Museum lecturer

Briefly explain what you do for a living.

I work in the Public and Events department at the National Museum of Finland. The National Museum of Finland is made up of eight museums and two medieval castles. The National Museum of Finland is part of the Finnish Heritage Agency which operates under the Ministry of Education and Culture.

My job is to offer inspiring experiences in history and culture. My tasks include planning public programming, drawing up pedagogical policies and participating in event and exhibition productions and social cooperation projects. The purpose of our team is to convey history and different societal and cultural themes in an understandable, interesting and experiential way for different audiences.

How have you ended up in the profession of your choice?

I never dreamed of working at a museum – in my small home town, there really weren’t even any museums. During my first year at university, we were told by the Cultures Department that we could find employment in museums, among other places. I thought I would never work in a place that sounds so stagnant!

At the beginning of my second year at university, I was searching for a part-time job. At that time, they were looking for guides at the Postal Museum, and persuaded by a friend of mine at university, we both applied. I have always been comfortable with talking and being around people, so I figured, why not fund my studies by giving guided tours to school groups.

Almost fifteen years later, I can still say that I enjoy encountering people and the positive emotions that I can evoke with an inspiring event that is full of surprises, or with a well-written pedagogical tour or an insightful exhibition. I have learned that museums are anything but stagnant.

Describe your typical working day or week.

Seen from the outside, my typical workdays often look like sitting at a computer or in meetings. I interact with many kinds of people in my work: colleagues, partners and customers. I lead meetings and participate in meetings led by others to brainstorm together.

My work involves writing in many respects. I conceptualise, compile production documents and manage internal and external communications in projects. I act daily as a coordinator and facilitator between people and make sure that things move along in practice. I also look for new and surprising solutions for services, events and exhibitions. Sometimes my workday may include things like transporting equipment needed for an event or ordering or processing an item that is a copy of an archaeological find.

I also speak to wider audiences face-to-face and appear in livestreamed audience events. In addition to all this, I train new guides annually for our museums.

What kind of work environment or working hours do you have?

My working environment is mainly the museum, and my hours are flexible. I can also work remotely. But I do enjoy working in the museum environment the most.

Before the opening of an event or exhibition, we work long days and even in the evenings and on weekends. In return, I can take weekday leave or do shorter workdays when it is quieter. I like the flexibility of my work, as it makes life with children easier, to a surprising extent.

What kind of competence or qualities are required in the profession?

My job requires the ability to work in changing conditions and to occasionally tolerate a sense of urgency. Self-leadership and managing your own hours are important for coping at work. I would also recommend feeding your personal creativity and being openly curious about current phenomena.

In this job, you need good project coordination and management skills. You have to turn your creative ideas into a concrete result with the resources available, and that is one of my most important responsibilities. Cooperation skills are also very important, as all projects are done in teams and with partners. You need to get along with different people, cultures and working methods and still get things done on time. You also have to know how to perform in front of people.

What is the best thing about your profession?

Working at a museum is inspiring, because just on the other side of the wall, there is a whole world of treasures of the past, enthusiastic visitors and a hum of voices. In addition, one of the best things in this work is that my workdays are never the same. I like how variable and flexible my work is.

What are the downsides of the profession or what seems challenging?

It is difficult to find any actual downsides in the museum sector. The challenges of my job are the same as with any job. The pace is fast, and you don’t always have time to recover, and resources are also limited. The museum sector is also very competitive, and there are fewer permanent positions available than there are hopeful jobseekers.

What would you tell a person considering the profession of a museum lecturer?

The museum is only one environment where I can make use of my competence. Based on my job description, I could also work at a cultural centre, organisation, pedagogical planning or event production. If you are interested in working at a museum, I encourage you to learn more about different kinds of related jobs. There are many museums of different sizes in Finland, and work at each one may be vastly different. In smaller organisations, staff members’ field of work is often broader, while tasks tend to be more specialised in larger organisations.

The museum sector is very diverse. In my current workplace, there are producers, communication and marketing professionals, people in the financial sector, researchers, conservators, designers, carpenters, people who have switched from chemistry to the museum sector, and professionals in the audiovisual sector – just to name a few!

How do you see the future of your profession?

The number of people visiting museums is rising constantly at the national level. When the world changes drastically and we face challenges, we turn to culture for safety and joy and to history for answers to our current questions. I feel that the future of museums is bright. Although we do see the fluctuations in society and the economic situation reflected in the cultural and educational sector.