Archivists
Skills & Knowledge
Most Important Skills for Archivists
- Reading—Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Writing—Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Listening—Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Speaking—Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Thinking Critically—Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Learning New Things—Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Making Decisions—Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Monitoring Performance—Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Solving Complex Problems—Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Teaching—Teaching others how to do something.
Most Important Knowledge Areas for Archivists
- Clerical—Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
- Customer and Personal Service—Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- History and Archeology—Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- English Language—Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Computers and Electronics—Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Education and Training—Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Administration and Management—Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Law and Government—Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Communications and Media—Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Personnel and Human Resources—Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Interests
Different careers may be a good fit for your personality or interests. This career is:
- Conventional—Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
- Investigative—Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
Learn more about your interests. Take the MnCareers Interest Assessment.
Describe Your Skills
People who have worked in this career typically perform the following tasks.
These statements can help a prospective employer understand what you can do, on a resume or during an interview.
- Collecting information from different sources.
- Documenting or recording information.
- Using computers.
- Communicating with people outside your organization.
- Communicating with supervisors, co-workers, or people that work under you.
- Identifying information by categorizing, comparing, or detecting changes in circumstances or events.
- Creating and maintaining interpersonal relationships.
- Working directly with the public.
Careers that Use Similar Skills
The following careers use skills, knowledge, and abilities that are similar to those used for Archivists.
View more careers in the Education and Training cluster
View more careers in the Professional Support Services pathway
This page includes information from the O*NET 24.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Source: You can learn about our data sources in the About Us section.
