In Preparation for the Future
Sarah Goldberg '18, National Museum of American History
Major:
Internship title:
Curatorial intern.
How I got this internship:
I got this internship by networking with a family member/personal connection.
What I do, day to day:
I’m working for a curator in the division of medicine and science, so a lot of my time goes into research projects based on our incredible collections. I’m currently looking into the history of curanderismo (Mexican folk healing), as well as doing object-based research for our Chevalier Jackson collection of medical instruments. When I’m not deep in early 20th century surgical catalogues or reading up on the many scholarly theories behind traditional ecological knowledge, I’ve also begun the early primary source research for my senior thesis. With the support of my supervisor at the museum and my thesis advisor at Dickinson, I’ve been able to utilize the unparalleled resources at the nearby Library of Congress to further understand the nature of black progressivism at the turn of the century through a study of the prohibition movement in Atlanta, Georgia.
Other internships:
Many of my past internship experiences have actually taken place on campus. As a freshman, I interned for the Dickinsonia Project, an online museum chronicling the history of the college. Under the supervision of Assistant Professor of History, Emily Pawley, I researched, authored and published a web exhibit on the anti-Vietnam War protests that shook the campus in 1970. During my sophomore fall semester, I worked in the college archives as an intern for the LGBT Center of Central Pennsylvania’s History Project, where I conducted oral histories of prominent LGBT community members and curated an exhibit for the Waidner-Spahr library on regional responses to the HIV/AIDS crisis. During my sophomore spring semester, I worked as a research assistant for Professor Stein in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, compiling and digitizing bibliographical data to create a searchable research database of Latin American Soccer fiction as a tool for both future scholarship and educational use. Finally, I spent the last summer on campus, where I worked for Associate Professor of History, Matthew Pinsker’s House Divided Project, co-curating an online exhibit, generating digital content and teaching resources, and developing the House Divided Studio’s augmented reality technology. The chance to deepen my academic focus through meaningful research opportunities has been a crucial part of my Dickinson experience.
Most valuable part of this experience:
One of the best parts of working at an institution like NMAH is the packed schedule of special events, research colloquiums, training opportunities and film screenings that interns always have access to. Every day is a little bit different! My supervisor will also take the interns to many of her meetings both within the curatorial division and outside of our department so that we can appreciate the exciting work done in conservation, exhibit production, object processing and registration, photography, development and more. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to get a fuller understanding of all the moving parts of a museum and ultimately get a better sense of the institutional context of curatorial research.
Advice for students considering internships:
Whether or not you still want to go into the field afterwards, both positive and negative internship experiences are valuable for the ways they allow you to better understand your own interests. It’s just as important to know what kind of work you don’t like! It was only through a high school internship that I figured out that I did not want to go into fashion journalism, for example. Whether it affirms your previous ambitions or convinces you to try something new, almost any internship can be a constructive experience if you use it as a chance to clarify your professional goals.
How this internship has helped me:
I think this internship has given me a better understanding of the field of public history. It’s also been especially useful to compare the unique culture of an enormous institution like the Smithsonian with my previous internships at much smaller organizations. As I prepare for life after Dickinson, I’ve particularly valued the opportunity to meet recent graduates and early career museum employees to hear about their experiences in the job market and graduate school.
Post-Dickinson plans:
Although I seem to change my mind every other week, I think I want to work for a few years either in public history or maybe public policy and then eventually go to graduate school with the hopes of working in a museum like this one!
TAKE THE NEXT STEPS
Published October 20, 2017