How to become a Heritage Site Conservator
Official Chinese title (2022 occupational classification): 不可移动文物保护专业人员
Assesses the condition of immovable heritage such as historic buildings and sites, studies their materials, techniques and causes of damage, researches conservation materials and techniques, and monitors heritage and its environment.
Main tasks
- Assessing the condition of heritage, surveying damage and researching its causes
- Inspecting damage and hidden risks on site, recording, surveying and capturing digital images, gathering information and writing survey reports
- Researching the materials and techniques used to build heritage and assessing its value
- Researching and applying monitoring, assessment and control techniques for heritage and its environment
- Researching and applying conservation materials and techniques
- Writing designs for conservation projects and guiding the work to plan
- Drawing up heritage conservation plans and guiding their implementation
- Evaluating conservation results and keeping up monitoring
- Preparing construction plans and leading the organisation, technical management and quality control of conservation works on site
- Preparing supervision plans and overseeing the technical management, heritage safety and supervision of conservation works
Ways in
- University: Arts & Humanities degrees, Offered by 102 universities in China Related undergraduate subject classes in the Ministry of Education catalogue (2025): History (0601); majors such as Cultural Relics Conservation Technology, History, World History, Archaeology, Cultural Heritage and Museology, Foreign Languages and Foreign History. Matched to the occupation by Peernovo.
- Vocational majors: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Grotto Temple Conservation Technology (550408). Vocational major 550408 Grotto Temple Conservation Technology (石窟寺保护技术), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Cultural Heritage Conservation Engineering Qualification.
- National qualification: National professional qualification: Cultural Heritage Conservation Engineering Qualification. A national qualification that shows your level; it is not required to work. Listed in the national vocational qualifications catalogue (国家职业资格目录, 2021) as Cultural Heritage Conservation Engineering Qualification (文物保护工程从业资格), run by National Cultural Heritage Administration. Peernovo links it to this occupation.
Pay · AI and this job
- Median pay in China: CN¥83,000 a year (2025).
- Middle half: CN¥58,000 to CN¥131,000. One in ten earn less than CN¥43,200 and one in ten more than CN¥205,800.
- This is the figure for the mid group News, Publishing and Cultural Professionals, not for this job alone.
- National figure: wage prices of enterprise employees from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) enterprise pay survey. The public sector and the self-employed are not covered.
- Guangzhou only: median CN¥112,069 a year (2025), middle half CN¥78,750 to CN¥156,000.
- This is the figure for the mid group News, Publishing and Cultural Professionals, not for this job alone.
- Generative AI could change some tasks in this job, by the ILO's global estimate.
Who does this work
- The census group News, Publishing and Cultural Professionals holds 0.17% of everyone employed in China; 61.1% of its workers are women (2020 Census).
- 53.1% are under 35, 42.4% are 35 to 54 and 4.5% are 55 or older. The middle age band is 30 to 34.
- Census figures for the whole mid group (2020 long-form sample), not for this job alone.
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Questions people ask
How do I become a Heritage Site Conservator?
Ways in include: Arts & Humanities degrees; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Grotto Temple Conservation Technology (550408).
How much does a Heritage Site Conservator earn in China?
Across China, the median pay of enterprise employees is CN¥83,000 a year (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS), 2025). The public sector and the self-employed are not covered. It is the figure for the mid group News, Publishing and Cultural Professionals. In Guangzhou alone it is CN¥112,069 a year (2025).
Will AI change the work of a Heritage Site Conservator?
Generative AI could change some tasks in this job, by the ILO's global estimate.
Sources
- Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS): 2025 enterprise pay survey information: wage prices of enterprise employees by occupation mid group, and digital occupations (P10 to P90 annual CNY) (2025 (published 2026-07-08)), retrieved 5 October 2026
- Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau: Guangzhou 2025 labour market wage prices (P10 to P90 annual CNY by occupation) (2025 (enterprise pay survey)), retrieved 4 October 2026
- National Bureau of Statistics of China: China Population Census Yearbook 2020, long-form tables 4-6 and 4-7 (employed by occupation mid group, sex, age) (2020 Census long form (10% sample)), retrieved 4 October 2026
- International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
Sources: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition, public consultation draft), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Bureau of Statistics; Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, 2025 enterprise pay survey information; Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, 2025 labour market wage prices; National Bureau of Statistics of China (www.stats.gov.cn), 2020 Population Census yearbook; Ministry of Education, vocational education major profiles (2022 revision) and undergraduate major catalogue (2025); Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, national vocational qualifications catalogue (2021); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Figures processed by Peernovo. English text, translations and the matching of occupations to ISCO-08, majors, degree fields and qualifications by Peernovo.
Descriptions and tasks are Peernovo's own words, written from the facts in the Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition). Job titles and work types are the classification's own.
Updated 5 October 2026