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Museum Studies Internship ProgramInternship Sponsors Information INTRODUCTION
The George Washington University Museum Studies Internship Program offers Museum Studies graduate students the opportunity to apply knowledge learned through formal instruction in a museum environment. It is the opinion of the Museum Studies Committee that such an experience is intrinsically educational and at the same time provides the best bridge to professional development.
The Museum Studies Internship Program welcomes partnerships with a wide variety of museums and cultural institutions. By the time any of our graduate students are ready for internships they have already proven their abilities in the classroom, and many have some practical museum training prior to entering graduate school. For these reasons most internship sponsors find that our students contribute significantly to their organizations. Students in this program are most interested in internships related to Collections Management, Museum Administration, Exhibition Design and Development. However, internships in Museum Education, Historic House Interpretation, Preventative Conservation, and other areas within the museum profession are also welcome. If you are considering hosting an intern from our program please take a few minutes to review the Internship Information Packet. This packet outlines the internship requirements our students must meet in order to receive academic credit for an internship. The packet also includes information on establishing and maintaining a partnership with our program. If you have an internship listing you would like to advertise please send a brief description along with application instructions to the Museum Studies Internship Coordinator at muse@gwu.edu. Appropriate internships will be posted on our student listserv. Internships are a very important part of our students' education, and they are only possible through the cooperation of dedicated professionals. We appreciate organizations’ willingness to participate in this important learning process.
Six Easy Steps To Becoming An Internship Sponsor
Frequently Asked Questions: Who selects the students for placement in an internship? The sponsoring institution selects the student for placement in an internship. If requested, the Museum Studies Program will provide additional information on the applicant pool. Does the timing of the internship need to correspond with the university’s academic calendar? Students must register for internship credits in the fall, spring, or summer semesters. Although these semesters have definite start and end dates, an internship does not need to correspond with these dates. How long should the internship last? Students must intern for 260 hours for a three-credit internship. How does the student receive academic credit for the internship? In order for a student to receive academic credit for an internship the department must approve the internship. This is done once the initial paperwork is returned to the Internship Coordinator. The student must also register for internship credits and pay tuition. The Museum Studies Department assigns a final grade for the internship based on a mid-term evaluation and a final evaluation from the supervisor and a final project from the student. Do interns in the Museum Studies Program expect pay? The vast majority of museum internships in which our students participate are unpaid. However since our department typically advertises more internship opportunities than our student body can fill, providing an internship stipend will make your position more competitive. Do sponsoring organizations receive any compensation for hosting a Museum Studies Intern? Many organizations are eligible for tuition remission for sponsoring a Museum Studies internship. These payments are made to help defray the instructional costs of the internship and typically amount to fifty percent (50%) of the internship tuition paid by the student to the university. As of fall 2005 tuition remission for a three-credit internship is $1386.00 I have other questions regarding the MSTD Internship Program. Who do I contact? Please send all of your internship related questions to the Internship Coordinator at muse@gwu.edu.
Past Internship Sponsors A selected list of past internship sponsors appears below. Also check out our Current Students page, which features comments from student interns on their recent internship experiences.
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