Jumpstart Your Career

Check out our links and guidance below to explore courses, apprenticeships, work-based learning, volunteering and job opportunities in heritage.

There is a wide range of formal and informal learning opportunities available for anyone looking to build a career in heritage. The Engine Shed offers a range of seminars, workshops, and accredited qualifications in technical building conservation.  

Several colleges and universities offer qualifications that are needed in the heritage sector, from building conservation to museum and galleries practice, or specialist courses in areas like digital documentation.  

If you’re unsure where to begin, My World of Work has a wealth of information on Colleges and Universities, including skills quizzes, links to university rankings and useful resources.  

Some courses which could help you enter a career in heritage include: 

• Archaeology 

• Libraries/Librarianship 

• Museum/Gallery/Conservation Skills and Studies 

• Craftskills including Glass/Ceramics/Stone Crafts, Woodworking and Metals Working/Finishing 

• Tourism/Travel 

• Arts/Culture/Heritage Administration 

• Environmental Protection/Conservation 

• Agriculture/Horticulture/Gardening 

• Built Environment  

• Property: Surveying/Planning/Development  

• Building Design/Architecture  

• Construction  

• Building Maintenance/Services 

• Civil and Structural Engineering  

• Structural Engineering 

You can find out more about what UK colleges and universities offer the courses you are interested in through UCAS. 

Apprenticeships, Traineeships, and Fellowships are all excellent ways to kick start your career by gaining experience and qualifications. 

There are a variety of Apprenticeships available across the historic environment sector. The best way to find the right type of Apprenticeship for you is to visit Apprenticeships Scotland.  The National Trust for Scotland offer a range of apprenticeships, and Museums Galleries Scotland  offers Digital Marketing and Museums Galleries Technician Modern Apprenticeships in museums and galleries across Scotland. 

Historic Environment Scotland provides a range of Apprenticeship, Traineeship and Craft Fellowship opportunities in house and by working with industry partners, in areas like traditional building skills, outreach, heritage science, digital documentation, gardening, archives, surveying, heritage tourism, and more. 

If you are interested in Apprenticeships, Traineeships and Craft Fellowships that relate to conservation and traditional building skills, you can find out more information about this in the Learn a Building Conservation Skill section of our website.

If you are looking for volunteering opportunities in the heritage sector, Make Your Mark is an initiative that supports everyone in Scotland to volunteer with historical, cultural and nature organisations. Organisations across all aspects of the Heritage Sector have active volunteering programmes, like Historic Environment Scotland, National Trust for Scotland, RSPB, Archaeology Scotland, Scottish Canals, National Galleries of Scotland and many more. In addition to national organisations, in your area you can find small and local organisations engaging with volunteers and city heritage trusts can occasionally have local opportunities. Your local volunteering centre can offer a wealth of support and resources (find your local centre on the Volunteer Scotland website). 

Volunteering is a mutually beneficial activity that offers you the opportunity to build confidence, meet new people, find your passions, and try something new. If you don’t yet know what path you’d like to travel, volunteering can give you a chance to have a taste of different roles, experiences, and focuses, helping you learn what interests you. Think about what skills you want to develop, and knowledge and experience you want to gain to help you find the best volunteering opportunity for you. 

There are a wide range of job hubs and pages that post vacancies across the historic environment sector.  We have highlighted a few of the key ones below but you can find more in the ‘Explore Historic Environment Careers’ section of the website.  

Built Environment Forum Scotland also have a handy careers guide which includes a list of job boards, advice on applying for jobs, and insights into various careers in heritage.  

If you don’t find a vacancy that you are interested in, many of these pages have an email alert or newsletter option which you can sign up to for updates on vacancies. 

• Heritage Tourism: Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions (ASVA) and Scottish Tourism Alliance 

• Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums: Museums and Galleries Scotland, Information and Records Management Society and Library and Information Association (CILIP) 

• Conservation and Traditional Building Skills: Institute of Conservation and Institute of Historic Building Conservation 

• Archaeology: Chartered Institute for Archaeologists, British Archaeological Jobs and Resources and Heritage Research Hub 

• Architecture, Engineering, Planning and Surveying: Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland, Built Environment Forum Scotland and Royal Institute for Chartered Surveyors 

• Landscape and Gardens: National Parks, Ends Report and Horticruitment