Education and libraries
Museum technicians and conservators
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.
Median pay
$51,440
Growth to 2035
+4%
about as fast as average
Openings a year
1,600
Time to qualify*
Minimal
* From a bachelor's degree in an unrelated field.
Pay
Museum technicians and conservators
Getting in
- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
- On-the-job training
- None
- Prior experience
- None
Calculate your switch to museum technicians and conservators
What the work is like
Dealing with the public
Unpleasant or angry people
Time pressure
Cost of a mistake
Freedom to make decisions
Repeating the same tasks
Time sitting
Time standing
Outdoors in all weather
Hazardous conditions
Museum technicians and conservators: 12% usually work over 40 hours a week
Core tasks
- Determine whether objects need repair and choose the safest and most effective method of repair.
- Specialize in particular materials or types of object, such as documents and books, paintings, decorative arts, textiles, metals, or architectural materials.
- Recommend preservation procedures, such as control of temperature and humidity, to curatorial and building staff.
- 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.
- Study object documentation or conduct standard chemical and physical tests to ascertain the object's age, composition, original appearance, need for treatment or restoration, and appropriate preservation method.
- Clean objects, such as paper, textiles, wood, metal, glass, rock, pottery, and furniture, using cleansers, solvents, soap solutions, and polishes.
- Repair, restore, and reassemble artifacts, designing and fabricating missing or broken parts, to restore them to their original appearance and prevent deterioration.
- Perform tests and examinations to establish storage and conservation requirements, policies, and procedures.
Also called: Conservation Technician (Conservation Tech) · Conservator · Exhibit Technician (Exhibit Tech) · Museum Registrar · Museum Technician (Museum Tech) · Objects Conservator · Paintings Conservator · Paper Conservator
Outlook and AI
Museum technicians and conservators held 14,000 jobs in 2025. BLS projects 14,500 by 2035 (+4%, about as fast as average; all jobs: +3.5%).
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