Become a Volunteer Guide

Being a Guide is a truly rewarding way to become involved in Auckland Museum.

Share your passion and enthusiasm for your Museum with people from all over the world. Bring to life the treasures and stories of the collections. Learn and help others to learn about our culture and heritage.

We provide the training.
You provide the commitment.

2019 intake

Every year, we run one intake of new volunteer guides, who receive extensive training before starting as a guide. The training for the current intake of English speaking Guides is taking place in August and September 2019. The deadline for applications is Friday 19th July. The training for the current intake of Mandarin speaking Guides is taking place from mid-August until mid-October. Applications close Friday 2nd August.

The qualities we look for

Guides should have a real interest in history and in Museums, and have excellent communication skills and a passion for continuing to learn. The training is extensive and requires full commitment in order to successfully complete the course.

Commitment

We run only one intake of guides per year, and successful guides are asked to commit to guiding for at least two years, and to be available for a minimum of one tour per week. Guides who work full time and only volunteer on weekends are asked to commit to alternate weeks. As well as being regularly rostered, guides are expected to make themselves available for occasional group tours as they arise, and as they can fit around other commitments.

Hear from our Guides

THIS IS A FRONT OF HOUSE ROLE

Volunteer Guides

If you enjoy meeting people and bringing to life our treasures and stories, and sharing your passion and enthusiasm for the museum, you could become a member of our large volunteer guiding team. We need people with excellent communication skills and a genuine desire to engage visitors of all ages from different backgrounds. We are looking for an interest in New Zealand history, different cultures and natural science. A strong and sustained commitment to ongoing learning and dependability are key attributes for this role.

Please note that entry to the training course is by invitation only, and we ask for a commitment of at least two years should you be successful in being selected for training, and pass the assessment at the end of the course. In 2019, the course will run for two months, during August and September.

Applications close Friday 19th July.

apply now

THIS IS A FRONT OF HOUSE ROLE

Volunteer Mandarin Guides

Every year we take on a small group of volunteers to train as Museum Mandarin Guides. If you are a native speaker of Mandarin and have a high level of English, enjoy meeting people and bringing to life our treasures and stories this may be a role for you. Mandarin Guides welcome and care for small groups of Mandarin speakers and work as a cultural translator to share information about Māori culture and Taonga so that our Mandarin speaking visitors have a deeper more meaningful experience during their visit. We need people with excellent communication skills and a genuine desire to engage visitors of all ages and backgrounds. We are looking for people wanting to learn more about Maori culture and heritage, and a wish to connect more closely with New Zealand stories, and share this with our Mandarin speaking visitors.

In 2019, the course will run for two months, from mid-August to mid-October. We are particularly interested in applicants who would be available to volunteer for at least one day during the working week.

Applications close Friday 2nd August.

apply now

We have other volunteering opportunies aside from Museum Guides. Click here to view all volunteer roles.

Meet our guides

Julie Cohen, Volunteer Guide

Our volunteer visitor guide, Julie Cohen, is a font of knowledge after having immersed herself in Museum life for the past six years, first as a library volunteer and later as a guide. She says she delights in turning around a quick trip to the Museum into an experience that leaves people amazed. “For me, it is particularly rewarding when they come away informed, entertained and with a headful of thought-provoking questions knocking around their brain.” Julie says it is a privilege to be able to tell visitors about the events, places and people behind the artefacts and help bring Auckland’s history to life.

Meet our guides

Sichan Qi, Volunteer Mandarin Guide

Sichan Qi is one our incredibly talented volunteer guides that take groups of Mandarin-speaking visitors throughout the Museum, so we tracked her down to talk about volunteer life for #volunteerweek. “Chinese visitors often want to know about the history and what life is like in New Zealand and the culture so I help them to make those connections. The waka is of great interest to these groups because it looks quite similar to our dragon boat, so it usually generates lively discussions.” The 28 year old student came to the Museum after arriving from Beijing two years ago with a keen desire to learn more about her new homeland, so she is incredibly proud to teach others about NZ’s history.

apply now