I think we can all agree that a love for a particular field whether it
be History, Anthropology, Art History or Education is not "enough" and
that other transferable skills are highly desired. As someone who has
personally supervised over 300 high school, undergraduate, graduate and
postgraduate interns, I agree with most of what has already been
expressed.  HOWEVER, in response to Adam most museums are not staffed
with folks who have the leisure time to invest in someone who is not
sure about their possible direction.  The best internships are achieved
when expectations are clearly articulated on both sides.  Even though
the student may not be sure about their career trajectory a bit of
research, an informational interview of someone in the field, a
shadowing experience can help them articulate what they want to learn
and a direction they might want to pursue.  In museums we want more than
someone who can just "do the job well" then leave.  Maybe it's just me,
but I want to chose someone who may be considering museums as a career
and therefore shows interest and curiosity in their surroundings and
what we have to offer .  We are not asking for life-time commitments.  

 

I just interviewed five graduating high school students for a paid
summer internship.  They were all bright, enthusiastic, had great
recommendations and were amazing achievers in and outside of school.  I
eliminated two because even though they were enthusiastic about the
field they showed no interest in the subject area we covered, were not
sure what they wanted to pursue in college (three or four possibilities
were mentioned) and I truly believe they just wanted it so it would look
good on their resume.  

 

It was a difficult decision for the last three but I chose a candidate
whose interests corresponded to the projects and tasks that I had lined
up for this summer.  I realize that being in a larger museum in an urban
area, I can sometimes be more selective but I feel if I invest 50
percent of effort into someone I want to get 100 percent back.

 

Dawn Scher Thomae

Milwaukee Public Museum

 

From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Adam MacPharlain
Sent: Tuesday, April 17, 2012 12:03 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Is a love of history enough for interns?

 

Good morning Christa and all,

 

While I am not in a position to hire or supervise interns, I am an
emerging museum professional with my internships in the not-so-distant
past. My undergraduate degree is in Apparel Design, and during my time
at university I completed two internships: one in the fashion industry
of NYC and the other at a state historical society working primarily
with historical costume. I bring this up because, at that time, I was a
student who "loved history" but had no idea that I would end up in the
heritage sector.

 

Some of these interns you are working with may well start off unsure of
what path they want to take, and yes, some may be there for perceived
fun. An internship is (or should be) an opportunity to discover and hone
our passions. If an intern decides that museum work is not for them, so
be it. My opinion is, if they do the job well during their internship,
that's all you can ask for.

 

Hope this is an encouragement to all of you out their supervising
interns!

 

Best,

 

Adam MacPharlain

859.200.2320

[log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> 

 

	 

	From: Christa McCay <[log in to unmask]>
	To: [log in to unmask] 
	Sent: Tuesday, April 17, 2012 11:09 AM
	Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Is a love of history enough for interns?

	
	Hello All,
	
	My question is about interns.  After having recently
interviewing over 20 interns for the summer semester (fyi, we are a
staff of 4 and will have more interns then staff at the Museum this
summer), I have begun to feel that potential interns think that a love
of history is enough to get them a position.  Is it really enough?
	I have begun to feel that no it?s not.  Often times they don?t
have the experience with basic computer programs or with graphic design
programs (mainly exhibits and marketing interns).  I understand with
this economy getting an internship and experience is the best for their
resume and for getting a job after college.  Also I understand that
people need to start their experience somewhere,but most of these
students don?t want to be in the Museum world when they graduate and
often times assume that they will get to ?play? with cool artifacts all
day.  We all know that the truth is, there is a lot of paperwork
involved with maintaining a collection along with data entry, both of
which are not glamorous or very exciting.
	I know that our job is to teach interns but like many of us, we
are juggling multiple tasks to make up for the positions that are
currently empty and can?t be filled due to budget.  Our teaching and
training time is limited.  I do want to have interns with a passion for
history but also a passion to work in Museums.  I sometimes feel like my
time was wasted trying to teach and train someone who just wanted to do
this for fun.
	
	I am sorry if this sounds like whining or sour grapes but I
would like to know from others if a love of history is enough?
	
	Sincerely,
	
	
	Christa McCay, M.H.P.
	Registrar
	Marietta Museum of History
	1 Depot Street, Ste. 200
	Marietta, GA 30060
	770-794-5726
	
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