Fort Edmonton Park claims to be the largest living history museum in Canada. This claim, often disputed between fans of Heritage Park and FEP comes down to your definition of one thing: more land, or more buildings. Either way, FEP is an impressive place to visit, and even more impressive to work at.Working at FEP has been a longtime dream of mine. One of those "How do you even get that job?" kind of places. Turns out, getting a job there is about as tricky as most people think. However, if you are thinking of working there, or another living history museum, here are some tips and tricks that will likely help you! Now, I don't work in HR for the City of Edmonton, so obviously I can't guarantee anything. It's incredibly competitive. In my year, rumor had it that over 300 people applied, 50 were interviewed, and just 5 people were hired. Just keep that in mind!
1. Connections
It goes without saying that who you know is incredibly important. I was lucky enough to know absolutely nobody who worked in museums when I decided to leave high school education, so I had to build my connections from the ground up. Difficult? Yes. Impossible? Almost, but thankfully not quite.
It started with cold calls and emails (terrifying!) which amounted in a lot of people who never got backed to me, a few who outright rejected me, and just one who agreed to meet with me. But that one person was a former Coordinator at FEP, and by the grace of God, he saw something in me that urged him to help me out. So he sent an email on my behalf and got me an interview to volunteer at FEP. Yea. It took an insider to even get an interview to volunteer! Thankfully, that interview went well, and they agreed to take me on as an (unpaid) intern.
2. Education
I have two Bachelor Degrees. One in History, and one in Secondary Education. These were both pivotal in providing me with enough education to get an interview. I was hired for the second level of employee at FEP, so most of my direct co-workers were either mid-degree, but had a few years under their belt at FEP, or were in their first year at FEP, but already had a university degree completed.3. Experience
Due to my experience at FEP during my internship, I was able to build connections and experience within the Park itself. I was incredibly lucky to have an incredible supervisor for my internship. He was smart, patient, and completely willing to (kindly) tell me how I could improve. He gave me the opportunity to participate in a Blanket Ceremony, do research on past Edmontonians, and granted me behind-the-scenes access to the park. This experience paired with my time volunteering at the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village, and my time spent as a teacher, meant that I had skills with the public, with taking content and creating connections with the public, and experience with FEP itself.
4. Talents
5. Application
The application process is rather complicated. Interpreter positions are hired on the City of Edmonton website, not the FEP website. Once you create a profile, you will be asked to create a resume and cover letter. Make sure your cover letter points out your talents, education, and prior experience which is relevant, but also ensure that your cover letter is no longer than a page. I've heard they simply throw away the cover letters that are more than a page because they receive hundreds of applicants. You will also be asked some screening questions, which will give you a good idea of whether or not you stand a chance. If you say "no" to any of those questions, chances are that HR won't even see your resume. However, if you lie, they will find out in the interview and that is really not a good thing to have happen.
6. Interview
Honestly, the interviews were somewhat odd. They were group interviews, so we all gathered in a room with some members of management (if I remember correctly, I believe that there were six applicants, and four or five staff present). We all went around the room and had to share a 3-minute presentation which we had prepared. The point of these is to ensure that you have the ability to share knowledge through interpretation. Some people brought ukeleles and taught management a song (this is a common program at FEP, so this works great). Others had us play a board game (difficult with only 3 minutes to play it), others did a dramatic performance (people who did that in my group weren't hired, but I assume that this is not always the case), while others such as myself did an interpretive lesson on a topic. I picked the history of Earl Grey Tea in the British Colonies. I brought in samples of tea for people to smell and told them the story of Earl Grey Tea and how it came to be named and become so popular.Afterward, I was pulled into an interview with two members of management, where they asked me questions related to my historical skills, language abilities, professionalism, work ethic, and so on. I was also asked to interpret an object to them which was intentionally chosen due to the fact that very few people will likely know what it is. Turns out, it wasn't a problem that I didn't know what my object was. I just made up a first-person story about being a blacksmith's wife and trying to sell my husband's new invention even though I didn't know what it was! Thankfully, they actually seemed to really like that. I am sure other people interpreted this in third-person, but for some reason, I chose not to.
I was contacted within a week by phone to be offered the position, which obviously I accepted. It was one of the best summers of my life, and I am so thankful for the opportunity I had to work at FEP. My sincere hope is to work there again one day. It was honestly such fun, and I was so proud to be a part of the team.
7. Costuming
After I was hired, I was sent to costuming to be fitted. I was hired to play a Persona (The Widow), so I received three outfits, while most other ladies on my street received two. My Widow's Dress was a black and grey skirt with lovely pick-ups, and a black and grey top with a black velvet hat, complete with meshed bird-cage. I then also received my Farm Dress, which was a lovely shade of poop brown, and unbearably hot to wear. The only good thing about that outfit was that it I only required 5 minutes for my low-bun hair in the morning. In contrast, my Sunday Best was a lovely two-piece with a sage skirt and matching sage and false-front cream blouse, complete with tuxedo-tails on the back. I loved it dearly, despite the 45 minutes of hairstyling required to wear this outfit properly.
Yes, we do get "authentic" underwear. I recieved a chemise, a corset, a bum-roll, and a lobster cage. The latter two were not worn with the Farm Dress, and yes having a bustle (lobster tail) did make me feel like an Ugly Step-Sister from Cinderella.
Conclusion
So, that's my experience getting hired on at Fort Edmonton Park. Hopefully, it provides you with a little insight into the hiring process of this, and potentially other, living history museums. I have never worked for the City of Edmonton HR, so all observations are my own and are based solely on my own experiences. Policies and practices change, and I in no way claim to fully understand why some people are, or aren't, hired. If you have any questions, I'll do my best to answer them based on my experience, but again, each season is new and different, and much happens in the hiring process that hired persons are not privy to. I in no way promise that my techniques will guarantee a job. It's just what worked for me!
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