I fell in love with museum work during a curatorial internship at the Pensacola Museum of Art in 2014. I was fortunate to get asked to hold a part-time job the following year at the Mattie Kelly Arts Center Galleries, after a short time volunteering there, as well. The small staff of the Galleries allows me to have many opportunities to explore multiple avenues of museum jobs. Working with our large permanent collection and nationally acclaimed exhibitions has been a treat.
What I wish was different
The only thing I would wish was for the part-time status to turn into a full-time status. Ya girl's gotta eat. Fortunately, I am able to explore other interests and produce multiple streams of income outside of this work.
Advice
For anyone who wants to venture into a set career... Do an internship!! Internships help those new to the field decide if the career choice is worth spending time and effort on. In addition, working diligently in an internship and maintaining friendly relationships can most assuredly lead to bigger, better opportunities. In the future, however, I would like to see institutions offer more paid internships. Free internships, coupled with certain expectations, are becoming less feasible to future applicants that have less privilege than others in our current economy.
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Work-study
June 2017 - August 2019 • Niceville, FL
What I liked
I loved the flexibility around my school schedule. It also allowed me to have time to schedule tutors and such as well. It was also nice working on campus as well.
What I wish was different
Some benefits weren't available to the student workers (like chair massages, certain raffles, etc), so I would like to see the inclusion of student workers in these.
Advice
Just do your best and communicate with your boss. They're there to help you succeed.
