Also called: Book Conservator, Works on Paper Conservator
Repairs and preserves documents, prints, drawings, maps, and rare books.
They wash fragile paper in special baths, mend tears with Japanese tissue, and rebuild old book bindings. Libraries and archives like the Library of Congress employ them. Patience and steady hands are essential.
Estimate based on American Institute for Conservation salary surveys; BLS groups conservators with museum technicians (25-4013, May 2024 median about $50k).
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Master's degree, about 8 years after high school. Master's in conservation or library science with conservation focus.
Ways in: Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Art Conservation, Library Science, Chemistry.
Growing faster than average (about 6% over 10 years). Faster-than-average growth projected.
Low risk for 10 years. Digitization and AI help catalog documents; washing, mending and rebinding fragile paper stay manual.
Classes: Chemistry, AP Studio Art, History.
Official data: O*NET occupation 25-4013.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.