Docent vs museum guide

The differences between docents and museum guides can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a docent and a museum guide. Additionally, a docent has an average salary of $40,771, which is higher than the $26,914 average annual salary of a museum guide.

The top three skills for a docent include natural history, public speaking and front desk. The most important skills for a museum guide are gift shop, museum visitors, and front desk.

Docent vs museum guide overview

	Docent	Museum Guide
Yearly salary	$40,771	$26,914
Hourly rate	$19.60	$12.94
Growth rate	12%	12%
Number of jobs	253	921
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age	34	34
Years of experience	2	2

Docent vs museum guide salary

Docents and museum guides have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Docent	Museum Guide
Average salary	$40,771	$26,914
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $74,000	Between $17,000 And $40,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between docent and museum guide education

There are a few differences between a docent and a museum guide in terms of educational background:

	Docent	Museum Guide
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common major	Fine Arts	History
Most common college	Stanford University	Stanford University

Docent vs museum guide demographics

Here are the differences between docents' and museum guides' demographics:

	Docent	Museum Guide
Average age	34	34
Gender ratio	Male, 33.0% Female, 67.0%	Male, 37.4% Female, 62.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 9.9% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 10.3% Asian, 9.9% White, 67.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between docent and museum guide duties and responsibilities

Docent example responsibilities.

Lead VIP guests on guide tours of the property and facilitate their involvement in special events, productions, and conventions.
Inform visitors throughout the aquarium on specific exhibits, animals, and marine wildlife conservation.
Educate aquarium guests on the importance of oceanic conservation, and answer questions concerning the species on display
Control exhibits that require oversight in the financial department.
Train customers in operating Segway personal transport devices and hold entertaining tours.
Conduct tours of the anthropology and paleontology museums * Write/edit exhibit- and art show-relate materials

Museum guide example responsibilities.

Manage the canoe landing including guests, workers, and canoe traffic in a way that all run smoothly and safely.
Patrol assign area, conduct bag inspection at access post.
Facilitate a therapeutic outdoor adventure experience for teenagers struggling with a variety of behavioral, mental health and substance abuse challenges.
Monitor checkout stations to ensure that they have adequate cash available and that they are staffed appropriately.

Docent vs museum guide skills

Common docent skills

Natural History, 40%
Public Speaking, 10%
Front Desk, 7%
Educational Programs, 6%
Aquarium, 6%
Museum Visitors, 5%

Common museum guide skills

Gift Shop, 13%
Museum Visitors, 12%
Front Desk, 11%
Informational Tours, 9%
Museum Guests, 9%
K-12, 8%