tribal cultural centers and historical societies. OMA members receive discounted fees on seminars and other training opportunities. To view a complete list of membership benefits visit the membership benefits section of the OMA Web site at www.okmuseums.org.

The Oklahoma Museums Association (OMA), a non-profit 501(c)3 organization, has been fulfilling the mission of supporting museums with their efforts to educate, inform and entertain since 1972. OMA is the primary provider of information and professional development to the staff, student interns, volunteers and governing boards for Oklahoma's 500+ museums, historical societies, historic sites, zoos and botanical gardens, historic houses, living history museums, tribal cultural centers and other museum-related institutions. Oklahoma is truly blessed to have so many cultural treasures.

In addition to training and workshops, OMA currently offers the following programs and services:
Networking - opportunities for museum staff and volunteers to develop a strong network with colleagues throughout the state.
Quarterly Newsletter - MuseNEWS provides current information on OMA activities and other professional development information and training opportunities
Annual Fall Conference - two and a half days of educational sessions, workshops, tours and special events
Workshops and Seminars - training opportunities to meet the needs of OMA members throughout the year
Museum Accessioning and Registration of Collections (MARC) Course - specific training offered annually
Traveling Art Exhibitions - sponsored by the Oklahoma Arts Council and available for monthly bookings
Office Referrals and Consultations - OMA staff can provide help with members' questions
Lending Library - more than 350 books and other materials available for loan through the Oklahoma Department of Libraries
Technical Bulletin Series - published regularly
Annual Awards Program - recognizes individual service and institutions that have produced outstanding exhibits, publications, and other projects
Standing Professional Committees - opportunities for members with similar job responsibilities to share information and ideas
Professional Liaison - OMA represents its members to local, regional, and national professional associations
Advocate - OMA represents its members on the state, regional, and national levels regarding issues of concern to the Oklahoma museum community
E-list - announcements and updates sent to OMA members via e-mail. If you are a member and want to receive news and information via the e-list, send a request to be added
M!X Events - annual networking event for members
Web Site - easy access to OMA information and resources
Affinity Programs - a way to support OMA through merchandise purchases
E-Mentor Program - eligibility to participate
Scholarship Opportunities - members can apply for scholarships to OMA seminars, workshops, and the Annual Fall Conference
Wimgo.com - satellite calendar of museum events and exhibits of OMA institutional members.

As you think about your museum career, there are many areas in which to work in the museum - and they all have to work together as a whole to make a successful institution. Each museum is different regarding departments and which positions are in each department. In fact, many of the positions may overlap departments. The four main categories listed here are administration, collections, education and exhibitions.

  • Administration- Areas include Governance, Development (fund raising), Marketing and Public Relations, Legal, Visitor Services, Financial, Security, Gift Shop and Technology - the actual job titles will include Executive Director, Deputy Director, Administrative Associate, Accountant, Grants Administration, Marketing Director, Membership Coordinator, Attorney, Director of Security, Visitor Services Coordinator, IT Administrator, Special Events Coordinator, Facility Maintenance, Gift Shop Manager, etc.
  • Collections- Areas include accessioning, registration, conservation, collections management, inventory and storage - the actual job titles will include Curator of Collections, Collections Coordinator, Registrar, Conservator, Collections Assistance, Archivist, Photographic Curator, Data Entry, Research Assistant, etc.
  • Education- Areas include interpretation, tours, volunteer and docents, publications, programming both in-house and outreach- the actual job titles will include Curator of Education, Education Assistant, Volunteer and Docent Coordinator, Programming Director, Publications Coordinator, Tour Guide, Scheduler, Outreach Assistant
  • Exhibitions - Areas include permanent exhibit planning, research, design and construction, traveling exhibits, label writing, audience research and evaluation- the actual job titles will include Exhibit Technician, Preparator, Graphic Designer, Exhibit Director, Temporary and Traveling Exhibits Scheduler, Carpenter, Audience Researcher and Surveyor.

Top five list of practical advice to get ready for a career in the museum field:
1) Volunteer, volunteer and volunteer. Preferably at various museums, but other volunteer service is good also. Be sure and list this volunteer service on your resume.
2) Network, network and network. You never know who you will meet and what connections they have to the museum world. When you get a chance, talk to everyone about your interest in museums.
3) Keep up with current and latest best practices in the museum field. You can do this by reading books, articles, websites.... whatever it takes. Believe it or not, standards in our field change, just like other fields.
4) Have a good resume ready and sharp interview skills. You will need both as you apply for volunteer positions or when applying for an actual paying job. It is much better to work on both of those items now, when you are not rushed. One tip: the people you ask to be your references, be sure and alert them anytime you apply for a job, just in case the museum calls them for a reference, you do not want them to be taken off guard.
5) Become a member of OMA and attend as many training programs as your time and budget will allow, especially the annual fall conference! Membership information can be found on the Web site at http://www.okmuseums.org/. There are student discounted rates and scholarships are available for workshops and training.

Museum Job Descriptions

Museum Job Opportunity Announcements
Please visit the Oklahoma Museums Association Web site, http://www.okmuseums.org/job-announcements/, for a complete listing of job announcements

The Virginia Association of Museums has created this Web resource to help students who are interested in a museum career. Web site

The Smithsonian Center for Education and Museum Studies (SCEMS) assists the museum community in acquiring and strengthening its understandings and practices of museology. Their Web site is one of the Center's tools for serving the educational and informational needs of the field. Web site