Smart Museum of Art University of Chicago

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Staff positions

There are no open staff positions at this time. Please check back in the future or visit jobopportunities.uchicago.edu.

University of Chicago student positions

The following jobs and internships are only available to University of Chicago students.

Student Docent Program

Smart Museum docents serve as public ambassadors for the Smart Museum and assist the Museum in fulfilling its educational mission as gallery teachers for a range of K-12, University, and adult audiences. Docents lead the Smart Museum’s efforts in reaching K-12 audiences through the multi-visit tour programs—Smart Explorers for fifth grade and Art in Focus for third grade—in addition to assisting with single visit tour requests from university, adult, and other student audience groups. Docents also assist with the facilitation of family programming at the Smart Museum. Docents are required to complete a 12-week mandatory paid training course and attend ongoing training sessions on the first Friday of each month.

Docents are hired during spring quarter. Please check back in March for the application to join the 2014–2015 docent class.

Internships

University of Chicago students gain direct experience in museum work through year- and summer-long internships in a variety of areas, including our curatorial, registration, education, marketing, and business offices. Qualifications vary by department; all positions are paid and require approximately 10–19 hours of work each week.

Interns are typically hired in the fall for one-year, renewable positions.

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Curatorial Internship

The Mellon Foundation Curatorial Internship provides a museum opportunity involving object-based curatorial research for advanced graduate students in art history and related disciplines at the University of Chicago. The intern advances substantive research on objects in the collection of the Smart Museum, which will be incorporated into the Smart’s permanent research files and online collection database. The intern also assists curatorial staff in further integrating the collections of the Smart Museum into the academic and intellectual life of the University of Chicago.

Duties

The successful candidate will work 19.5 hours per week on a 10-month appointment at the Smart Museum of Art (September through June). The Associate Director of Academic Initiatives will supervise this position and determine exact areas of permanent collection research, taking account of curatorial needs as well as the intern’s own areas of expertise.

Qualifications

Candidates must be advanced graduate students at the University of Chicago in good standing in their department, ideally in the late stages of the dissertation. Students in other circumstances will be considered, but must at a minimum have finished their graduate coursework.

The successful candidate will focus on one of the following three areas of the Smart Museum collection, based on his or her areas of expertise:

• Asian (all periods)
• Old Master European (Renaissance–1900)
• Modern American and European (1850–1960)

Candidates should have a strong knowledge of art history, including research sources and methods. For candidates applying to work on Asian art, proficiency in Japanese, Korean, or Chinese will be at least as important as art historical training. Candidates are encouraged to apply regardless of their previous museum experience.

The position requires excellent research and writing skills; excellent oral communication; the ability to work collaboratively, as well as independently on research; and strong computer skills.

Hours

19.5 hours/week, for duration of 10 month appointment (September 2013 through June 2014)

Stipend

The successful candidate will receive a $15,000 stipend.

To apply

Applications should include the following four elements: a letter of interest; a CV with detailed information on course of study; contact information for three references (at least two should be academic references); and a writing sample (such as a course paper). Please send applications by May 10 to Anne Leonard, Associate Director of Academic Initiatives.

No telephone inquiries please.

Registration Intern

The Registration intern assists the Registrar’s office at the Smart Museum of Art. Duties include maintaining the electronic and paper records and other documentation that catalog both the permanent collection and loans to the museum, as well as overseeing the movement, packing, storage, and shipment of these objects.

Duties

• Assist with cataloging works both in the collection and on loan to the museum and prepare condition reports, inventories and receipts.
• Assist with maintaining the systems that catalog, document and report on both the permanent collection and loans to the museum including: copyright research and clearance, and archiving departmental records.
• Assist with replying to information requests and generating internal and external documents relating to loans, exhibitions, and acquisitions.
• Assist with the packing, unpacking, installation, deinstallation, and storage of artwork.
• Assist with the campus loan program, processing loan renewals and performing routine condition checks of artwork.
• Assist with the integrated pest management program, monitoring for pest activity within the museum.
• Assist with managing permanent collection and installation photography.
• Assisting with object movement for University of Chicago classes held at the Smart, monitoring at least one class per quarter.
• Other duties as they arise.

Qualifications

Applicant must be highly sensitive to the necessity of confidentiality and absolutely accurate record keeping and be familiar with database management, networking and image processing. S/he must be extremely detail-oriented, have excellent written and verbal communication skills, possess the ability to see projects through to completion, and be able to work well both with others and independently.

A concentration in art history preferred, along with previous office or museum experience. Familiarity with PCs, Microsoft Word and Excel is essential; familiarity with Adobe Photoshop CS2, scanning software and The Museum System (TMS) is desirable.

Physical demands include the ability to see and write or type; the ability to lift and carry moderately heavy objects; the ability to crouch, climb, balance, sit, and stand for long periods of time; the ability to safely handle and transport artworks; and the ability to withstand various outdoor temperatures.

Background check is required.

Hours

12 hours/week during the school year (32 weeks) and 24 hours a week during the summer; start date will be summer or early fall 2013, depending on candidate availability, and will continue through the 2013–2014 school year.

Pay rate

$11/hour; college work-study eligibility is desirable but not required.

To apply

To apply, e-mail a letter of interest and current resume to Sara Hindmarch, Associate Registrar.

No telephone inquiries please.

Baristas

When positions are open applications are made available at the Museum's information desk.

Gallery Attendants

The Smart Museum of Art’s Gallery Attendants are responsible for maintaining security within the Smart Museum gallery and lobby areas during public hours. Within this role, the Gallery Attendant acts as a public representative of the Museum and the University by greeting patrons and providing information as needed. Work schedules are flexible quarterly and can be designed to fit around a student’s class schedule. Docents who wish to receive additional working hours at the Museum are strongly encouraged to apply and will receive a premium hourly rate.

Qualifications

University of Chicago student. Excellent verbal communication and interpersonal skills. Interest in visual art encouraged. Ability to stand for long periods of time. Work-study encouraged, but not required.

Hours

Starting immediately with year-round employment, approximately 8–15 hours per week.

Pay rate

$8.25/hour; higher if a multi-session docent cross-training program is completed

To Apply

To apply, please fill out an application at the Museum’s information desk. Applications are always accepted.

No phone inquiries please.

The University of Chicago is an Affirmative Action / Equal Opportunity Employer.