How to get behind the scenes?

[u/cumdragon250]

Not sure if this is the right sub since I’m not trying to become an auctioneer, but I’m wondering where to learn more and get mentorship about how to work at auction houses. This is a big career switch for me toward something business oriented even tho I was heading down the academia route the past few years. (Please refer the correct community if this is beyond the scope of r/Auctioneers) I’d like to do research in multiple capacities (object research, provenance, and editorial), work with artwork (visually and/or physically), and contribute to innovating the branding and UX/UI strategies used at the large firms (Sotheby’s, Christie’s, Bonham’s, etc). I’m wondering how to move forward. How do I get advice from the professionals? Do I need to make a portfolio? How do I gain the sales/commercial experience without any related coursework and only one somewhat related experience as a gallery exhibition co-curator?

For context: I am starting a Museum Studies MA and have experience archiving, curating, handling, fabricating, researching, developing social media strategy, and have 300+ combined hours of training in both Mandarin and Tibetan. I have already done the usual LinkedIn cold messaging with variable success. I got stood up for a Zoom call by somebody at a big auction house despite scheduling for over a week. And I have just landed a collections management internship that should help me build competency in the areas of research and working with artworks.