Museum Docent

Save to Favorites

Our Docent Program is the human vehicle of our intended tour experience. Being in the heart of downtown Tucson allows us to work directly with our local community, while our content brings together an international network across Gem and Mineral industries. Our decorum and training will reflect the priorities of both audiences and will be constantly evolving with feedback we receive. Through this program, we will be preparing our docents to deliver an experience that reflects the world-class quality presentation the Museum showcases.

Docents will be leading guided tours throughout the museum and will undergo a content orientation as well as a public speaking workshop before receiving Tour Approval to officially guide tours. There are other opportunities outside of being a docent that will operate on a different timeline with their respective Museum Staff Supervisor.

Duties: Under the Direction of Museum Staff

• Arrive 30 minutes prior to tour for group briefing, and guest welcome. Are we expecting them to arrive 30 minutes early for every tour? Is this only relevant for when we are doing guided tours or are we going to have an additional duty/guidelines for when we hit time for unguided general admission?
• Allow up to an extra hour of flextime within schedule to adjust for different group speeds.
• Deliver the tours to the quality standards established in trainings.
• Provide follow up information, answer questions and assist guests.

Requirements to become a Docent

• Complete Docent Application
• Participate in an informal interview with museum staff.
• Background Check
• Attend orientation and training sessions. (This will be a requirement each year, as the museum will be rotating out displays. Repeat Docents will participate in a review context versus an orientation).
• Ability to dress business casual.
• Guide Museum staff on a tour after training to receive Tour Approval.
• Minimum of 15 hours of participation a semester, or 30 hours a year.
• Designated College Colleague - CatCard (if not already associated with the UofA a CatCard will required at the expense of the volunteer)

Expectations

• Communication for docent shifts and scheduling.
• Punctuality- A docent will not be permitted to lead a tour if they are not on site 30 minutes prior.
• Appearance- Representing the Museum in a professional, business casual manner.
• Attitude- A positive demeanor when leading tours, and willingness to receive feedback in order to grow is imperative to our evolving nature as a team.
• Professionalism.
• Cell-Phone usage by Docents is not permitted during a tour.