Advice

General Advice | Organization Lists & Cold Calling

     Job hunting can be tough. You should be sure you talk to your professors, other students, people currently employed, and anyone else you can think of to talk to. There are a billion things to think of when you are getting ready to go look for a job. Some of the things you want to keep in mind are:

  • Updated, job specific resume
  • An idea of the salary you would like (see this page)
  • Key words to use in the interview
  • A strong cover letter, specifically targeted to the employer
  • And a strong understanding of your strengths and weaknesses.

      Of course there are other things that you will need to think about. One of the ideas that I try to make sure others are aware of is what I call "Preservation Plus." This idea means that you have something other than preservation in your background. One of my Pluses is computers. Its also experience in housing, planning, and community activism. You have to find your Plus. Maybe its education, maybe its planning, maybe its business, maybe its as small as conference coordination. But whatever it is, develop it while you are in school so you have something to build upon before you get out there. Its easy to develop other Pluses out in the work world, but you need one to get in the door.

      Below are a few links to follow for advice. If you have more, please e-mail me!

 

Organizations & Cold Calling

      Organizations to contact about jobs in preservation and public history. Cold calling, as this is sometimes referred to, can be difficult, but it may provide you with a few contacts, as well as finding about other opportunities in the preservation world. Preservation and public history are small enough fields that everyone knows everyone (mostly). By contacting someone in, say the NJ Trust, you can often find out whats going on in the rest of the Mid Atlantic--if not other regions.

  • National Trust for Historic Preservation (The National organization for HP. Great folks, lots of contacts, but a bit on the bureaucratic side. Might take some time to make contacts.)
  • National Council on Public History (Another organization serving as the national coordinating group, this time for public historians. This one only has an executive director, but the members can be a great group to get involved with.)
Statewide Non-Profit Historic Preservation Organizations
Arizona Preservation Foundation

Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities

California Preservation Foundation

Colorado Preservation, Inc.

Connecticut Trust for Historic Peservation

Florida Trust for Historic Preservation

Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation

Historic Hawai'i Foundation

Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana

Historic Preservation League of Oregon

Historic Preservation Alliance of Arkansas

Preserve South Dakota (Formerly Historic South Dakota Foundation)

Iowa Historic Preservation Alliance

Kansas Preservation Alliance

Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois

Maine Preservation

Missouri Alliance for Historic Preservation

Mississippi Heritage Trust

Montana Preservation Alliance

New Hampshire Preservation Alliance

New Jersey Historic Trust

New Mexio Heritage Preservation Alliance

Palmetto Trust for Historic Preservation (SC)

Preservation Alliance of Minnesota

Preservation Alliance of Virginia

Preservation Alliance of West Virginia

Preservation Delaware

Preservation League of New York State

Preservation Idaho

Preservation Kentucky

Preservation Mass

Preservation Maryland

Preservation New Jersey

Preservation North Carolina

Preservation Ohio

Preservation Pennsylvania

Preservation Rhode Island

Preservation Texas

Preservation Trust of Vermont

Tennessee Preservation Trust

Utah Heritage Foundation

Wisconsin Trust for Historic Preservation

Washington Trust for Historic Preservation

 

Special Thanks to the National Trust for creating this list of Statewide Organizations.

Statewide Governmental Organizations
ational Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers

designed by Aaron Marcavitch 2000