The Museum Mountain

The first thing you learn when you begin your museum journey is getting your foot through the door is hard. Unimaginably Hard. Anyone starting out has this reiterated to them whenever volunteering, networking, or participating in online discourse. Whenever I got a second to engage in the industry, I was reminded that I was standing at the foot of a mountain that, while trodden by many, poses each walker individual challenges. I naively believed I had planned my route: I would rack up hours of volunteering until I landed a job or traineeship and, after one year, sign up for a relevant MA if job hunting had proven fruitless. It was by no means a water-tight plan (looking back now, I have no idea how I was planning to support myself while volunteering or studying), but this post-graduation fantasy kept me optimistic. It may take longer than a year. It may take a lot of unpaid work. It may take further study. But, I was determined to eventually land a paid job in a museum.

I'll never know how realistic my Grand Plan was and, for all the advice I received, nothing really equipped me for the world I was graduating into. Like everyone in the Class of 2020, I did not anticipate the pandemic.

As we all know, opportunities in the already competitive third sector further diminished. The pandemic hit heritage hard at all levels: employees were furloughed at best and made redundant at worst. Volunteers and freelancers were no longer in demand, with the latter's income swept out from under them. From the perspective of a wannabe museum professional, entry-level roles became almost non-existent. None of the (already competitive) traineeships I'd bookmarked were recruiting. 'Assistant' vacancies were few and far between. And the place I'd volunteered with for several years - the place that had inspired me to climb this mountain - no longer had any opportunities for me.

I felt very lost. I felt very alone. None of my local museums were taking on volunteers, not even remotely. Many of the wonderful contacts I'd made throughout the years, who I looked up to and modelled myself on, were struggling as well. I felt guilty about shooting off messages and emails asking for advice or to check my CV when they, too, were looking for employment in the sector.

I also didn't know any other wannabes. The one positive of the pandemic was that the cost of online conferences was mitigated, and I attended a whole host of talks I would have otherwise missed out on. However, the lack of post-lecture natters and in-person workshops meant I didn't get a chance to speak to any other young professionals in the same boat. Even when I did weasel my way into networking calls or online discourse, I felt like a cuckoo in the nest of 'real' museum professionals, not seeing others like myself and believing I had nothing meaningful to contribute in those spaces.

So, that brings me to the birth of this blog.

Feeling deflated and lonely, I realised I needed an outlet to express myself and (hopefully) connect with other museum wannabes. I want to share my experiences, any tips I learn, and the mistakes I make. I know I'm not the only wannabe out there, but it sure feels hella lonely when you're starting out.

I have no idea what direction this blog will take. Will I create resources? Share my musings on topical conversations? Or will I just write about my day-to-day experiences as a museum wannabe? Who knows? However, I can't wait to start.

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