Job Applications: 2-Part Question

[ruru107]

Hello all,

 

I'm graduating in May with a master's, looking for a position in a museum, preferably art or local history/material culture/anthropology. I have two questions:

 

1) When should I start applying for jobs? In a perfect world, I would have a job ready to start shortly after graduating, which makes me want to start applying sooner rather than later. On the other hand, I don't want to apply too early, because some institutions may be looking to hire someone before I graduate. Google told me the best time would be between mid-January and mid-March. Is there a golden time frame to start sending out applications?

 

2) Some job postings I am interested in require three letters of recommendation. With the large number of jobs I will be applying for, I don't want to ask the same three people for letters over and over. Is it "proper" to have general form letters that I use for every application that requires them? Am I less likely to be hired if my letters aren't tailored to the specific job (keep in mind that all the jobs will be similar)? If this is "proper," how should I approach and ask my recommenders to write their letters in this way?

 

Thanks everyone! You're amazing!

[fuzzylogician]

1) I'd consult with your advisors about that. Things I would ask include: when should I begin applying? where can I find job postings? what are the requirements? what is the process like, and how long does it normally last? 

 

I can tell you more about the timeline academic jobs, though I'm not sure it'll help you much. The academic job market is probably much more rigid than museums, especially where tenure-track jobs are concerned. Those need to be approved by several academic admin types before they can even be advertised, and the process needs to be very precise and proper. FWIW, in my field applications for tenure-track jobs are in full speed right now, with the latest deadlines coming up in 2-3 weeks and the early ones having happened in October. This is for positions starting in the Fall of next year. On the other hand, visiting prof/lecturer jobs may be advertised at any time, as the need arises. The process can be much faster, but again the start dates tend to coincide with the beginning of semesters. Postdocs are even more flexible than temporary jobs, they can be arranged without much of an official process (with the exception of selective university-wide fellowships, those have a process and deadlines very similar to tenure-track jobs). You see postings for postdocs starting as early as next month, and as late as the summer. 

 

2) Again, I'd talk to my letter writers about this and ask them about their preferences. You should keep in mind that the hardest part is creating that initial letter. Customizing it of course also takes time, but much less than the initial write-up. You can help your recommenders a lot by providing them with all the information they need to customize the letters - e.g., the precise job description, the contact info of the institute they are addressing, the job title. This will save them a lot of time. Generally, it's better to have a customized letter for each position you are applying for, but if you have a strong untailored letter I think it should not hold you back. If you and your letter writers decide that they are too busy to write you letters for each application separately, you could look into a service such as interfolio (or other similar services), which will save the letters for you on record and submit them on your behalf to all your applications. One thing I would consider if I were choosing this option is thinking carefully about what kinds of positions I would be applying for, and whether the same letter would fit them all. Personally I've been applying to (academic) positions of three different kinds, and I know my letter writers have different versions of their letters that they submit according to the type of job I am applying for (where the differences are in the kinds of skills that are important for the different jobs). If this is also true for you, you might ask for several versions of your letters so you could choose the one that fits each job the best. 

[ruru107]

Thank you, you have some very practical solutions. I do have a mentor-type at a museum nearby who would probably be happy to talk about job applications with me.

 

I think I'll leave it up to the recommenders and their schedule to decide if they have the time to write customized letters. Not all of the applications require letters, so the issue might be moot.

[ArtHistoryandMuseum]

What types museum positions are you looking into -- full-time, fellowship, internship? 

 

I have not been employed in a university museum, so I cannot speak to that, but the following advice is based on my experience in the industry:

 

Full-time positions would more likely be hinged to the employer's timeframe -- rather than yours. They might have an immediate need for an employee, and would have liked you in the office as soon as possible. (However, there is potential wiggle room on your end, especially if you are the top choice for the position!) With fellowships, there might be an expected start date... and the same with internships, as internships can be pegged to a certain time in the future, e.g. summer.

 

TL;DR: I might hold off on the full-time positions for a little while, but I would start looking at internships and/or fellowships soon. 

 

Also, museums can vary in terms of the length of time to process their applications. While some museums have fewer applicants and/or hire within one or two interviews, others take months on end. For instance, I have had one museum that I applied to in July, and by Labor day, I found that that they were still going through applications! So I would keep that in mind if you are applying to a bigger museum and/or university, and apply much earlier than expected.

 

Hope this helps. Good luck!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[GreenePony]

I talked to a friend who is a social worker focusing on getting people from disability back to the work force and she said my cohort should start applying now for state or federal level because of background checks, etc but can wait a month or two for independent museums.

 

Caveat, I already have a SI ID and that background check was within the last cycle (last fall everyone got new checks) so some federal checks are easier for me, she said I could also delay that a little because of that.

Most of the applications I have been looking at didn't ask for letters of rec? However these are for registrar/collections management positions, not curator so those may be different.

[ruru107]

ArtHistoryandMuseum: I don't mean to take this topic in a different direction, but about the internships... I've had 3 internships (2 undergrad, 1 grad) and some volunteering. My experience from this is 2-2.5 years total. When a job requires 2 years experience minimum, do you think my experience is what they're looking for? Are they looking for 2 years as an intern, or 2 years as a professional employee? I really want to start applying for full-time (or even part-time) museum jobs, but if internships "count" as less experience than permanent employment, I'm afraid I'll have to keep interning for a while. What do you think?

 

GreenePony: Thanks for your input! I'm not surprised that the larger institutions would take longer. So many more administrative hoops.