Internship Title: National Anthropological Archives Reference Internship.
Description: The Smithsonian Institution’s National Anthropological Archives (NAA) is offering a six-month paid internship to a qualified student. This is an opportunity to work as a reference intern in a small, but busy, archives during the spring semester of 2015 and into early summer. The intern will assist the reference archivist in providing both on-site and remote reference services to researchers, including answering reference questions, monitoring the NAA’s research room, and completing various tasks and projects that improve access to NAA’s collections.
The intern may have the opportunity to tailor these projects to his or her own learning objectives as the NAA hosts many diverse researchers and houses a wide variety of collections in various formats and levels of organization, which may pose challenges from both preservation and access perspectives.
The internship experience is an opportunity to learn – through hands-on training and one-on-one engagement with knowledgeable staff and a variety of researchers – how the theory and principles encountered in archives coursework translate into real-world archival and reference practice.
Qualifications: Applicants should be current students or recent graduates from an archives program and have completed or be enrolled in an introductory course in archival principles and practices. A cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher is generally expected of graduate student interns. Proficiency in MS Word and Excel is also required. Preference is given to applicants with strong research, writing, organizational, and written and oral communication skills. This position also requires attention to detail, and professionalism. Students interested in anthropology and Native American archival issues are encouraged to apply.
Hours and Stipend: The internship runs from January through June for a total of approximately 300 hours and a stipend of $3,500. January through May hours are flexible and may be scheduled to accommodate the student’s coursework, but must be completed on site during the NAA’s research room hours, 9:00 am – 4:30 pm, Tuesdays-Fridays. For June 1-12, the schedule will require 40 hours per week for the special event: the Breath of Life Archival Institute for Indigenous Languages.
Location: The National Anthropological Archives is located in the Smithsonian’s Museum Support Center in Suitland, MD. The center is a 15-minute walk from the Suitland Metro Station on the Green Line and is also accessible via free shuttle from the National Mall. Free parking is also available.
To Apply: Please send a resume and cover letter indicating your background and learning objectives to Adam Minakowski at minakowskia(at)si.edu before Monday, December 22.
Archives Gig 