Internships
Internships give students hands-on experience in an occupational field through monitored work or service. Along with volunteer work, summer service projects, research, summer jobs, and study abroad, they provide invaluable experiential learning and tools for career development.
Internships may be paid or unpaid, for the summer or a semester, part of a large established program or crafted by or for an individual. We encourage American Studies majors to pursue experiential learning opportunities and build those experiences into senior seminar and senior thesis research projects.
The Department of American Studies has established contacts at institutions where our majors have interned.
- National Museum of American History
- Smithsonian Institution
- Newberry Library
- National Park Service
- Student Conservation Association
- Various Marketing Agencies
- Media Organizations from WNDU to ESPN
- U.S. Government
Contact Professor Annie Coleman or Careers Specialist Anita Rees in the to take full advantage of our established network. To learn more about internship opportunities as a whole, contact Director of Undergraduate Studies Pete Cajka
Summer Experience
Senior Tessa Bangs, summer intern for The New York Times
Summer is a great time for students to expand their experiences as well as horizons. Our majors seize the summer in a variety of interesting and engaging ways.
- Developing research projects
- Studying abroad
- Language immersion
- Entering service project
- Finding internships
Get Funding
Grants and fellowships are available through the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) via the Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts or the Flatley Center for Undergraduate Scholarly Engagement.
Students going abroad or addressing transnational issues are encouraged to apply for funding from the following institutes on campus:
- Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies
- The Nanovic Institute for European Studies
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
Internships geared toward professional development should seek funding from the Center for Career Development.
Get Credit
Students who are not earning a wage or salary may earn college credit. Some internships require that students earn credit. Earn internship credits through the College of Arts and Letters or the Department of American Studies. Any credits earned will count as electives.