Houston is the fourth largest city in the US and home to 150 museums. From national galleries to small local museums, one can choose their favourite spot and make a career. Sure, you might think of working at a museum as something old-fashioned. However, things are not as they were before. Nowadays, museums are full of promising job opportunities that can springboard your career. If you’ve ended up in Texas, you might want to check museum jobs in Houston. Why Houston? Check the answer in the article below.
Why is Houston Popular Among Museum Career Beginners?
Let’s start with Houston being a Mecca for museum fans. The concentration of museums is so high that the city has a separate Museum District with walkable zones and superb discounts. We advise you to contact professional resume writers in Houston once you decide to build a career in local museums. But before you dive into the paradise of art galleries and nature museums, learn why students choose to enter the Houston museum industry.
- Despite the pandemic freezing the hiring process, the government funding cuts, and job insecurity, Houston museums have the widest range of jobs;
- The cost of living is low. Hence, higher financial stability compared to cities like New York or San Francisco;
- Due to the variety of museums, the number of internship programs is huge;
- You get to witness cultural progress by working at the forefront of cultural heritage preservation;
- Due to the stable local economy, forgetting about financial troubles is real. This is especially important if you’re a student going through an internship.
Now let’s talk about why you might want to enter the doors of Houston museums yourself.
1. Secure Your Finances
Now, this is the most popular standpoint that rarely changes among students. But, as you remember, the cost of living in Houston is low. Further, you won’t break the bank when visiting museums.
Let’s say you’re an art student drawing marble sculptures in your free time or as a part of an art project. Once you start working at an art museum, waiting for another free-entrance Thursday is no longer necessary! From now on, you can visit your favourite galleries anytime you want.
- The greatest industry perk is that you can visit all museums if you’re a museum worker;
- Gallery salaries are average or higher than average in Houston. The average salary of a tour guide is around $4000 per month, while the average monthly wages of a curator go up to $8000;
- The cost of living in Houston is 20% lower than in New York or any other megapolis.
2. Combine Your Studies with a Part-Time Job
Most museums allow students to work part-time shifts. This is especially useful if you have to combine your studies with work. The most accessible gallery job is working as a tour guide. All you have to do is refine your communication skills. Your chances of winning the job rise if you’re a multilingual individual are huge since many visitors are non-English speakers.
Another part-time job that is the easiest to secure is a museum educator. No special skills are required. Museum educators consult visitors at information booths and expand the museum’s site with educational articles. The annual income of a museum educator is around $80 000. Of course, for part-time responsibilities, you’ll make less. If building a career in the museum sector is your dream, we advise you to proceed with this job position.
3. Internships and Work Experience
If your career plans include working for museums and galleries, completing an internship at a cultural institution is a must. If you’re majoring in a technical specialization, you might want to contact the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Meanwhile, if Arts and Humanities are your passion, apply for the Museum of Fine Arts internship. If you nail the internship program, you’ll get an opportunity to learn more about behind-the-scenes job responsibilities. At the same time, you’ll gain the experience required to enter the museum industry full-time.
4. Get an Easy-to-Transfer-to Career
Entering the cultural and educational sectors when transferring from a different industry is possible. All you need is your skills to match the museum job responsibilities partially. For example, let’s say you’ve majored in Humanities and now want to secure a job as an art historian. If Art History was a subject at your college or university, go for it! The key is to have those basic skills and knowledge that will allow you to perform your job successfully. With a Humanities degree in your pocket, you already have them.
5. Upgrade Your Current Skills
Applying for work at a museum is a great way to enhance your communication and interpersonal skills by getting hands-on experience as a tour guide. Of course, you can also do it as a curator if you’ve got a degree in Arts. While positions like a museum conservator or archivist require special technical skills, being a tour guide is all about presenting communication skills and pure curiosity for art.
Other skills one can upgrade in museum surroundings are design, social media, and marketing skills. By working as an exhibit designer, you’ll be the creative force that makes sure the items are placed in the best light and angles. Meanwhile, you can improve your social media and marketing skills as an outreach director or a marketing specialist.
6. Put That Volunteering into Other Sections
To enter the museum field, you don’t have to be a Mr. or Ms. ‘Know-It-All’ with a fancy college degree. No special skills are needed for volunteering. At the same time, adding that volunteering experience into the Other Sections of your resume showcases you as an individual who cares about the community.
Additionally, volunteering is a great way to try working at a museum and learn whether a museum job is right for you.
What do volunteers do at museums?
- Greet visitors;
- Work at the information booth;
- Assist with the maintenance of exhibitions.
Final Thoughts
The variety of museum jobs presents one with multiple opportunities to try new roles. Despite COVID-19 and the reduced government funding, museums are great places to start a new career if you’re devoted to art preservation and history. Whether you think of museum positions as a part-time job to earn money or an opportunity to get hands-on experience, entering the field is worth a try.
We hope the article was helpful to you. Good luck!
