Archivist, Curator & Museum Worker Interview Questions & Answers

Archivists and curators oversee institutions’ collections, such as historical items or artwork. Museum technicians and conservators prepare and restore items in those collections.

Interviewers look for candidates that demonstrate excellent skills such as:

• Customer-service skills
• Organizational skills
• Analytical skills
• Attention to detail

In this blog, we discuss commonly asked interview questions during job interviews for Archivist, Curator & Museum Worker positions. We also discuss the qualities that interviewers look for in successful candidates. In other words, we’re here to help you out!

Also, read more about frequently asked job interview questions here and check our job interview preparation checklist.

Skills Interviewers Look For In Successful Candidates

Below we discuss the skills you can highlight in your answers to demonstrate that you’re qualified for the job.

Analytical skills

Why interviewers are interested in your analytical skills:

Archivists, curators, museum technicians, and conservators must explore minutiae to determine the origin, history, and importance of the objects they work with.

Related: Assistant Curator Cover Letter Examples & Writing Tips

Customer-service skills

Why interviewers are interested in your customer-service skills:

Archivists, curators, museum technicians, and conservators regularly work with the general public. They must be courteous, friendly, and able to help users find materials.

Learn more about customer-service interview questions and how to answer them!

Attention to detail

Why interviewers are interested in your attention to detail:

Archivists and museum technicians must be able to focus on specifics because they use and develop complex databases related to the materials they store and access.

Related: Museum Guide Cover Letter Examples & Writing Guide

Organizational skills

Why interviewers are interested in your organizational skills:

Archivists, curators, museum technicians, and conservators store and easily retrieve records and documents. They must also develop logical systems of storage for the public to use.

Learn more about organizational interview questions and how to answer them!

(source: bls.gov)

Archivist, Curator & Museum Worker Job Interview Questions & Answers

During a job interview, the hiring manager wants to discuss several things. Think of your:

• Employment history
• Skills and abilities
• Accomplishments
• Job qualifications
• Educational background
• Career goals
• Personality

Below you find a list of commonly asked interview questions.

Examples Of General Archivist, Curator & Museum Worker Interview Questions

1. Tell me about yourself.
2. How would you describe yourself?
3. Why do you want to work here?
4. What interests you about this position?
5. Walk me through your resume.
6. What motivates you?
7. Why are you leaving your current job?
8. Describe your work ethic.
9. What is your greatest strength?
10. How does your experience qualify you for this job?
11. What is your greatest weakness?
12. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
13. Tell me about a challenging work situation and how you overcame it.
14. What are your expectations for this position?
15. What are your career goals?
16. Why should we hire you?
17. What did you like most about your last position?
18. What did you like least about your last position?
19. How do you handle stress?
20. What is your greatest accomplishment?

Learn how to answer these common job interview questions!

Examples Of Specific Archivist, Curator & Museum Worker Behavioral Interview Questions

Learn more about answering behavioral interview questions by using the STAR interview technique.

1. What do you consider your specialty as an archivist (or curator/museum worker)?
2. How would you rate your customer service skills? Can you give an example of a time you successfully used these skills?
3. How would you rate your organizational skills? Can you give an example of a time you successfully used these skills?
4. Walk me through the process of how you determine the origin, history, and importance of the objects you work with.
5. Do you have experience developing databases related to the materials you store and access?
6. Tell me about your experience with researching pieces and maintaining catalogs.
7. When you plan the display of a piece, what tasks do you handle? Do you have experience with delegating tasks?
8. Do you consider teamwork important working as an archivist (or curator/museum worker)? Why?
9. Do you have experience with promoting exhibitions and events? Can you give me some examples of how you have done this in the past?
10. Have you developed a system to minimize the risk of errors in your work?

Learn more about questions to ask the interviewer during your job interview.