Associate Registrar

Associate Registrar

Department: Other Agencies and Independent Organizations

Location(s): Washington, District of Columbia

Salary Range: $85447 - $111087 Per Year

Job Summary: The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex, with 21 museums and the National Zoo. This position is located in Registrar’s Office, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Under Secretary for Museums and Culture, Smithsonian Institution (SI) and serves as the Associate Registrar, Exhibitions & Loans.

Major Duties:

• The Associate Registrar, Exhibitions & Loans oversees the museum’s robust traveling exhibition program and manages all registration aspects of SAAM’s temporary exhibition program at both SAAM and its Renwick Gallery. In this position, you will: Develop and implement guidelines for shipment, storage and handling of incoming exhibition loans; and negotiates both domestic and international agreements that involve a variety of potentially sensitive issues. Coordinate the schedule of multi-departmental activities to prepare exhibitions for tour, and schedules tour venues according to the preparation schedule. Under the direction of the Head Registrar, oversee subordinate staff to include exercising authority to approve the allocation and distribution of funds in the organization's budget. Develop long-range exhibition schedules, taking into consideration special conservation problems, short-term storage, and shipping and packing requirements. Maintain all aspects of condition reporting and object movement for incoming and outgoing exhibitions and loans.

Qualifications: Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-09 level in the Federal Service. For this position, specialized experience is defined as experience with incoming loans, travelling exhibitions, supervising employees, planning and scheduling temporary exhibitions; and including artwork security and insurance. Your resume must be no more than two (2) pages and should clearly demonstrate how your experience aligns with the responsibilities and specialized experience required for this position. Do not copy language directly from the vacancy announcement, as you will be deemed ineligible for consideration. Instead, provide detailed, descriptive information about your actual experience. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience. Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week. Or Education: Three full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree related to the position may be substituted to meet the experience requirements. Special Instructions for Foreign Education: If you are qualifying by education and/or you have education completed in a foreign college/university described above, it is your responsibility to provide transcripts and proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study. For instructions on where to fax these documents, see the "Required Documents" section of this announcement. Or a Combination: Education and experience may be combined to meet the basic qualifications; For a full explanation of this option please see the Qualification Standards. In an effort to streamline our hiring process, SI employees whose current position of record is in the same job series (1001) and who are in a (Federal competitive or excepted service appointment) (Trust) as this advertised position, are not required to submit a transcript with your application package. However, if selected, you will be required to provide a copy of your transcript before your start date in the position. Time-in-Grade Requirements: Under competitive merit promotion procedures, any individual who is currently holding, or who has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule position under a non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet "time-in-grade" requirements (have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade of the grade for which you are applying).

How to Apply: Click on the "Apply Online" button on the upper right side of the page. Please Note: You must apply for this position online through the 'Apply Online' button and submit required supplemental documents (if they are relevant to you). Your resume must be no more than two (2) pages. You may submit required documents by uploading them online during the application process. The complete application package, including any required documents, is due in the Smithsonian Office of Human Resources on the closing date of the announcement by 11:59 PM Eastern Time. If you are unable to apply online, paper applications may be accepted with prior approval of the Contact Person listed below.

Application Deadline: 2026-01-16