Museum Assistantship Program

Application Deadline has passed

Apply Now

If I do end up looking toward a curatorial role, I believe this assistantship will have been an incredibly beneficial experience that will allow me to speak about the communication and teamwork that is required for a curatorial position

Lizzie Oakley, Exhibitions

The Museum Assistantship Program offers paid semester- and year-long assistantship opportunities for Penn graduate students to work on projects within the Penn Museum. The program pairs Museum projects in need of research assistance with interested graduate students from related fields.

How to Apply

Applicants may apply to no more than two of the projects listed below.

Prior to completing the application form, you should prepare a brief (no more than 500 words) statement that addresses:

Your interest in this project
Your relevant experience and expertise
A current academic CV
One letter of recommendation from a professor, academic advisor, or employer who can speak to your qualifications for the project to which you are applying. The letter must be sent separately via email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with your full name in the subject line.

All accepted participants will be notified by mid-May.

Eligibility

This program is open to active University of Pennsylvania graduate students, enrolled for the upcoming Fall Semester. The Penn Museum strongly encourages applications from students who are members of groups underrepresented in careers related to museums.

Funding

Assistants are paid $15 an hour and should expect to commit 2 to 5 hours per week to their project.

Timeline and Expectations

Assistants should expect to commit 2 to 5 hours per week. Exact start and end dates will be determined by the project supervisors. Projects take place during the fall or spring semesters, or both.

Past Projects

Aylar Abdolahzadeh, doctoral student in Anthropology, digitized the stone tools from Bisitun cave, Iran, making this important collection of Neanderthal objects available to a wider audience.
Chris LaMack, doctoral student in Anthropology, created a catalog of archaeological finds from the late 18th century greenhouse at The Woodlands in West Philadelphia.
Janelle Sadarananda, doctoral student in AAMW, organized the Museum’s Teaching Collection and developed capsule collections for school, university, and community audiences.
Autumn Melby, doctoral student in Anthropology, worked in the American Section documenting baskets from the Southwestern United States.