Museum Collections Assistant

The Oshkosh Public Museum is seeking a Collections Assistant to work about 5 hours per week for up to 20 weeks.  This is a paid position with an hourly rate of $17.50/hour.  This is the perfect opportunity for someone looking to fulfill an internship requirement!  *Apply on the City of Oshkosh website to be considered for this opportunity:  www.oshkoshwi.gov

This position will assist the museum's Registrar performing a variety of professional tasks such as handling, cataloging, inventorying, photographing, and re-housing of artifacts, and entering information into a database.  The majority of tasks will focus on the museum’s diverse collection, which consists of more than 250,000 objects.

DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:

The following duties are normal for this position. These are not to be construed as exclusive or all-inclusive. Other duties may be assigned.

• Assist Registrar on collections management activities including handling, cataloging, inventorying, photographing, and re-housing of artifacts and other tasks related to collections care.
• Record and document collections using a collections database such as PastPerfect or similar collections management software. 
• Assist Registrar with public or staff research requests.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Education and Experience:

• Current enrollment in an undergraduate (preferably in at least the 3rd year) or graduate degree program in History, Anthropology, Fine Arts, Art History, or a closely related field.
• Previous experience with artifact collections is preferred. 

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Good interpersonal skills, be team oriented, and be able to establish and maintain effective working relationships with co-workers, other city employees, and the public. 
• Ability to communicating both verbally and in writing with City employees and the public. 
• Ability to meet deadlines, manage multiple priorities, and effectively resolve challenging interpersonal relations.
• Excellent organizational skills.
• Proficiency with a collection database such as PastPerfect. 
• Ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Ability to be a self-starter and possess multi-tasking skills. 
• Ability to clearly assess, document, and correctly cite historic sources. 
• Basic understanding of the theory and practice of experience-based exhibitions.
• General understanding of library and archival practices.
• General knowledge of museum practices and historic research methodology. 

*Note:  Only applications submitted on the City of Oshkosh website will be considered. Please do not apply through Handshake.