Internship Opportunities
The History Internship (HIST 1900) provides a select number of history majors with the opportunity to enroll for university credits in history by combining academic training and practical work experience in museums and institutions outside the university. Working for a minimum of 10 hours per week, students will be required to arrange, with the help of the history department advisor, to have a history faculty sponsor and external onsite supervisor. It is a S/N course, and assessment will be based on both academic and professional criteria.
By exposure to and work in museums, archives, or historical sites, students get the chance to develop the professional skills of a historian and explore careers. Internships allow history majors to work in areas of archival management, helping to organize, process, and describe historical artifacts and documents. Also, students can serve as researchers, helping to authenticate materials or creating programmatic research such as brochures and museum exhibits. Previously, interns have worked in a variety of areas, including conducting oral history interviews of Italian American immigrants of Pittsburgh, designing exhibits of material culture of the 1950s, developing children's educational programs, and publishing articles in professional history journals.
Students must have a minimum of 36 credits and a QPA of 3.0 to be considered for a history internship. The first step is to see the undergraduate advisor in the History Department to discuss their possibilities. Interested students must plan ahead as internships are competitive and the process must begin at least a month ahead of registration for the following term. Internships are available for fall and spring terms only.
- Internship Requirements
- Internship contract (available from advisor)
- A commitment of a minimum of 10 hours per week at the site of work
- Regular meetings with your supervisor in the Department of History
- A professional journal documenting your academic and professional experience submitted by the student upon completion
- History Internship Program: Guidelines for the Professional Journal Requirement
As a History intern, you must submit a typed professional journal or log of your experience to your faculty advisor. The journal should include:
- a description of the internship including duties, environment, methodologies and interpretations of the work and your role (do not simply recount the happenings of the day);
- entry dates;
- an academic section in which you describe the academic experience including what you have learned about a historical period or issue or how and/or how this experience has shed light on your previous studies;
- a section that deals with the professional experience of the internship (administrative, managerial or however this relates to your particular activities); and
- a section at the end of the journal in which you reflect on the experience and how it has contributed to your view of history and career goals.
Still not sure what to do? Then stop by your advisor's office in 3711 Posvar Hall to take a look at the several examples on file.
NB: The professional journal MUST be handed in to the faculty advisor to complete the internship.
Career in History
While many students major in history or simply express a deep interest in the field, they are unable to see the enormous range of career possibilities in history. That range increases even further if you have enhanced your degree with language skills, internships, certificate programs, and multiple majors and minors. You are only limited by your imagination!
- A Career in History: What do I do with a history major?
History majors can consider graduate history programs with different specializations, offering degrees in areas such as archives, historic preservation, media, public policy, and museum studies. A major in history provides an excellent foundation for students planning to do advanced work in other fields too, such as anthropology, business, communications, economics, education, information and library sciences, law, medical sciences, museum studies, and political science—to name just a few.
And for those students who do not wish to pursue an advanced degree, the knowledge, writing skills, and analytical skills developed as a history major prepare students to work in a variety of fields, including information technology, advertising, insurance, media, museums, research institutions, travel, and public relations, among others. Or, put another way, graduates of history can transfer their skills and interests into nonprofit, public, government, and private sector careers.
To help students find and take advantage of all these opportunities, the History department, in collaboration with the Career Development and Placement Services, has launched a new initiative. This is History 0010, Professional Development for History Major and Minors. It is a one-credit, S/NC, 11-week course that covers such topics as resume writing, cover letters, networking, interviewing, attending a job fair, preparing for a job fair, and much more.
So when students ask what they can do with a history major, as an advisor I respond, "What CAN’T you do with a history major?"
- Select Career Resources
History 0010
This is our new initiative that works closely with the Career Development Placement Services to prepare our majors and minors for graduate school and/or finding a job that makes the most of the skills they have gained as a History major. This class will be offered every term.What can I do with a History Major?
Click to find out about some of the options you have as a History major for careers.Office of Career Development and Placement Assistance
Students are encouraged to take advantage of the resources available at Placement and Career Services, located in 224 WPU. Students have the opportunity to speak and work with a career advisor with experience in specialized fields, such as history. In addition, the office provides students with workshops and events that help in the career and job search.The American Historical Association
Offering resources on both professional and teaching concerns, this site is the best starting point for those interested in careers in history.
