Museum Technicians and Conservators
SOC Code: 25-4013 Job Zone 4: Considerable Preparation Needed
Restore, maintain, or prepare objects in museum collections for storage, research, or exhibit. May work with specimens such as fossils, skeletal parts, or botanicals; or artifacts, textiles, or art. May identify and record objects or install and arrange them in exhibits. Includes book or document conservators.
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Prevailing Wage Levels (National)
DOL/OFLC prevailing wage thresholds for Museum Technicians and Conservators. Hourly rates x 2,080 = annual.
FY2027 Weighted Lottery Impact
| Level | Lottery Entries | Est. Selection Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Level I (Entry) | 1 entry | ~16% |
| Level II (Qualified) | 2 entries | ~31% |
| Level III (Experienced) | 3 entries | ~45% |
| Level IV (Expert) | 4 entries | ~61% |
Prevailing Wages by Metro Area
| Metro Area | Level I | Level II | Level III | Level IV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salisbury, MD | $48,547 | $65,894 | $83,262 | $100,610 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $43,202 | $60,757 | $78,312 | $95,867 |
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV | $42,973 | $60,528 | $78,062 | $95,618 |
| Lexington Park, MD | $43,139 | $60,466 | $77,792 | $95,118 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $40,269 | $56,472 | $72,675 | $88,878 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $46,862 | $59,842 | $72,842 | $85,821 |
| Watertown-Fort Drum, NY | $45,136 | $57,491 | $69,826 | $82,181 |
| Trenton-Princeton, NJ | $42,182 | $55,078 | $67,954 | $80,850 |
| Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ | $41,974 | $54,891 | $67,829 | $80,746 |
| Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ | $42,016 | $54,891 | $67,746 | $80,621 |
H-1B Filing Data
Top H-1B Employers
| Employer | Filings | Avg Wage |
|---|---|---|
| The J. Paul Getty Trust | 20 | $86,482 |
| The Metropolitan Museum of Art | 18 | $87,883 |
| American Museum of Natural History | 5 | $55,533 |
| THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART | 3 | $50,667 |
| GV ART CONSERVATION, LLC | 3 | $76,667 |
| Museum of Fine Arts, Boston | 3 | $80,226 |
| Arts and Media Professional Services | 2 | $93,600 |
| The Art Institute of Chicago | 2 | $60,549 |
| Samuel T. Freeman & Company, Inc. | 2 | $77,500 |
| San Francisco Museum of Modern Art | 2 | $77,340 |
Filing Trend
| Year | Filings | Avg Wage |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 5 | $68,269 |
| 2021 | 6 | $73,312 |
| 2022 | 4 | $73,876 |
| 2023 | 14 | $70,582 |
| 2024 | 32 | $78,376 |
| 2025 | 40 | $81,199 |
| 2026 | 2 | $58,071 |
Key Skills
| Skill | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Active Listening | 3.9 | |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.6 | |
| Speaking | 3.6 | |
| Critical Thinking | 3.2 | |
| Writing | 3.2 | |
| Monitoring | 3.1 | |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.1 | |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.1 | |
| Active Learning | 3.0 | |
| Instructing | 3.0 |
Knowledge Areas
| Knowledge | Importance |
|---|---|
| Fine Arts | 3.5 |
| English Language | 3.4 |
| Public Safety and Security | 3.3 |
| History and Archeology | 3.2 |
| Administration and Management | 3.1 |
| Chemistry | 3.1 |
| Administrative | 2.8 |
| Mechanical | 2.7 |
Education Requirements
| Education Level | % of Workers |
|---|---|
| Doctoral degree | 41.3% |
| Bachelor's degree | 24.1% |
| Some college | 20.3% |
| Associate's degree | 7.2% |
| Post-doctoral training | 5.8% |
| High school diploma | 1.3% |
Typical Tasks
- Install, arrange, assemble, and prepare artifacts for exhibition, ensuring the artifacts' safety, reporting their status and condition, and identifying and correcting any problems with the set up.
- Determine whether objects need repair and choose the safest and most effective method of repair.
- Clean objects, such as paper, textiles, wood, metal, glass, rock, pottery, and furniture, using cleansers, solvents, soap solutions, and polishes.
- Prepare artifacts for storage and shipping.
- Supervise and work with volunteers.
- Recommend preservation procedures, such as control of temperature and humidity, to curatorial and building staff.
- Perform on-site field work which may involve interviewing people, inspecting and identifying artifacts, note-taking, viewing sites and collections, and repainting exhibition spaces.
- Repair, restore, and reassemble artifacts, designing and fabricating missing or broken parts, to restore them to their original appearance and prevent deterioration.
Technology Skills
Green = Hot Technology in demand
Adobe Acrobat Adobe Creative Cloud software Adobe Illustrator Adobe InDesign Adobe Photoshop Autodesk AutoCAD Microsoft Active Server Pages ASP Microsoft Excel Microsoft Office software Microsoft Outlook Microsoft PowerPoint Microsoft Word Gallery Systems EmbARK Microsoft Visual FoxPro PastPerfect Software PastPerfect
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