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The differences between museum curators and archivists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a museum curator, becoming an archivist takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an archivist has an average salary of $47,145, which is higher than the $44,309 average annual salary of a museum curator.
The top three skills for a museum curator include collections management, art collections and museum exhibits. The most important skills for an archivist are archival collections, online database, and archival materials.
| Museum Curator | Archivist | |
| Yearly salary | $44,309 | $47,145 |
| Hourly rate | $21.30 | $22.67 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 413 | 449 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
A museum curator looks after and manages exhibitions within a museum. Responsibilities of this position include building collections, developing interpretations for the museum contents, organizing events and exhibitions, designing and arranging installations, and carrying out administrative tasks in the museum. They also need to liaise with administrators, artists, and museum visitors to ensure they have great experience with the museum.
An archivist is an information professional who assesses the value of information and then stores them in such a way that people can access the information and make sense of it. Archivists are required to have a great understanding of the historical context of the records, such as the relationship of a record to other records and why it was created in the first place. They must work closely with record managers and his/her torians to store and preserve perishable documents. Archivists must also organize public events such as talks and exhibitions.
Museum curators and archivists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Museum Curator | Archivist | |
| Average salary | $44,309 | $47,145 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $77,000 | Between $23,000 And $94,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Smithsonian Institution | Apple |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a museum curator and an archivist in terms of educational background:
| Museum Curator | Archivist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | History | History |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between museum curators' and archivists' demographics:
| Museum Curator | Archivist | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 39.9% Female, 60.1% | Male, 43.1% Female, 56.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 7.2% Asian, 5.0% White, 76.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4% | Black or African American, 5.3% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.3% Asian, 5.1% White, 76.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 13% |