Greetings,

Yesterday A. Nichelson wondered if, <the "dirty work" IS in fact being saved
for interns>.

I'd say that the "dirty work" is being SHARED with interns.

He/she goes on to state, <Shouldn't their experiences be similar to what
they might encounter as a museum professional?>  If anyone thinks that
being a museum professional doesn't include "dirty work" that person REALLY
should be involved in an internship to break that bubble.  (Or they ought
to read through the archives of this list!)

<how can we expect to increase interest in museum work?>  I'm sorry, that
is not the purpose of an internship.  Well, that may be YOUR purpose.

Being responsible for the trade shop exhibits at Mystic Seaport (cooper,
smith, sail loft, etc.), I am always dealing with the misconceptions folks
have about apprenticeships in the 19th century.  Dealing with it head-on in
staff training I ask, "What is the purpose of an appenticeship?"  The
response invariably is, "To learn skills."  To which I respond, "No, no,
no; the purpose of the apprenticeship was to provide free labor for the
master, in return for which, he agreed to teach the skills needed to
conduct the trade within a specified time period."

So much for the history lesson.  If museums could afford to get their work
done in other ways there would be far fewer internships.  Matching the
needs of the museum with the needs of an intern is one of the first
examples of the partnering that must take place for an internship to be
successful.

Our internship application deadline is passed, but if anyone would like to
know what is involved in internships at Mystic Seaport, please use the
following URL to view our intern webpage.  And yes, you'd get dirty.

http://www.mysticseaport.org/public/education/museum.studies.html

Edward

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Edward Baker
Supervisor of Interpretation
Mystic Seaport Museum
Box 6000
Mystic, CT  06355
(860)572-0711
[log in to unmask]
http://www.mysticseaport.org
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