Archivist Career Guide and Counseling

Question: Will a career as an Archivist be difficult? I would like to be an archivist, however I saw a long list of computer programs that good archivist must be expert at. For anyone familiar with archival work -- how difficult will it be to become an expert with these various programs? How tough is the career overall?

Answer: I've been an archivist since 2000. The job requires excellent organizational skills, excellent communication skills, a strong background and strong skills in research, and steady judgment. The specific computer skills required vary considerably from institution to institution. The truth is that, outside of the basic concepts and ethics, there is little in the way of universal standards. Some Archival Institutions use MARC formatting for cataloging records, while others use a variety of other formats. Ultimately, the ability to learn new software programs quickly and efficiently is an important asset. You also might wish to note that, in the current economic situation, there are very little grown in the field, and very few jobs being created. In point of fact, the field, like most of the rest of the economy, is shrinking. Virtually every state and governmental archival organ and lots of private or semi-private ones, are in the process of laying off archival staff.

Question: Should I become a Computer Support Specialisr or an Archivist? I'm really interested in becoming a Computer Support Specialist as computer jobs are more needed but i'm not very good in math. I'm good in computers but not in math. I fear that to become one I would have to take a lot of math courses. I really want to be an archivist but I fear that it would be hard to get a job as one. I'm very good in history as well. What should I do?

Answer: Ok here is my take. I have been in IT for the past 7 years now and worked in different roles. IT is the fastest growing industry on this planet. Unless you are a programmer or a system analyst or maybe a business analyst for an accounting firm you don't need to be a genius in maths basic DMAS skills will work .. (division,multiply,addition,subtraction) Look up support jobs and see what they ask for. Its mainly password resets, role creation, user access/restriction etc. Even though the economy is very slow right now you should be able to still get a job as a support specialist. Not necessarily in on IT company, you can also try call centre's that do tech support or do credit card etc support.

Question: Are there many archivist positions available in the UK? I want to train to be an archivist but I'm worried there won't be many positions available - what are the opportunities like for graduates with an archives post-grad qualification?

Answer: Yes, there are jobs for Archivists. Every year people retire from positions and as long as you present yourself well and have a good work ethic and track record there will be a position for you. Link : http://www.prospects.ac.uk/downloads/occprofiles/profile_pdfs/W5_Archivist.pdf

Question: What kind of work would a freelance archivist or conservator do?

Answer: For general career info: http://www.bls.gov/oco and can search 'Archivists, Curators and Museum Technicians' or such.

Question: How does one become a film archivist? Are there courses on film preservation and restoration, or do the folks who do that sort of thing learn on the job?

Answer: well you put films in an archive you silly

Question: Has anyone taken the certified archivist test? I have the test coming up next month and I was wondering if anyone could give me some idea as to what to expect. Thanks to anyone that can help

Answer: No sir, and I do apologize...

Question: why should the archivist be involved in collection and preservation of oral traditions?

Answer: The preservation of oral traditions has become very important to archivists and those interested in folklore, native culture, and similar social phenomenon. There are two important consquences of the oral nature of some traditions: one, they change in an evolutionary way, with no record of the earlier tradition; the only tradition at any moment in time is the one that exists then. In other words there is no recorded history of the changing tradition. Two, there is no recorded history of the tradition at any time, even in its current form. So archiving is important to capture the tradition at particular moments, and also to record the evolving nature of the tradition. Obviously, written cultures have less problem with such records, except to the extent that records are destroyed by various disasters (such as the library at Alexandria in ancient times, or even the library in Cologne in the past week).

Question: I want to become an archivist would a degree in Heritage Conservation be better than a degree in History?

Answer: You can find top listing of such US college courses in this site - careers.scienceontheweb.net

Question: what is an archivist and a demographer? what kinds of jobs do they both and what degree would I need?

Answer: Basically an Archivist analyse and document records. They also plan and organise systems and procedures for the safekeeping of records and historically valuable documents This from Wikipedia: An Archivist is a professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to information determined to have long-term value. The information maintained by an Archivist can be any form of media (photographs, video or sound recordings, letters, documents, electronic records, etc.). As Richard Pearce-Moses wrote, "Archivists keep records that have enduring value as reliable memories of the past, and they help people find and understand the information they need in those records." The educational preparation for Archivists varies from country to country. More on that here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archivist#Educational_preparation If you happen to be an Aussie, this site will help: http://www.myfuture.edu.au/services/default.asp?FunctionID=5050&ASCO=229915A ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Demographers study the growth, density and trends of populations. They perform statistical research into aspects of the population such as birth and death rates or immigration that may cause changes in that populace in order to identify current and predict future trends for government, social service agencies, not-for-profit and private companies. This may include examining labour force trends, where to best market a new product, determining if a community needs to have a new school provided, mapping population data for certain geographical areas, or projecting the electrical use of areas with population growth. To become a Demographer (in Australia) a tertiary degree in demography, economics, or social science is a minimum requirement. Postgraduate qualifications are prized more highly by organisations which hire demographers. Work or research experience is also highly regarded. Demographers need to have excellent statistical knowledge, good analytical, research and written communication skills, competent computer skills particularly with statistical packages and work well in a team environment. http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/careers/majors/jobtitles/demographer.html

Question: The Red Tent, Siddhartha, We, Flashman in the Great Game, Metamorphosis or The Archivist's Story? They're all lounging about my bedroom in various "I want to read" piles. Which should I read first? I really loved Brave New World, Macbeth, 1984, The Little Prince, Running With Scissors, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Memoirs of a Geisha and all Steinbeck books. I'm a 16 year old girl.

Answer: Siddartha, totally Sublime.

Question: I want to become an archivist, but I am 23 and dropped out of college at 19. What does one have to major in?

Answer: You'll need a masters degree in library science, and a bachelors (4-year) college degree to apply to library school. You can get a bachelors in pretty much anything you're interested in and get into library school if you keep up a 3.0 or higher GPA. I've had friends go into library school from English, history, art, even science majors - it depends a lot on what kind of place you'd like to work after you get the degree, say, a museum, university, company, for the national archives, etc.

Question: What is it like to be an archivist?

Answer: An archivist works for a company or a museum or library. They organize papers into categories (so researchers can find things) and take care of them physically. If you like reading and solving logic puzzles it could be fun. You need to be able to read all kinds of challenging handwriting. You generally need to wear gloves and you aren't allowed to eat or drink near the archival materials. Archivists frequently go to library school.

Question: what is an archivist and what do they do?

Answer: an archivist is a person who saves and stores a group of like items. example in a simple form it is like a collection of similar or same items. archive also denotes to conotations... that the collection has been kept over a long period of time and the collection is vast. also any time there is a new item found it is put in with that same archive. a radio stations collection of records could be considered an archive and one who keeps up on the maintenance of the collection could be considered an archivist.

Question: diablo 3 new class archivist do yall like the new class? i think its the coolest class by far to me http://www.blizzard.com/diablo3/characters/archivist.xml

Answer: He looks cool, but it seems kind of pathetic that with one hit, he's dead.

Question: how do you become an archivist? what education do you need?

Answer: Interesting question. I guess it depends on what you're archiving. If it's political or historical then probably a background in history and/or political science. If it's a library or art there are actually degrees for this sort of thing for libraries and art historians.

Question: I am currently an archivists and need to take a foreign language for a Masters in History.? I have to be able to read either Spanish, French, or German. As I need the language to be able to read historical writings in manuscripts - speaking it is not a high priority. Which will be easier for me to learn to read: Spanish, French, or German?

Answer: Since you speak English, it would be easiest for you to read French -- with a little training, of course. French has more cognates with English than any other language (aside from Latin -- since English took words directly from Latin, and borrowed lots more that were originally Latin from French :o) Spanish and German would require a little more work, but may be more useful, depending on what period you are specializing in and where you live. (Also, Spanish has many more native speakers than the other two languages you mention -- something to consider.)