Internships

Josh Hudak, BSED-SS major, History minor and History department tutor, recently shared his experience of interning at the District Attorney's office at the Luzerne County Courthouse: "During my time at the courthouse, I performed a variety of tasks such as watching court, moving documents, organizing documents, scanning documents, and even did administrative work to help close cases. I particularly enjoyed watching court, where I witnessed everything from simple hearings to complex jury trials.  I also talked to a wide array of people who helped me better understand our legal system. This included assistant district attorneys, police officers, and detectives. Overall, I found this internship to be very educational and beneficial."  

Josh Hudak head and shoulders

Internship Stories - Josh Hudak

Brittany Le Roux, History major, recently shared with us her experience as an intern at the Moravian Historical Society during the summer of 2023: “At Moravian Historical Society, I got a chance to understand what it is like to be a museum curator. Each day presented a new opportunity with new responsibilities. I played a part in helping install new exhibitions, helped with a summer camp for kids, and was fortunate enough to handle artifacts in their collection that dated as far back as the 1700s. I learned a ton about the Whitefield House in Nazareth, PA where the Moravian Historical Society is currently housed and has been since 1857. I got to learn about not only Moravian culture, but also the culture of those they interacted with during their extensive mission work. I gained an abundance of knowledge about the surrounding areas of Nazareth and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. This was a great experience to see what the day-to-day looks like for those who work in a museum and a chance to study the local history that surrounds me!”

Woman student standing in front of historical building

Internship Stories Brittany Le Roux

Julivette Torres created this video as part of her summer '20 internship at lancasterhistory.org.

https://www.lancasterhistory.org/exhibitions/digital-exhibitions/urban-renewal-lancaster/

Julivette applied to the internship program over spring break 2020 and was accepted. However, with the rise of COVID-19, the internship was turned into a virtual experience and reduced from three months to five weeks. As part of the internship, LancasterHistory provided instruction about the museum industry. For three days a week, Julivette logged onto her virtual classes through LancasterHistory to learn about departments within museums, such as marketing and development, and to hear from industry professional guest speakers from other museums, such as from the 9/11 Memorial and Museum in New York City and the Winterthur Museum in Delaware. On days between lectures, she worked on her own project. With nine interns in the program, each worked on separate projects to further develop a program that was already in the works at the museum: Lancaster in the 60s. She focused on two aspects to create two separate digital exhibits: urban renewal, specifically in the 1960s, and the Clair Brothers who had a huge impact on the entertainment industry, especially in the 1960s and 70s. The urban renewal project focused on how redevelopment and the overall layout of Lancaster affected the gentrification of the city. According to Julivette, the federal policy of urban renewal gave cities funding intended to “clean up” their impoverished areas, but instead, these policies caused a loss in housing for many minority groups and the demolition of many of the city’s historical buildings, including Lancaster’s Capitol Theatre.  

Julivette Torres standing outside in front of greenery

Internship Stories - Julivette Torres

Austin Crowley rocking on the porch of Landis Valley Farm

Internship Stories - Austin Crowley

“At Landis Valley Farm and Village Museum, I worked as an interpreter in an 1870s Victorian farmhouse furnished to replicate 1912. My responsibilities mirrored those of a tour guide; when visitors arrived at the house, I would give them an overview of the house’s architecture, furnishings, and the family who used to live there. This experience supplemented my learning in multiple ways. Of course, I learned about Pennsylvania German history and culture being there, but I also learned a lot about the late 19th and early 20th centuries since I was always surrounded by artifacts of those times. Being able to converse with fellow interpreters and museum visitors about these time periods allowed me to build my perspective on how life worked for rural farmers during this time. This internship reinforced the lesson that experiencing history is one of the best ways to study it.”

Clipart of a bullhorn with a text bubble that says "interns wanted"

We suggest that everyone take an internship if possible. Future employers often look for some amount of experience, and having an internship on your resume will show both experience and initiative.

Dr. Michael Gabriel is our Internship Coordinator. His office is LY 115.

For more information, there is an Internship Binder in the Judy Groff Study Center - LY 151. 

Here are some examples of places where students have interned: 

  • Pennsbury Manor
  • Valley Forge National Park
  • Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center at KU
  • Kutztown Area Historical Society
  • PA Heritage Foundation - PA State Archives
  • Berks History Center
  • Pine Grove Historical Society
  • Landis Valley Museum
  • Cumberland County Historical Society
  • Cranbury Arts Council
  • Representative Joseph Sestak District Office
  • Eisenhower National Historic Site

The Department of History has an Experiential Fund established to help students with an upcoming internship afford expenses that may be incurred during that internship. These expenses might be travel time, software, or something special you need to use to complete your duties for that internship.

If you have an approved upcoming internship and need help with expenses, please fill out an  Experiential Fund application here.