The Brooklyn Museum is seeking interns for its Summer 2025 Internship Program.
The positions for our Summer 2025 Internship program are now officially posted on its website. Students may only apply for one position (there are 10 available). In the application, candidates will be asked to submit a cover letter detailing why they are specifically applying for the Brooklyn Museum and why they are applying for the department of their choice.
Applications close March 24, with internships running from June 9- August 22nd.
Below you will find a list of descriptions for our available positions.
These paid internship opportunities are available to those who have completed their sophomore, junior, or senior year, as well as recent graduates and graduate students. Interns receive $17 per hour and work 35 hours per week. Selected interns will be paired with a supervisor and integrated into one of our departments, participating fully in day-to-day workplace activities and projects with the guidance of full-time staff members. In addition to gaining extensive work experience, they will also attend seminars that focus on current museum practices, the role of museums in society, and how they might imagine the future.
Available positions for the summer:
Archives - The Brooklyn Museum’s Archives documents the various departments and activities of the Museum from 1823 through the present day. Working with the Archivist and Records Manager the intern will process the Registrar’s exhibit files which includes loan information, checklists, and correspondence. The intern will add to and complete the finding aid for the Registrar’s department utilizing ArchivesSpace. The Archivist and Records Manager will provide training in how to use an archive, basic archival theory, and in ArchivesSpace to help the intern complete the project. All are welcome to apply.
Arts of the Americas: Reporting to the Andrew W. Mellon Senior Curator of the Arts of the Americas, the intern will be exposed to aspects of curatorial work, including exhibition planning, research, and best practices in collection stewardship. Under the guidance of the Senior Curator, the intern will directly work on two projects. The first involves research and content development for the traveling exhibition Hopi Kachina Dolls: Treasured Gifts (working title). The first of its kind, this exhibition examines the kachina doll (tihu) tradition from a Hopi women’s perspective. This exhibition, which opens at the Brooklyn Museum in Fall 2026 and then travels through 2027, has already received planning and implementation grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Luce Foundation. The intern will assist in drafting grant proposals to private foundations in support of the implementation of the exhibition, publication, and tour. The second project relates to best practices in collection stewardship. To support documentation efforts, the intern will catalog and photograph archaeological and Amazonian collections. Cataloging involves recording descriptions and dimensions, taking record photos, and reconciling database discrepancies. An educational background in Art History, Anthropology, or related field is required. Candidates must have strong collaborative and communication abilities; excellent organizational skills, including meticulous attention to detail; experience researching primary and secondary sources; a sophisticated mode of expressing ideas in writing; and a demonstrated interest in the Indigenous arts of the Americas.
Indigenous Art: Working directly with the Curator of Indigenous Art and the department curatorial assistants, the intern conducts research and outreach related to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and creates extensive reports summarizing and documenting museum work related to that legislation. Additionally, the intern may provide departmental support and conduct collection and provenance research if time allows. Ideal candidates have knowledge of NAGPRA; prior research experience; excellent communication and organizational skills, including meticulous attention to detail; a demonstrated commitment to Native American communities and/or Native American Art; and an interest in a museum career.
Conservation: The department of Conservation works closely with the Museum's curatorial departments to understand, document and preserve collections. The intern in Conservation will learn about art handling best practices, photo documentation, and how to look at and describe materials and processes used in making art objects to create basic condition reports. The intern will have the opportunity to perform minor treatments under the supervision of conservators. The intern will also assist conservators on preventive conservation activities, such as working with environmental data, integrated pest management activities, making storage housings and containers for artworks and applying accession numbers. This internship will serve as an introduction to the field of art conservation. The ideal candidate has an interest in science, art, and loves working with their hands.
Decorative Arts & Design: Working with the Senior and Assistant curators of the Decorative Arts and Design Department, the intern will assist with the development of new exhibition projects and gallery rotations. Additionally, they will gain experience working with the museum’s collection through reviews, researching new acquisitions and objects designated for deaccessioning, building and organizing object and exhibition folders, assisting with writing gallery labels and provenance research, and some administrative duties like note taking. Other research and writing projects will be assigned as needed. Interested candidates should possess superior research and writing abilities; excellent communication and organizational skills, and an interest in history, decorative arts, design, and/or craft.
Digital Content: As part of the Digital Content team, this intern will assist with digital content creation for the Museum’s social media channels, email newsletters, and SMS strategy to support promotion of exhibitions, collection activations, and programming at the Museum. As part of our team, you will help develop, write, and produce original content, assist with community management, and track engagement analytics to identify impactful ideas and opportunities across our platforms. We are looking for candidates with an interest in impactful storytelling through copywriting, photography, video editing, and occasionally documenting events / life at the Museum. Along the way, you will have the opportunity to pitch story ideas and bring approved concepts to life! Knowledge of social media platforms, ongoing trends in culture, and video editing software is nice-to-have, but can be a learning opportunity.
Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art (EASCFA): The intern will focus primarily on cataloguing a large collection of vernacular photography. Ideal candidates are familiar with subjects of art history, gender and sexuality studies, photography, and feminist histories or a related field. The ideal curatorial intern will also have a sharp attention to detail, be self-motivated and organized, practice critical thinking, possess excellent writing skills, and be a proactive contributor to the team. Applying candidates should be excited to commit to the long term-cataloging project for the summer and comfortable with independent work, while also being adaptable to various departmental tasks.
Graphic Design: The Graphic Design Department at the Brooklyn Museum works with departments across the museum to unify communication and design strategies across all brand touch points and exhibitions. The design team functions within an interdisciplinary studio model; we work collaboratively on projects, have group critiques and discussions, share and discuss innovative work in the field, and support each other’s creative process and goals. To be considered for this position, we would like to see a portfolio of your design work via a digital link or as a PDF. When constructing your portfolio, consider including work that shows your creative process and thinking, as well as projects that are meaningful to you.
Exhibition Design: The Exhibition Design department is responsible for the design process from planning through completion of the display of special exhibitions, collection galleries, and special projects. This process involves concept development and providing shops with construction documents to oversee art installation. The ideal candidate would be familiar with design programs such as Vector works and Rhino and have a desire to collaborate on a range of design projects, have excellent communication skills and be a creative thinker. This would be a valuable experience for anyone interested in being part of a creative team while developing important personal skills related to exhibition design.
Visitor Experience and Engagement (VEE): The vision of the VEE department is to provide a warm and welcoming environment that offers inclusive, inspirational, and transformative experiences for visitors of all backgrounds and abilities by anticipating their needs, exceeding their expectations through world-class customer service. As part of VEE, the intern will provide support, particularly with organizing departmental materials such as training documents for the VE front-of-house team, signage storage, and office archives. The candidate will also provide input for ongoing projects such as the VEE front-of-house guide, a document that assists our Admissions staff at the membership and admission desks. An interest in the museum field is welcome but not required. Essential qualities for this internship include attention to detail, organizational skills, excellent communication and writing skills, and creative problem-solving.
To Learn More & Apply: https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/careers/internships-fellowships/adult-paid-internships
