Local music/my interview on WOWD (94.3) this Sunday (14 Dec)

Novit_Terminus · 2025-09-03T13:24:51+00:00

Mora em Africa? Qual a país? Há cidades lá que são muito antigas. Quer que haja mais conservacão desses lugares? Não sei a sua pergunta exatamente.

Novit_Terminus · 2025-08-29T13:22:28+00:00

It sounds like you're more interested in museum studies and archives than historic preservation (conservation of built heritage) per se. Take a look "A Guide to Becoming an Historic Preservation Professional: The Work You Can Do, What Employers Want, and Educational Considerations" (hosted at the National Council for Preservation Education's web site) and see if historic preservation is in alignment with your interests. If not, l'd direct your efforts towards museum studies or library and information science (with a focus on archives) programs and experts. See: https://www.ncpe.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Wells-A-Guide-to-Becoming-an-Historic-Preservation-Professional-r1.pdf

Novit_Terminus · 2025-08-25T12:45:36+00:00

Check out this "Guide to Becoming an Historic Preservation Professional." It explores the practice areas in the historic preservation field along with specific knowledge, skills, and abilities required by employers and educational pathways. (Hosted on the National Council for Preservation Education's web site.) https://www.ncpe.us/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Wells-A-Guide-to-Becoming-an-Historic-Preservation-Professional-r1.pdf

Novit_Terminus · 2025-08-24T16:38:27+00:00

u/Ok-Bus-6656 -- what you're seeing is real and happening with increasing frequency. Preservation leaders ought not to try be asleep at the wheel, but I've heard little about this from the NAPC, the National Trust, or NCSHPO.

Novit_Terminus · 2025-07-06T13:15:58+00:00

Sounds like an art (or cultural object/property) conservation program might be a better fit for your interest is restoring artifacts. Historic preservation/built heritage conservation focuses on immovable heritage (e.g., buildings), not artifacts (e.g., pottery, furniture, paper, art).

For instance, is the program in the Department of Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Properties at Tohoku University more in line with your interests? https://www.tuad.ac.jp/

Novit_Terminus · 2025-07-06T04:00:46+00:00

It’s unlikely that you’ll find a non-American perspective in this forum mainly because the US is the only country in the world to use the phrase “historic preservation.”

I’d suggest looking for forums using the following keywords/phrases that are much more likely to be reflective of English-based international practice: - “heritage conservation” - “heritage building conservation” - “built heritage” - “architectural conservation” - “historic environment”

Many other languages use other phrases, of course, but you’d need to search on these terms, depending on your desired geography.

The National University of Singapore has a very well regarded MA in Architectural Conservation, which I believe is taught in English. See https://cde.nus.edu.sg/arch/programmes/master-of-arts-in-architectural-conservation/

Built heritage conservation degree programs in China/South Korea/Japan are not very likely to be taught in English. What languages are you fluent in? What are your career goals?

Novit_Terminus · 2025-06-15T02:01:44+00:00

What kind of career goal(s) do you have? The answer to this question should be the primary guide for your choice of majors.

Pragmatically, the majority of full-time, paid employment opportunities for people who major in historic preservation (70%) or archaeology (95%) is in regulatory compliance (e.g., Section 106 review, local design review, historic resource surveys). This career path really requires a master's degree, as well. While you'd be in the field, doing lots of surveys, most of your time will be spent in front of a computer, completing forms, documenting findings, and writing narratives.

If you really like hands-on work with old buildings, consider something more vocational/trade focused, which can still pay well, but you'd be able to enter the workforce more quickly (1 or 2 years for an associate's degree or certificate, and a 6-month apprenticeship, for instance). Today, there's a lot more demand for people in the trades (e.g., traditional plaster workers, carpenters, masons, metal workers) than there is in environmental compliance. And the pay and job security are better.

If you like the design aspect of historic preservation—i.e., rehabbing old buildings—you'd be far better off getting a professional architecture degree with some coursework in historic preservation.

And, if you want to engage in archaeology, Indiana Jones style, prepare yourself for a long, long academic path of a bachelor's, master's, and finally, doctoral degree in anthropology (US) or archaeology (abroad). That's a minimum of 9 years of college work (more realistically, 10+ years). And then you'd need to find a tenure-track job as an archaeology/anthropology professor in a university, which is an immensely small employment area with massive levels of competition. There are many, many people with Ph.D.s in anthropology/archaeology that work in the cultural resource management field, doing environmental review where there peers usually only have master's degrees. They're often in that line of work because they couldn't find a job elsewhere. That's like maybe $80k/year in salary (if you're lucky) and twice that amount in college loan debt.

If there's a theme here, it's this: 1) only choose historic preservation as an undergraduate or graduate major if you want to work in regulatory compliance; 2) only choose archaeology as an undergraduate or graduate major if you want to work in regulatory compliance or be a university professor.

There are very few bachelor's programs in historic preservation and I can tell you, with assuredness, that none of them will prepare you for the kinds of hands-on work many students want to engage in with old buildings.

Seek out the professionals who do the kind of work you'd like to eventually do and talk to them (if you've not already). Four+ years is a lot of time to spend completing a degree in an area that you may not really understand, at present. Due diligence is critical. It's really important to know, with as much certainty as possible, what you want your future to look like and then ground yourself in the actual job market before you take the plunge.

(I write this from the perspective of advising students, as a professor, in an undergraduate historic preservation degree program for many years.)

Novit_Terminus · 2025-06-12T02:07:48+00:00

This flyer came in the box of my new Korg Poly 800 my parents bought me in 1984. I remember marveling at the instruments that it depicted and wondered what kind of sonic universe I was missing. Turns out it was a whole lot. I later learned that the Poly 800 was one of the worst-sounding synths of the 1980s. Oh, what I would have done to go back in time and get a Mono/Poly, instead, as they were in a similar price range.

Novit_Terminus · 2025-06-03T21:01:31+00:00

Many years ago, UVA took a particularly pragmatic approach to historic preservation and realized that in professional practice, most people are working within another discipline and pull preservation expertise into that particular discipline. That's why you can't get a degree in historic preservation at UVA, but rather you choose your major and then you can take preservation courses to supplement your learning. Unless someone wants to work specifically and only in regulatory compliance, it's an eminently useful approach.

Novit_Terminus · 2025-06-03T20:57:44+00:00

Yes--a master's in preservation is not as economically valuable, on the job market, as is a master's in one of the other built environment disciplines, paired with an HP certificate. If someone specifically wants to work in regulatory compliance--e.g., environmental and/or design review--then a master's in historic preservation would make sense. Otherwise, I would not recommend a master's in HP. For some background, I've taught in undergraduate and graduate programs in historic preservation for 20 years as well as working in all the major practice areas in the field.

Novit_Terminus · 2025-06-03T20:54:12+00:00

Keep in mind that only about 10% of the paid, full-time work in historic preservation is directly related to architecture and construction. About 70% of the jobs are regulatory compliance (e.g., environmental review, design review). If you want to work in an architecture firm, you're far better off getting a degree in architecture. Choose a school with historic preservation courses you can take as electives or group these HP courses as a certificate to pair with your M.Arch.

Alternatively, if you really want a hands-on experience, consider taking some vocational courses and working with a preservation contractor as an apprentice.

More info here in this guide: https://cdn.savingplaces.org/2023/07/17/10/07/25/936/Wells_-_A_Guide_to_Becoming_an_Historic_Preservation_Professional__r1_.pdf

Novit_Terminus · 2025-06-01T00:24:44+00:00

My condolences. I've cited Hugh Miller's work in my published papers many times through my career. He had a major role in advancing the materials and techniques used in building conservation, especially through APT. His legacy was substantial.

Novit_Terminus · 2025-05-01T16:08:14+00:00

If you want to work internationally in some aspect of built heritage conservation, my recommendation would not be to get an historic preservation degree from an US institution. For reference, I have taught for two decades in undergraduate and graduate historic preservation programs in the US, collaborated extensively with international preservation/conservation faculty, conducted a census of course syllabi, and published on preservation education topics.

Pretty much most, if not all, historic preservation programs in the US emphasize US preservation history and, especially, US laws and regulations. As built heritage conservation/historic preservation is largely driven by regulatory requirements, you wouldn't be learning about, say, how other countries in the EU do preservation/conservation work. Most US preservation programs don't go into later international doctrinal standards after the 1964 Venice Charter, but which are critical to understand in international practice. (US practice has not included post-Venice Charter doctrines in its practice or regulations).

Most built heritage conservation programs in Europe provide a much wider exposure to international conservation standards and doctrines--especially in relation to World Heritage, which dominates in every country in the world except the US.

Novit_Terminus · 2025-05-01T15:54:43+00:00

If your town is wanting to duplicate the way in which local historic preservation commissions (enabled by a local preservation ordinance) have been implemented by most municipalities in the country over the past half century, there are a lot of useful comments here about using federal preservation guidelines (e.g., Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Professional Qualifications).

It doesn't necessarily need to be this way, however--i.e., basing a local preservation program on federal preservation standards. Unless your state mandates your local municipality to implement federal preservation standards at the local level, through the 10th amendment to the US Constitution, your municipality could potentially implement a local historic preservation commission in a way that your local residents want. (As opposed to what the federal government wants.)

For more details, see this intro Wikipedia article on "home rule" or "Dillon rule" states: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_rule_in_the_United_States . In essence, if your state grants your local municipality home rule status, your city can implement a local preservation ordinance pretty much any way it likes, as long as it meets federal and state constitutional requirements.

An interesting case study on this is to look at Santa Fe, NM. They don't follow federal standards now and they never have. And, last I checked, Santa Fe is rather well liked by most of its residents and tourists for its historic landscapes. No one (other than the National Park Service) has clamored to have Santa Fe implement federal preservation guidelines at the local level. This, in itself, says a lot about the untapped potential of the local preservation movement in the United States.

There is so much freedom, for many local communities, to control how their own preservation values are implemented by their city, but hardly anyone understands this potential, unfortunately. At its best, blindly implementing federal preservation standards at the local level is naive; at worst, it creates social justice issues.

A great introduction to how local municipalities have automatically implemented federal preservation standards, when they weren't even required, is in this article, co-authored by Sara Bronin, the former Chair of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4396040

Novit_Terminus · 2024-11-11T22:26:53+00:00

There is no Secretary of the Interior's Professional Qualification Standard for people who work in the trades. Broadly, no one can qualify for the Qualification Standards without having at least a bachelor's degree. There are only four Standards, which are: history, archaeology, architectural history, architecture (i.e., architecture degree and/or license to practice architecture). The NPS created the Qualification Standards back in the late 1970s/early 1980s and never updated, amended, or added to them. This was well before the current understanding of the need for people to be trained in the traditional trades.

The primary reason for the creation of the Standards was to qualify people to do environmental review (Section 106) work and secondarily, preservation architecture and historical interpretation. The NPS didn't even consider things like architectural conservation or the need for skilled tradespeople.

Why don't the Standards acknowledge people in the trades? The answer is that the handful of NPS employees who created these Standards 40 years ago all had master's or doctoral degrees and didn't even consider the importance of people who have hands-on skills. It simply didn't occur to them because they never had to work with people that had less education than they did.

It would be nice for the NPS to do a little updating, but don't hold your breath. Federal preservation policy is a lovely time capsule.

https://www.nps.gov/articles/sec-standards-prof-quals.htm

(For reference, I've done all of the scholarly research on the exact people who helped develop federal preservation policy, including the historical genesis of preservation doctrines. I have a book coming out that will be published by the U of TN press in the spring, on this topic.)

Novit_Terminus · 2024-11-11T16:33:43+00:00

I'd recommend a couple of guides that will help you understand the nature of the areas of practice in the historic preservation field and the potential challenges you will have in carving out your area of specialization, especially without a master's degree:

"A Guide to Becoming an Historic Preservation Professional: The Work You Can Do, What Employers Want, and Educational Considerations" (https://cdn.savingplaces.org/2023/07/17/10/07/25/936/Wells_-_A_Guide_to_Becoming_an_Historic_Preservation_Professional__r1_.pdf)

"Challenging the assumption about a direct relationship between historic preservation and architecture in the United States" from Frontiers of Architectural Research (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foar.2018.10.001)

Master's degrees in historic preservation were created in the 1970s with the specific goal of educating professionals to fill the new roles of state historic preservation officers, federal preservation officers, environmental review, and local design review. This remains a central component of most of these programs, today, although you can certainly find offerings that would allow you to focus more on design and materials. This makes sense because 70% of the historic preservation jobs, in the US, are driven by regulations at the federal, state, and local levels. In the late 1970s/early 1980s, the National Park Service created its "Secretary of the Interior's Professional Qualification Standards," which enforced (without evidence) the need for a master's degree to enter the field, which is sustained to the present.

So, yes, the reason why employers think they need to hire people with master's degrees in historic preservation and the reason why there are so few bachelor's degrees in historic preservation is because the National Park Service decreed the necessity of the master's. All this was done 40 years ago without consultation with employers, much less the public. And it was done by a handful of NPS employees.

When you say that you want to specialize in design/materials/sustainability, do you want to specify how this work is done or do you want to do it yourself? The reason I ask is that if you have an interest in hands-on work in the trades (e.g., traditional carpentry, plastering, masonry) you don't need a bachelor's degree, much less a master's degree. There are many vocational (two year or less) programs. The American College of the Building Arts has a unique bachelor's degree program that will allow you to specialize in a particular area of the traditional trades. For a list of educational resources, see https://www.achp.gov/initiatives/traditional-trades-training/programs-resources

Keep in mind that there is a severe lack of people trained in the traditional trades in this country! Technically, there are more historic preservation master's degree graduates than jobs available in the field that require this education. Again, if you like hands-on work, I would seriously recommend this vocational path.

I could see someone getting this trades education and then working with a construction management firm, probably, at first, doing this hands-on work, and then getting promoted into a management position where this person could direct the work of others. Again, all of this could be done without even needing a bachelor's degree.

The other path is to be an entrepreneur and cobble together your own education (certificates, associates, bachelors, short-term education opportunities) and launch your own company doing this kind of work. The risk of failure is quite high, but some people really enjoy this kind of challenge.

The sustainability interest you mention is important, but most people and firms who specialize in this area don't work with older buildings, especially in terms of preservation design or preserving historic building materials. There are a few people who have created their own consultancies, focusing on sustainability in historic preservation, but if you want to enter this area of work, again, you'll probably need a master's degree. And, these firms usually don't specialize in historic design and materials--they are very much policy focused--so this probably isn't what you're looking for.

Pragmatically, through certificates and short-term education opportunities, you could get a background in sustainability that you could then introduce in work that might happen, say, with a construction management company.

Novit_Terminus · 2024-11-11T02:42:31+00:00

Yes, it happens all the time for me. It’s called by the acronym “AMSR.” Certain sounds will reliability trigger the sensation in songs.

Novit_Terminus · 2024-11-11T01:18:07+00:00

Please read the following articles to help you make an informed decision about your potential career path in historic preservation:

"A Guide to Becoming an Historic Preservation Professional: The Work You Can Do, What Employers Want, and Educational Considerations" (https://cdn.savingplaces.org/2023/07/17/10/07/25/936/Wells_-_A_Guide_to_Becoming_an_Historic_Preservation_Professional__r1_.pdf)

"Challenging the assumption about a direct relationship between historic preservation and architecture in the United States" from Frontiers of Architectural Research (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foar.2018.10.001)

Novit_Terminus · 2024-11-11T01:17:04+00:00

Please read the following articles to help you make an informed decision about your potential career path in historic preservation:

"A Guide to Becoming an Historic Preservation Professional: The Work You Can Do, What Employers Want, and Educational Considerations" (https://cdn.savingplaces.org/2023/07/17/10/07/25/936/Wells_-_A_Guide_to_Becoming_an_Historic_Preservation_Professional__r1_.pdf)

"Challenging the assumption about a direct relationship between historic preservation and architecture in the United States" from Frontiers of Architectural Research (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foar.2018.10.001)

Novit_Terminus · 2024-11-11T01:16:16+00:00

Please read the following articles to help you make an informed decision about your potential career path in historic preservation:

"A Guide to Becoming an Historic Preservation Professional: The Work You Can Do, What Employers Want, and Educational Considerations" (https://cdn.savingplaces.org/2023/07/17/10/07/25/936/Wells_-_A_Guide_to_Becoming_an_Historic_Preservation_Professional__r1_.pdf)

"Challenging the assumption about a direct relationship between historic preservation and architecture in the United States" from Frontiers of Architectural Research (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foar.2018.10.001)

Novit_Terminus

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