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Museum technician vs art preparator

The differences between museum technicians and art preparators 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 technician and an art preparator. Additionally, an art preparator has an average salary of $59,856, which is higher than the $40,953 average annual salary of a museum technician.

The top three skills for a museum technician include collections database, museum collection and artifact. The most important skills for an art preparator are art exhibitions, art installation, and art preparation.

Museum technician vs art preparator overview

Museum TechnicianArt Preparator
Yearly salary$40,953$59,856
Hourly rate$19.69$28.78
Growth rate12%12%
Number of jobs5,6972,769
Job satisfaction3-
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 72%Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Average age4444
Years of experience44

Museum technician vs art preparator salary

Museum technicians and art preparators have different pay scales, as shown below.

Museum TechnicianArt Preparator
Average salary$40,953$59,856
Salary rangeBetween $24,000 And $67,000Between $29,000 And $120,000
Highest paying CityWashington, DC-
Highest paying stateDelaware-
Best paying companySmithsonian Institution-
Best paying industry--

Differences between museum technician and art preparator education

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

Museum TechnicianArt Preparator
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 72%Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Most common majorHistoryFine Arts
Most common collegeHarvard UniversityHarvard University

Museum technician vs art preparator demographics

Here are the differences between museum technicians' and art preparators' demographics:

Museum TechnicianArt Preparator
Average age4444
Gender ratioMale, 39.0% Female, 61.0%Male, 78.3% Female, 21.7%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.3% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.4% Asian, 5.2% White, 76.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%Black or African American, 5.4% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 7.5% Asian, 3.5% White, 77.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%
LGBT Percentage13%13%

Differences between museum technician and art preparator duties and responsibilities

Museum technician example responsibilities.

  • Assist with planning, designing, and prototyping new exhibits.
  • Prepare daily animal diets and perform cleaning duties to USDA and AZA standards.
  • Perform an array of prototyping, fabrication, assembly, integration, and installation of exhibits.
  • Organize and catalog anthropology, mineral science and paleobiology collections.
  • Create and run excel macros on ceramic artifacts providing statistical analysis data.
  • Create and run excel macros on ceramic artifacts providing statistical analysis data.

Art preparator example responsibilities.

  • Manage graphic arts department and camera and typesetting departments.
  • Work on set design and advance photo editing including color swapping and color correcting for commercial photography studio.
  • Generate quotes for custom screen print and embroidery projects that require art time and or outside service bureau charges.

Museum technician vs art preparator skills

Common museum technician skills
  • Collections Database, 11%
  • Museum Collection, 11%
  • Artifact, 11%
  • NPS, 9%
  • Pest Management, 8%
  • Cataloging, 8%
Common art preparator skills
  • Art Exhibitions, 34%
  • Art Installation, 21%
  • Art Preparation, 21%
  • Museum Standards, 15%
  • Condition Reports, 9%

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