Internships
Archaeology

Internships

Internships are an excellent way for History majors to explore careers in various fields, including those related to historical study. A few internships pay a salary, some pay a small stipend to help cover living expenses during the internships; most pay nothing. In all cases, however, a good internship provides invaluable experience. That is especially the case for students who wish to go on to a career in what is called "public history", that is the many venues in which the public is exposed to the fruits of historical research. This field includes areas such as museum management and curatorship, historic preservation, archival work, the creation of documentaries, even consultancies for Hollywood movies. These are just some of the possibilities. For more information on public history, consult the Public History Resource Center.

MUW students can, with the approval of the department chair, arrange appropriate internships for history credit. There are many possibilities. If you see nothing of interest below, please feel free to contact the department chair, Professor Michael Burger.

General lists of history-related internships are found at the following sites:

• www.internships-usa.com/history/history061.htm
• www.efn.org/~acd/Intern.html
• www.virginia.edu/publichistory/internChart.html
• www.archives.gov/careers/internships/libraries.html

Museums are just one of the kinds of institutions offering internships involving historical work. The American Association of Museums lists just some of the museums in your area.

In Mississippi, the following institution has an established internship program with information on its website.

• Institute of Southern Jewish Life (Jackson)

Other Mississippi institutions, some without formal internships, have expressed interest in MUW history majors interning with them by special arrangement. Please contact Professor Burger for more information.

• The Billups-Garth Archives (Columbus)
• The Cottonlandia Museum (Greenwood)
• Winterville Mounds Park and Museum
• The International Museum of Muslim Cultures (Jackson)
• Vicksburg National Military Park
• Union County Heritage Museum (New Albany)
• Mississippi University for Women Archives
• Jacqueline House (Vicksburg)
• Philadelphia-Neshoba Museum
• Mississippi Armed Forces Museum (Camp Shelby)

Of course, many institutions outside the state offer internships to history majors. Here are just a few of them.

• American Antiquarian Society (Worcester, MA)
• Institute for Humane Studies (Fairfax, VA)
• NASA History Division (Washington, DC)
• The Naval Historical Center (Washington, DC)
• History Associates, Incorporated (Rockville, MD)
• Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, NY) - most, but not all, positions require a background in art history
• The National Archives (Washington, DC)
• The Corwin House, aka the "Witch House" (Salem, MA)
• Goodhue County Historical Society (Red Wing, MN)
• Presidential Libraries (around the country)
• Colonial Williamsburg (VA)
• Center for Legislative Archives (Washington, DC)
• Holocaust Memorial Museum (Washington, DC)
• Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies (Washington, DC)
• The Smithsonian Institution (Washington, DC)
• The National Building Museum (Washington, DC)

Archaeology

Interested in archaeology? You can gain important practical experience, as well as instruction, by volunteering to work on a dig, either here or abroad. Volunteers with experience sometimes move on to paid positions on digs. MUW students have excavated a Native American site in Mississippi and a medieval monastery in Greece. One student went on to a career as a professional archaeologist. To volunteer for digs around the world, see the listings of the Archaeological Institute of America, or see the department chair for more information.

Mike Renacker (MUW, History, 1995) holds up
an arrowhead recovered by the archaeological
unit he supervises for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Photos: M. Burger