53100 Registrars, restorers, interpreters and other occupations related to museum and art galleries

What this occupation covers

Registrars, restorers, interpreters and workers in other occupations related to museums and art galleries classify and catalogue museum artifacts and gallery works of art, construct and install exhibits and displays, restore, maintain and store museum and gallery collections, frame artwork, and perform other functions in support of curatorial and conservation activities. They are employed in museums and galleries. Picture framers and taxidermists may also be employed in retail settings or may be self-employed. This unit group also includes museum and other interpreters who conduct guided tours. They are employed by art galleries, museums, parks, aquariums, zoos, interpretive centres, botanical gardens, cultural centres, nature sanctuaries, historic and heritage sites, and other locations.

Official main duties

The NOC profile lists 9 main duties for this code.

• Assist in the restoration and conservation of artifacts under the direction of a conservator.
• Construct displays and dioramas, build models, install artifacts in displays and prepare artifacts for storage and shipping
• Fabricate custom frames, measure and cut mats, mat enhancements and glass, and mount paintings, photographs and other art work.
• Conduct tours of museums, gallery exhibitions and historical, heritage and other sites, answer inquiries and provide information concerning exhibits or sites.
• Assist in the research, handling and storage of artifacts
• Assist with the planning and development of travelling exhibitions and special events
• Protect and care for cultural artifacts and collections during exhibitions, while in transit and in storage
• Classify and assign registration numbers to artifacts and supervise inventory control.
• Prepare, stuff and mount skins of animals for preservation, scientific or display purposes.

Do not copy these lines into your reference letter. The letter has to describe what you actually did, in your employer’s words. DUTYPROOF flags wording lifted from the NOC as something to review, and an officer reading a letter that mirrors the NOC reads it the same way.

What DUTYPROOF screens for

This is DUTYPROOF’s screening threshold, not IRCC’s decision. For this NOC, screening requires at least 2 of its 9 official duties to be evidenced in your own words, plus the required letter elements. IRCC asks that you performed the actions in the occupation’s lead statement and a substantial number of its main duties — so treat the duty coverage as the number that matters, not the badge.

Codes this one is confused with

The NOC profile names these itself. Choosing the wrong code of a look-alike pair is the most common way genuine work experience fails to establish eligibility.

• 51101 Conservators and curators
• 53123 Theatre, fashion, exhibit and other creative designers
• 64320 Tour and travel guides

Excluded from this code

• Assistant museum curator (See 51101 Conservators and curators)
• Museum exhibit designer (See 53123 Theatre, fashion, exhibit and other creative designers)
• Tour and travel guides (See 64320 Tour and travel guides)

Job titles filed under this code

A title on this list does not by itself put your experience in this code — the duties in your letter decide that.

aircraft restoration technician - museum · aquarium interpreter · archaeological technician · art gallery preparator · art gallery registrar · art objects preparator · art restoration technician · assistant registrar - museum · botanical garden interpreter · cataloguer - museum · chief display officer - museum · chief exhibit officer - museum · chief preparator · chief preparator - museums and art galleries · communications equipment restoration technician - museum · community museum technician · conservation and restoration technician · conservation area interpreter · conservation technician - museums and art galleries · curatorial assistant · dinosaur museum interpreter · diorama maker - museums and art galleries · diorama technician · display officer - museums and art galleries

Employment requirements

• Registrars, cataloguers and interpreters may require a university degree in a field related to museum and gallery work.
• For other occupations in this unit group, completion of a college program in museum technology or conservation technology or completion of other technical or on-the-job training programs related to the work are required.