Museum Curator (Science and Technology).

Smithsonian Institution; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible Spending Accounts

Health Insurance

Leave

Life Insurance

Long Term Care Insurance

Retirement Program

Job summary

Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC seeks a Museum Curator (Science and Technology) to conduct scholarly and technical research and interpret artifacts related to scientific and technological advancement. The role leads research areas for NASM artifacts, collaborates with designers and technicians, and develops exhibit narratives.

Strong candidate will present findings to professional audiences and support exhibit planning.

Qualifications

• Degree: museum work; or in an applicable subject-matter field.
• Combination of education and experience - courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.
• Four years of experience that provided knowledge comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of the 4-year course of study as shown in A above.

Responsibilities

• Lead and determine areas of scholarly and technical research for all aspects of NASM artifacts, galleries, or exhibits to advance understanding, academia, and historical record of objects to enhance the understanding of NASM programming.
• Conduct scholarly and technical research of artifacts, galleries, and exhibits to advance the understanding, academia, and historical record of objects to enhance the understanding of individual with various levels of understanding.
• Be responsible for performing various technical aspects of the curatorial profession, to include researching and information spread across multiple sources; while providing technical guidance for exhibits and collections management.
• Represent the institution on various public facing committees or other established groups projecting the institution’s work in various fields of professional academia and scholarly work.
• Conduct research and artifact searches to support new exhibit development and collaborates with designers, audiovisual specialists, fabricators, and contractors on exhibit planning, production, and interpretive script development and revision.
• Locate artifacts, documents, and photographs preparing them for use in exhibitions; develops script narratives and storylines; and advises in the way artifacts should be presented in exhibits.

Skills

Scholarly research

Technical research

Artifact interpretation

Public speaking

Education

Museum-related degree

Job description

Duties

The Museum Curator (Science and Technology) is responsible for conducting scholarly and technical research, and interprets materials related to scientific and technological advancement.

In This Position, You Will

• Lead and determine areas of scholarly and technical research for all aspects of NASM artifacts, galleries, or exhibits to advance understanding, academia, and historical record of objects to enhance the understanding of NASM programming.
• Conduct scholarly and technical research of artifacts, galleries, and exhibits to advance the understanding, academia, and historical record of objects to enhance the understanding of individual with various levels of understanding.
• Be responsible for performing various technical aspects of the curatorial profession, to include researching and information spread across multiple sources; while providing technical guidance for exhibits and collections management.
• Represent the institution on various public facing committees or other established groups projecting the institution’s work in various fields of professional academia and scholarly work.
• Conduct research and artifact searches to support new exhibit development and collaborates with designers, audiovisual specialists, fabricators, and contractors on exhibit planning, production, and interpretive script development and revision.
• Locate artifacts, documents, and photographs preparing them for use in exhibitions; develops script narratives and storylines; and advises in the way artifacts should be presented in exhibits.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

• Requires career/career-conditional status or eligibility.
• Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered with Selective Service.

Conditions of Employment

Qualification requirements, including one year time-in-grade at the next lower grade level for promotion candidates, must be met within 30 days of the job announcement closing date. See the 'Required Documents' section for additional information. For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions viewable on

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications: Degree: museum work; or in an applicable subject-matter field.

OR

Combination of education and experience - courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

OR

Four years of experience that provided knowledge comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of the 4-year course of study as shown in A above.

In Addition To The Basic Qualification Requirement Above

GS-13 Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-12 level in the Federal Service. For this position, specialized experience is defined as:

• 1) Experience conducting advanced historical research related to human spaceflight programs and technologies,
• 2) Developing analytical approaches to address complex research questions,
• 3) Documenting the significance and provenance of artifacts or collections.
• 4) Presenting research findings and serving as an expert resource to professional, academic, governmental, or public audiences.

Your resume must be no more than two (2) pages and should clearly demonstrate how your experience aligns with the responsibilities and specialized experience required for this position. Do not copy language directly from the vacancy announcement, as you will be deemed ineligible for consideration. Instead, provide detailed, descriptive information about your actual experience.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience. Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week.

In an effort to streamline our hiring process, SI employees whose current position of record is in the same job series (1015) and who are in a Federal competitive position as this advertised position, are not required to submit a transcript with your application package. However, if selected, you will be required to provide a copy of your transcript before your start date in the position.

Time-in-Grade Requirements: Under competitive merit promotion procedures, any individual who is currently holding, or who has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule position under a non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet "time-in-grade" requirements (have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade of the grade for which you are applying).

Education

This position has a positive education requirement (see Basic Qualifications). Education cannot be substituted for specialized experience at the GS-13 grade level.

Additional information

This position is not included in the bargaining unit.

Selections may be made for vacancies across the Smithsonian Institution (SI). By applying to this position, you agree to allow your application and other personal information to be shared with one or more SI hiring officials for employment consideration for same/similar positions within the location(s) identified in this announcement.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

The Smithsonian offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, vacation and sick leave, holidays, health/life insurance, accident insurance, and excellent retirement program options.

• Flexible Spending Accounts -
• Health Insurance -
• Leave -
• Life Insurance -
• Long Term Care Insurance -
• Retirement Program -