Smithsonian Institution Archives Internship

The Smithsonian Institution Archives offers internships in archival methods, institutional history, oral history, history of science, collections management, collections care (preservation and conservation), digitial preservation and curation, and electronic records management. The Archives Division serves as a repository for documents of historic value about the Smithsonian, as the official memory of the Smithsonian and as a resource for scholars. Internships are provided for arrangement and description of institutional records, personal papers, and photographic and other collections in special media; encoding of finding aids for its website; digitization of collections; and conducting records surveys and developing records disposition schedules. These internships are considered apprenticeships under the tutelage of an archivist. The Institutional History Division conducts research on the history of the Smithsonian, prepares scholarly and popular publications, exhibits, lectures, electronic and paper guides to specialized research areas, and records oral history and video history interviews. Internships provide an overview of the research and dissemination activities of an institutional history program, with a focus on specific topics. Prior course work in American history or the sciences is desirable, though not a prerequisite. The Collections Care Division carries out preservation of collections in paper, photograph, and audio-visual formats. Preservation internships provide hands-on experience in preservation techniques, working with nineteenth and twentieth century Smithsonian records and personal papers of prominent administrators and scientists. The internships emphasize integrated preservation management, considering issues such as proper environment, housing, handling, and preservation reproduction of records. Conservation internships are occasionally available for current students of masters programs in conservation or post-graduates. The Digital Services Division preserves and manages the digital collections of the Archives. This work spans a wide range of activities including: digitization of photographs, documents, sound, and moving images; preservation and curation of original electronic records; facilitating access to digital collections; and digital repository management. All internships provide hands-on experience and exposure to key issues in archival digital collections such as digital obsolescence, authenticity and provenance, conservation, and sustainability. Interns will work directly with records from the Archives’ collections in digital and other formats.

Contact Phone: (202) 633-5906

Contact Email: ferranter@si.edu

Apply Through: SOLAA