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Museum assistant vs exhibit technician

The differences between museum assistants and exhibit technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a museum assistant and an exhibit technician. Additionally, a museum assistant has an average salary of $40,072, which is higher than the $34,387 average annual salary of an exhibit technician.

The top three skills for a museum assistant include museum exhibits, front desk and museum visitors. The most important skills for an exhibit technician are exhibit design, prototyping, and exhibit maintenance.

Museum assistant vs exhibit technician overview

Museum AssistantExhibit Technician
Yearly salary$40,072$34,387
Hourly rate$19.27$16.53
Growth rate12%12%
Number of jobs5225,760
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Average age4444
Years of experience44

Museum assistant vs exhibit technician salary

Museum assistants and exhibit technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Museum AssistantExhibit Technician
Average salary$40,072$34,387
Salary rangeBetween $23,000 And $67,000Between $18,000 And $63,000
Highest paying City--
Highest paying state--
Best paying company--
Best paying industry--

Differences between museum assistant and exhibit technician education

There are a few differences between a museum assistant and an exhibit technician in terms of educational background:

Museum AssistantExhibit Technician
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common majorFine ArtsFine Arts
Most common collegeHarvard UniversityHarvard University

Museum assistant vs exhibit technician demographics

Here are the differences between museum assistants' and exhibit technicians' demographics:

Museum AssistantExhibit Technician
Average age4444
Gender ratioMale, 34.5% Female, 65.5%Male, 80.1% Female, 19.9%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 7.4% Asian, 5.1% White, 76.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.1% Asian, 4.9% White, 77.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage13%13%

Differences between museum assistant and exhibit technician duties and responsibilities

Museum assistant example responsibilities.

  • Aid development and implementation of NPS cataloging standards.
  • Participate in re-cataloging projects involving artifact research, condition assessment, and storage planning.
  • Assist in training fellow employees in NPS museum cataloging methodology.
  • Conduct back-room tours in the department of anthropology for invite visitors.
  • Maintain archival museum and fossil preparation records and treatment folders, transferring information to NPS archives catalog system.
  • Research and document descriptions about each artifact.
  • Show more

Exhibit technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage paperwork associate with HVAC procedures.
  • Diagnose, troubleshoot and repair systemic problems, commission new turbines, evaluate readiness for operations.
  • Perform archeological field excavations and laboratory analysis.

Museum assistant vs exhibit technician skills

Common museum assistant skills
  • Museum Exhibits, 17%
  • Front Desk, 8%
  • Museum Visitors, 8%
  • Museum Events, 6%
  • Educational Programs, 6%
  • Press Releases, 4%
Common exhibit technician skills
  • Exhibit Design, 21%
  • Prototyping, 17%
  • Exhibit Maintenance, 13%
  • Interactive Exhibits, 13%
  • Exhibit Components, 10%
  • Museum Exhibits, 9%

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