Museum Specialist (General) (Associate Collections Manager)
What you'd do
This position is located in the Collections Management Branch, Collections Services Division, Rubenstein National Institute for Holocaust Documentation, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM), with a duty station at the David and Fela Shapell Collections, Conservation, and Research Center, in Bowie, MD. In this position, the Museum Specialist (Associate Collections Manager) will perform specialty work that supports Collections Management programs in preserving the Museum's holdings.
Major duties
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is a federally chartered, nonpartisan institution that was created by the US Congress to serve as America's national memorial to the victims of the Holocaust and an educational institution dedicated to the history and lessons of the Holocaust. The Museum seeks to educate Americans from all 50 states and all walks of life as well as international audiences. The Museum has three areas of expertise: Holocaust remembrance, Holocaust scholarship and education, and genocide prevention. In carrying out its important memorial and educational mission, the Museum is guided by its institutional values for our workplace: Honor the memory of the victims; carry out our work with dignity, humility, integrity and respect for others; and strive for excellence through teamwork, rigor, and a culture of continuous learning. Consistent respect for others is the foundation for trust, collegiality and inclusion. Duties include: Arranging/rearranging museum collections and space configuration in Museum processing and storage areas. Assist in ensuring proper storage and climate control measures are taken to protect all Museum holdings. Conduct the physical tracking of collections items using both electronic and manual systems, including the use of barcoding technology, to ensure locations of items are accurate for activities such as exhibition, conservation, loan, reference, digitization, photography and storage. Create and maintain collections documentation, and hardcopy and automated records for permanent and loaned collections. Assist curators, archivists, and other Museum personnel to enter, monitor, and track data entered in the electronic database. Assist in establishing and implementing policies, procedures, and reference materials relating to the access, handling, and storage of the Museum's collections to ensure and enforce standard ethical and legal museum practices.
What you need to qualify
Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards. 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. Basic Requirement: Specialized Experience: You qualify for the GS-9 grade level if you possess one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-7 (or equivalent) grade level in the federal government. Specialized Experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. The specialized experience for this position is arranging or rearranging museum collections; conducting the physical tracking of collections items; creating and maintaining collection documentation; assisting in preservation activities; and assisting in arranging transportation of museum collections. OR Education: 2 full academic years of progressively higher-level graduate education or master's or equivalent graduate degree related to the position OR Combination of education and experience as listed above. 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). Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to current employees applying for a Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. NOTE: All current or former Federal employees must provide a copy of their SF-50 (you may need to submit more than one), "Notice of Personnel Action" that indicates proof of status and time-in-grade eligibility. The SF-50 must include your position, title, series, grade, step, tenure (1 or 2), and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). ***Failure to submit required documentation will result in an ineligible rating.
Before you apply
Federal applications are different: your resume should be 3–5 pages and mirror the language of this announcement. Read our federal resume guide first — it's the #1 reason qualified people get screened out.
Don't miss the next one.
Get an email the moment a similar federal job opens — postings can close in as little as 5 days.