What does an associate curator do?
Associate curator responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real associate curator resumes:
- Manage visual resource center, including acquisition, cataloging, budget management and other relevant issues.
- Implement written procedures for digitizing specimens, print photos, negatives, and notes).
- Handle all acquisitions and surplus placement with other AZA accredit institutions.
- Review and edit listing photography and source photographers in various markets to capture unique accommodations and cover special assignments worldwide.
- Fashion and coordinate historical costumes for first person interpretation
Associate curator skills and personality traits
We calculated that 83% of Associate Curators are proficient in Curate, Collections Management, and Original Research. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Computer skills, and Customer-service skills.
We break down the percentage of Associate Curators that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Curate, 83%
Manage and curate the art for the Blue Dahlia Bistro.
- Collections Management, 7%
Lead collections management, volunteer programs, oral history projects, and administrative responsibilities of museum operations.
- Original Research, 6%
Conducted original research for publications, conference presentations, curriculum and monthly staff training sessions.
- Public Lectures, 2%
Planned, designed and curated 10 multi-media contemporary art exhibitions and accompanying educational programs and public lectures annually.
- Condition Reports, 2%
Write condition reports for objects entering museum collections.
Common skills that an associate curator uses to do their job include "curate," "collections management," and "original research." You can find details on the most important associate curator responsibilities below.
Analytical skills. One of the key soft skills for an associate curator to have is analytical skills. You can see how this relates to what associate curators do because "archivists, curators, museum technicians, and conservators must explore minutiae to determine the origin, history, and importance of the objects they work with." Additionally, an associate curator resume shows how associate curators use analytical skills: "created new database for archiving and reporting new products that improved accuracy and efficiency. "
Customer-service skills. This is an important skill for associate curators to perform their duties. For an example of how associate curator responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "archivists, curators, museum technicians, and conservators work regularly with the general public." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of an associate curator: "guided visitors through the exhibit, possessed extensive product knowledge, inventory management, merchandising, and formed strong customer relationships. ".
Organizational skills. A big part of what associate curators do relies on "organizational skills." You can see how essential it is to associate curator responsibilities because "archivists, curators, museum technicians, and conservators store and easily retrieve records and documents." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical associate curator tasks: "develop educational content for organizational website and social media. "
The three companies that hire the most associate curators are:
- RH12 associate curators jobs
- Harvard University2 associate curators jobs
- Center for Families & Children Inc.1 associate curators jobs
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Compare different associate curators
Associate curator vs. Historic sites supervisor
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an associate curator are more likely to require skills like "curate," "collections management," "original research," and "american association." On the other hand, a job as a historic sites supervisor requires skills like "gift shop sales," "cultural resources," "blog posts," and "historic properties." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
The education levels that historic sites supervisors earn slightly differ from associate curators. In particular, historic sites supervisors are 11.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an associate curator. Additionally, they're 2.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Associate curator vs. Director of exhibits
Each career also uses different skills, according to real associate curator resumes. While associate curator responsibilities can utilize skills like "collections management," "original research," "american association," and "public lectures," directors of exhibits use skills like "exhibit design," "event management," "photoshop," and "trade shows."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Directors of exhibits tend to reach lower levels of education than associate curators. In fact, they're 10.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 2.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Associate curator vs. Collections and archives director
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an associate curator is likely to be skilled in "curate," "collections management," "original research," and "american association," while a typical collections and archives director is skilled in "rare books," "research materials," "database management," and "organizational structure."
When it comes to education, collections and archives directors tend to earn similar degree levels compared to associate curators. In fact, they're 1.3% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 2.5% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Associate curator vs. Curator of photography and prints
Types of associate curator
Updated January 8, 2025
