The History Department greatly encourages History Majors to complete at least one internship while studying at Penn State. While doing an internship is not a requirement of the major, such an experience can be extremely valuable and offers certain benefits largely unmatched in the conventional classroom setting.
An internship enables you to garner “real world” job experience and to “try out” a history-related career. Internships equip you with “hands on” information about the specific skills needed for specific jobs. An internship can give you the opportunity to carry out extensive archival historical research “on site.” A completed internship is also a wonderful addition to your resume, which can help you get another internship or secure a better-suited job after graduation.
And, perhaps most important, internships can teach you more about yourself, allowing you to pursue your particular interests, to determine what you are good at (or not so good at), and to experience what you are passionate about.
The History Department urges you to consider doing a history internship, and we will assist and support you in practical and substantive ways to try to make this happen!
The Department has developed partnerships with various local institutions and organizations and currently funds a number of “paid internships” to facilitate our students securing rewarding, engaging internships.
Our interns have assisted in putting together WPSU’s “A Time to Heal: The Vietnam War, Telling the Pennsylvania Story” documentary; contributed articles of original research published in local historical publications [such as “The Hearts in the Highlands” and the “Centre County Encyclopedia of History and Culture”; helped in the design and set up of exhibits for the Centre County Historical Society, the Penn State All Sports Museum, and Piper Aviation Museum; and gathered identifying data on historic properties for the Centre County Planning & Community Development Office. The preceding is a sampling of the seventy-plus history internships our students have taken part in over the past decade.
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The History Department’s internship course is designated History 495.
History 495 garners 3 credits and these credits count towards History 400-level credit requirements for the History Major and History Minor.
The History Department expects that you will devote 10 hours a week on average to this course, and a considerable portion will be “on site” at your internship site-institution.
The threshold time commitment for a History 495 internship is 135 hours for the term.
History internships may take place during fall term, spring term, or both summer sessions.
Internship work / course requirements are a combination of “service” provided for your site-institution; weekly journal entries; research-based writing, or final project.
Internship “service” can take many (and oftentimes intriguing) forms, including cataloguing of archival materials; development and design of exhibitions; oral history interviews; historical research and institutional writing; community outreach and social media—and much more. A key element here is that your efforts as an intern make a discernible, impactful contribution to your internship site-institution.
A faculty member of the History Department serves as the “academic supervisor” for the History 495 internship course. In most instances, Dr. Milligan will take on this “academic supervisor” role for our history interns.
Students cannot register themselves for History 495. The History Department’s internship coordinator, Dr. Mike Milligan [email: mjm61@psu.edu ], registers student interns for History 495.
Contacting and connecting with Dr. Milligan is an integral early step in considering doing a history internship. Dr. Milligan will answer questions and address concerns you might have about History 495 internships—and will help you begin the process for taking this course.
For general information and helpful advice on internships in the Liberal Arts beyond the History Department, consult Penn State’s College of Liberal Arts Internship web page.
The Career Enrichment Network also serves as a resource for internships and career development for College of Liberal Arts students. To contact the Career Enrichment Network please mail to lanetwork@psu.edu or telephone 814-865-1070.
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
HOW AND WHERE DO I BEGIN?
You have already made a good start by reading this, the History Department’s section on “history internships.”
You are advised to email Dr. Milligan [ mjm61@psu.edu ] which starts a conversation about history internships and how to begin the process of perhaps doing an History 495 internship course.
Look over the College of Liberal Art’s internship consider registering for Nittany Lion Careers.
Also consider institutions and organizations located in your hometown as possible places for doing a (summertime) history internship, especially the local historical society.
WHEN SHOULD I DO AN INTERNSHIP?
You can do a history internship during the fall academic term, the spring academic term, or during the combined summer sessions.
The answer as to when to do an internship really depends on what else you have planned. Consider how heavy your course load will be during the term, what you may be doing for [summer] employment.
The duration of your History 495 internship course must coincide with the time-frame of the relevant academic term at Penn State. No retroactive academic credit will be given for internships done in the past.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR DOING A HISTORY INTERNSHIP?
History Majors and History Minors, College of Liberal Arts students in good standing.
WHERE HAVE PSU HISTORY STUDENTS INTERNED IN THE PAST?
A partial list of site-institutions for our history internships over the past five years includes:
• Boalsburg Heritage Museum (Boalsburg, PA)
• The Centre County Encyclopedia of History and Culture (State College, PA)
• Centre County Historical Society (State College, PA)
• Centre County Planning and Community Development Office (Bellefonte, PA)
• Cumberland County Historical Society (Carlisle, PA)
• Highlands Civic Association (State College, PA)
• Lemont Village Association (State College, PA)
• Pasto Agricultural Museum (Pennsylvania Furnace, PA)
• Penn State All Sports Museum (University Park, PA)
• Penn State Earth and Mineral Science Museum and Art Gallery (University Park, PA)
• Penn State University Libraries—Preservation, Conservation, and Digitalization Department (University Park, PA)
• Piper Aviation Museum (Lock Haven, PA)
• University Club (State College, PA)
• WPSU (University Park, PA)
HOW WILL I KNOW ABOUT SPECIFIC HISTORY DEPARTMENT INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES?
Again, you are encouraged to promptly contact Dr. Milligan, the Department’s internship coordinator [ mjm61@psu.edu ] for the most up-to-date listing of internship opportunities.
In addition, the History Department academic adviser sends “history internship opportunities” announcements via email to all History Majors and Minors several times each academic term.
DOES THE HISTORY DEPARTMENT FUND PAID INTERNSHIPS?
Yes, the History Department funds several history internships. The following are our “paid” history internships for academic year 2024-2025:
• Centre County Planning and Community Development Office “Historic Preservation Internship”
• University Club “Documentary Project & Oral Project Internship”
• Piper Aviation Museum
IF AN INTERNSHIP IS “UNPAID,” WHERE CAN I APPLY FOR POSSIBLE FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE?
If you seek financial assistance in defraying a portion of the cost of your internship, you are strongly encouraged to apply for “enrichment funding” from the Career Enrichment Network. This link assists you in starting an application for enrichment funding .
WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS—AND THE OVERALL TIME COMMITMENT—FOR HISTORY 495?
Core requirements of the History 495 internship course are:
1) “service” work provided for the internship site-institution;
2) weekly journal entries (approx. 600-900 words in length);
3) research-based writing or final project (particular nature of the writing / project agreed upon by the on-site internship supervisor, academic supervisor, and intern)
Interns should devote around 10 hours a week to the History 495 internship course, which includes service work, journal writing, and time devoted to the writing requirement. The minimum threshold time commitment for history interns is 135 hours for the term.
WHAT IS THE INTERNSHIP APPLICATION PROCESS?
Students interested in doing a History Department-sponsored internship must submit a completed application. The application includes four items: updated resume; cover letter (specific to the internship you are applying for); short historical writing sample; letter of recommendation from a PSU faculty member (preferably a History Department faculty member).
Please send along—in electronic form—the first three application items in an email to Dr. Milligan [ mjm61@psu.edu ]. Your recommender should email your recommendation directly to Dr. Milligan. Please be mindful of the relevant application deadlines.
WHO MAKES THE DECISION ON INTERNSHIP SELECTION?
In all cases, the internship selection decision is made solely by the internship site-institution, not by the History Department and/or Dr. Milligan.
WHO DETERMINES THE FINAL GRADE FOR THE HISTORY 495 INTERNSHIP COURSE AND HOW?
Both the on-site internship supervisor and the academic supervisor will have input in determining the intern’s final course grade.
The intern’s grade for the “service” component of the course will be based on the observations and end-of-term assessment made by the on-site internship supervisor. The “service” component comprises around half of the final course grade.
The academic supervisor will be responsible for assessing the caliber of the journal entries with shared responsibility between the academic supervisor and on-site internship supervisor in assessing the caliber, rigor, and utility of the writing (or final project) component.
WHAT IF THE INTERNSHIPS POSTED BY THE HISTORY DEPARTMENT DO NOT INTEREST ME? DO I HAVE THE OPTION TO FIND A FOR-ACADEMIC-CREDIT INTERNSHIP ON MY OWN?
Yes, students are encouraged to secure a history internship on their own—and the History Department welcomes such initiative!
Here are conditions to look for as you consider alternative internship site-institutions:
- site-institution must possess the facilities / resources so that the student intern is able to comply with the service component;
- site-institution must provide appropriate on-site supervision;
- historical archival materials are housed at the site-institution
The History Department must be confident that this internship is sufficiently rigorous and of requisite historical content to approve the internship for History 495 credits