CAREERS, Internships, and Fellowships
for
HISTORY MAJORS and GRADUATE STUDENTS
 
Links to major private and public institutional sites that offer information, guidance, and specific listings on career opportunities for undergraduate majors and graduate students in History. This is by no means an exhaustive listing, and it will be expanded over time as new on line information becomes available. There are sites which request that you file your resume with them, the author of this web page strongly recommends that you do not give out any personal information to any site requesting the same. Generally speaking registering your resume will simply put you on a database that does not guarantee that yours will be selected by the type of organization you are interested in as a career option. All you have done is provide your personal information to a database management group that will sell that information to others. Such registration techniques does not replace your conducting research on organizations which you are interested in joining nor is it a substitute for good old fashioned personal networking and network interviews that will help you make this, your first serious career decision. In short, this is not just a job, this is a career and as such requires serious consideration and work on your part to make certain that you select an organization in which you can develop and grow individually as well as evolve in terms of future growth and development in your selected field. If you have any questions regarding this site please contact Dr. Velez; if, however, you have questions regarding institutions listed here, please contact those institutions directly. This page is not an endorsement of any program listed below.
 
Give me a history major who has done internships and a business major who hasn't, and I'll hire the history major every time.
 
William Ardrey, senior vice president at Fiduciary Communications Group Inc., as quoted in "America's Top Internships", by Mark Oldman and Samer Hamadeh, Princeton Review Publishing.
 
CONTENTS:...... On Line Career Development Workshop .........Internships ........Careers.......Graduate Programs/Financial Aid
 
Career Development Workshop: This section is currently being prepared and should be up early Spring 2001 and will include information on how to (1) research companies, (2) conduct network interviews, (3) prepare cover letters, (4) prepare resumes and curriculum vitaes (and know the difference between the two), and (5) how to interview. In the interim the following links provide both career and internship opportunities for students specifically with History degrees. This will also include a brief bibliography on books and references which you can use for both your career research activities and in your chosen areas of work
 
The American Historical Association provides information on careers for history majors (this includes graduate students) which is worth reading as your first introduction opportunities in the "real" world. Follow the websites various links that describe some of the fields in which historians can be found.

Internships: Often internships, both paid and voluntary, offer students unique opportunities to experience a variety of professional environments, both in the public and private sectors, which help them to (1) identify fields they may be interested in pursuing ( including those related to the institution or organization in which they are doing their internship), (2) establish a network of contacts that can assist them in defining career objectives, (3) learn important work skills and applications that can be used in a variety of professional settings, (4) determine if additional graduate/professional study would be required for a chosen field and which institutions of higher education would offer the best training as well as contacts for such a career, and (5) provide opportunities to apply and sharpen their research and communication skills in real world applications.

Internships can be found in private sector institutions such as corporations/industries, think tanks, museums/archives, publication firms, consulting firms, foundations, and non-governmental organizations (known as NGOs which may deal with issue-specific areas such as the environment, human rights, etc.). It is a mistake for history majors and graduate students to assume that because the internship, or for that matter career/job, opportunity is in the private sector that they need a degree in business. In reality, particularly regarding entry level positions, firms and other private institutions prefer to train their hires themselves. Thus they prefer individuals who can learn quickly, can express themselves clearly in writing and orally, and have a curiosity and sincere interest in the organization and its objectives.

Public sector internships also exist and these can be found at the city/town, county, regional, state, and national levels. Examples of these are local county museums/archives, local governmental offices requiring people with research/writing skills, federal internships such as those at the State Department, the National Archives and Records Services, Dept. of Commerce, Senate/Congressional aides, Smithsonian Institute, etc. As in the case of the private internships do not make the error of thinking that you need a specialized degree to apply for these opportunities. Again, emphasize your strengths as history majors.... research, communication (written and oral), discipline, the ability to work alone and in teams, etc.

Regardless if your interest is in private or public organizations, you must first research the institution (remember you are trained researchers!). Get information on not just their internships but how the entity is organized, its mission, its departments (and heads of the same), and its activities in the past 3 years. In the case of private firms and institutions, these usually publish annual reports that provide excellent information on their specific objectives and recent developments. Sometimes utilizing the internet to check out their web sites may prove helpful, but also use directories on companies that are available at the UCF library. Once you apply for an internship you will more likely than not be interviewed. Knowledge about the organization prior to doing the interview will put you at ease and help you frame your responses. But one bit of caution: just because you have researched the organization does not mean that you should try to impress the interviewer in terms of how much you know about them, nor should you be offering ways in which they can improve their organization. You should use the information you have gathered on the organization to prepare questions ahead of time that will help you get a better sense of the direction of the organization's growth and its future interests. Such information may not be available in print but can come up in an interview and thus could be of great importance to you in terms of not only the interview process but your sense if this is indeed an organization that you want to spend time in. Always keep in mind that whatever you decide, your decision should be guided in terms of your general career interests and goals, and not merely in getting a "job", as important as everyone knows this is. This experience will be part of your work/career record and will appear on your resume or curriculum vitae. And, one other reality that students do not think about in their excitement over getting a position, and that is that the organization and its personnel may be asked to give an assessment of your work to future employers in the form of a letter of recommendation or phone evaluation. Thus it is imperative that students understand that all positions, even internships, should be treated as serious matters. Being young is not an excuse for demonstrating poor work habits, disrespectful attitudes towards others, sloppy work results, and immature behavior---- not when it can cost a company a client, a government agency a lawsuit, or a non-profit institution a loss of funding. It is not enough to think about getting a position, it is also important to think about keeping it and moving on to other positions with a work record that will help, not undercut, your professional reputation.

Listed here are a number of web sites which have information on internship opportunities. Please note that this is not an exhaustive list and that new links will be added over time. If you have any specific questions regarding these programs or the organizations associated with the internships, direct such inquiries to those organizations (most have contact addresses for this).

This section is divided into 3 areas: (1)Internship Search Engines and Internship Resource Sites.......(2)Organizations and Institutions (Private and Public).......(3)Project Specific Internships

A special note regarding international internship programs. As in all internship programs, including the ones listed below, you must take the time to thoroughly research the organization. In terms of international internships you must also consider the region and/or country in which you will be living and working. There are certain guidelines concerning your rights while abroad, as well as the nature of the cultural, institutional, and legal system(s) that prevail in foreign countries, that you should familiarize yourself with prior to applying for any program. Being naive about the realities of living abroad will not only not help you but can in fact get you into trouble. This is not an attempt to discourage those of you interested in an international internship, but it is definately your responsibility to understand the potential liabilities and responsibilities that you take on once you leave American soil. For information on countries link to the U.S. Department of State.

INTERNSHIP SEARCH ENGINES and INTERNSHIP RESOURCE SITES

Careers for History Majors and Graduate Students: This section deals, in addition to what is traditionally thought of as careers for history majors, other less traditional areas in which individuals degreed in history are routinely employed. Students need to think outside of the box in terms of where there are opportunities. It is important to keep in mind that in this, the so-called information age, that those trained as historians have precisely the skills which are required for this age: research skills-- especialy the skill to tell good information from bad, as well as the discipline and techniques for searching out information that others, less skilled and trained in these matters, are ill-prepared to find (these are your competition and that of your organization), and the ability to communicate those findings orally and in writing to a variety of audiences, and to do so credibly in terms of knowing how to utilize data and information to support your recommendations, results, and findings. In addition, history majors have the self-discipline and skill to work alone as well as in teams, to organize information, to define problems or issues, and to utilize a multitude of disciplinary approaches (e.g., economic, political, etc.) and sources (e.g., government records, business databases, journals, newspapers, etc.). And you make great conversationalists for those critical business cocktail gatherings with important clients and individuals (mention this last item once you get the position :-). The following are links from top universities and organizations that provide information, including actual openings in some cases, on career opportunities for consideration by History majors and graduate students.

Information on Graduate Programs/Financial Aide: The following links refer to electronic sources on graduate resources, particularly regarding fellowships, financial aide, and pointers for graduate students. Undergraduate students contemplating going on to graduate school will find this section of particular interest as they plan their future studies.