Internships

As an intern in the education department at Reading Public Museum (RPM), I got to see what education outside of a classroom looked like. I learned how to create lesson plans for the various education programs offered; I created a tour program for the arboretum; I learned how to research grants and wrote a grant proposal; I wrote a curatorial label for a butterfly display; and I assisted in taking down an entire exhibit and packed it up for travel. All of this was outside of my wheelhouse and it felt daunting at the time, especially because my boss gave no direction on how to get these projects done, but I soon learned that was the point. I learned how to communicate and bounce ideas off of my co-workers so I had an idea of what they were looking for. I had to go back and revise almost everything I came up with, but it taught me that it’s okay if you don’t get it right the first time. It’s a learning curve, but I did it and I gained new skills along the way. What I enjoyed most about this internship was that they had me doing practical jobs that contributed to the everyday running of the department and I felt like I was a part of their team. The most satisfying experience I had was when I was assisting with one of the programs and watched a group of children having fun while learning from the lessons I put together for the program.

My internship went so well that I am now employed by RPM. The director of education reached out and helped me get my foot in the door because she believes I am a good fit for her department. RPM requires a bachelor’s degree to be an educator, so she connected me with the facilities department because they do not require a degree. I’ve quickly learned that the facilities department is what allows everything else in the museum to run smoothly. In my job position I am responsible for maintenance and repairs, groundskeeping, janitorial, event setups, and exhibit swaps. Just like my internship, all of this was outside my wheelhouse, but I am learning and gaining new skills along the way. When I do finally get my degree, the director of education has already expressed how happy she will be to transfer me to her department and employ me as an educator.

            When I came to KU, I never saw myself doing an internship, but I realized how important it is to get a head start in professional work experience. Every semester, the KU Career Center hosts the Internship and Job Fair where representatives from different businesses and companies set up information tables and talk to students. I saw RPM had a table and that was how I found out about the internship. Talking to them and giving them my resumé was one of the best decisions I have ever made because it has opened up doors for me and my future!

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."  

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!”

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.