About the Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world for everyone to experience and enjoy. The Museum lives in two iconic sites in New York City—The Met Fifth Avenue and The Met Cloisters. Millions of people also take part in The Met experience online.

Since its founding in 1870, The Met has always aspired to be more than a treasury of rare and beautiful objects. We are committed to fostering a collaborative and respectful work environment with a staff as diverse as the audiences we engage. Our staff members are art lovers who are passionate about working toward a common goal: creating the most dynamic and inspiring art museum in the world.

At The Met, every staff member – from security officers to researchers to scientists and beyond – lives by our core values of respect, inclusivity, collaboration, excellence, and integrity.

Respect: Engage one another with collegiality, empathy, and kindness, always.

Inclusivity: Ensure that all are and feel welcome and valued.

Collaboration: Reach across boundaries to exchange ideas and work together toward our shared mission.

Excellence: Lead the cultural world in quality and expertise—and inspire curiosity and creativity.

Integrity: Hold ourselves to the highest moral standards, admit when we fall short, and then evolve.

GENERAL STATEMENT OF RESPONSIBILITIES & DUTIES:

You will perform scientific analytical development and optimization tailored to the collaborative interrogation of complex cultural heritage materials under the supervision of a Research Scientist. You will develop, implement, and evaluate novel mass spectrometric (MS) approaches for the study of composite samples from artworks for the explicit purpose of identifying chia oil. You will be in a one-year full time position funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES & DUTIES:

• Carry out the development, implementation, and evaluation of novel MS approaches for analysis of cultural heritage materials including but not limited to the proteins and lipids found in chia oil
• Research, plan, conduct, and document, protocol development independently and in collaboration with The University of Bordeaux through the ARCHE partnership
• Coordinate research within The Met and with the project partners at Weill Cornell Medicine and the Hispanic Society Museum and Library Establish and implement MS analysis protocols at the museum
• Develop bioinformatic and biostatistical approaches for analysis of unique cultural heritage data.
• Participate in research trips to Mexico and Bordeaux, France
• Develop and utilize databases and applications to streamline the documentation and dissemination of results
• Create and maintain an accessible platform for data sharing and management
• Foster relationships with art conservators, historians, conservators and archaeologists from partner museums and institutions within an interdisciplinary research environment
• Perform literature reviews of scientific and conservation publications, proposing improvements to existing protocols and procedures
• Write progress and summary reports, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and annotated bibliographies on related topics and activities
• Develop platforms and activities for public engagement, including helping plan an end of project study day, as well as writing scientific articles, papers, reports or books, as appropriate
• Other duties as assigned

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

• Ph.D. in chemistry, biochemistry, engineering, materials science, related disciplines, or equivalent experience
• Strong command of both written and spoken English
• Ability to work in partnership on location at the University of Bordeaux in Bordeaux, France for up to eight weeks per year
• Demonstrated expertise in mass spectrometry and advanced liquid chromatographic analytical techniques (LCMS, MALDI-MS)
• Demonstrated experience in development and implementation of sample preparation, analysis methods and protocols for MS analysis of proteins, polysaccharides, or lipids (omics methods)
• Interest in working in museum environments, specifically, either with or in proximity of art objects
• Demonstrated experience in development and implementation of sensitive methods and protocols for the evaluation of degraded or modified proteins, polysaccharides, or lipids
• Demonstrated experience in chemical interactions and/or crosslinking.
• Demonstrated experience in implementing advanced bioinformatics and statistical analysis methods on scientific data
• Demonstrated experience in development of process automation using modern database software and web-enabled tools

COMPENSATION RANGE

• Pay Range: $63,000-$68,000/annual The advertised pay scale reflects the good faith minimum and maximum salary range for this role. The advertised pay scale is not a promise of a particular wage for any specific employee. The specific compensation offered to a candidate may be dependent on a variety of factors including, but not limited to, the candidate’s experience, education, special licensing or qualifications, and other factors.

Location Requirements

At time of employment, employees are expected to be located within commuting distance of the Museum. “Commuting distance” means that they are located in one of following states: New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, or Pennsylvania (the “Tri-state and PA” areas), and be able to commute to and from the Museum in a single day.

Benefits Offerings

The Museum provides competitive compensation, and generous benefits and perks for all eligible employees. Note: Benefits Offering may differ based on Employee Status.

• Medical, dental, vision and life insurance 403(b) basic retirement plan and optional matching retirement plan with an outstanding employer match
• Considerable paid time off, including annual leave, sick leave, and 13 Museum holidays
• Long-term disability coverage
• Flexible Spending Accounts & Health Savings Account (pre-tax income for eligible health care expenses)
• Commuter benefits (pre-tax income for parking or mass transit expenses) Free financial-planning services
• Financial assistance for relevant coursework, seminars, and training programs
• 25% discount for staff in Museum shops
• A subsidized staff cafeteria
• Access to the Museums Council pass, which grants free admission to various museums and cultural institutions

Research shows that women and people from underrepresented groups often apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. We recognize that it is highly unlikely that someone meets 100% of the qualifications for a role. If much of this job description describes you, then please apply for this role.

The Met is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, The Met will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed in this process, please contact benefits@metmuseum.org. 

The Metropolitan Museum of Art provides equal opportunity to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, age, mental or physical disability, pregnancy, alienage or citizenship status, marital status or domestic partner status, genetic information, genetic predisposition or carrier status, gender identity, HIV status, military status and any other category protected by law in all employment decisions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, compensation, training and apprenticeship, promotion, upgrading, demotion, downgrading, transfer, lay-off and termination, and all other terms and conditions of employment.