Each semester, Special Collections offers a small number of paid student assistant positions, internships for course credit, and volunteer project positions. Learn more about this opportunities below or contact Special Collections staff at speccoll@umbc.edu for more information.
Student assistants
Special Collections student assistants contribute to the success of our department by helping to serve our researchers, process and describe collections, and ensure the security of the physical materials. Typical work includes pulling and reshelving materials, rehousing and inventorying collections, and assisting researchers working in the Special Collections Reading Room.
UMBC students can apply to any open positions using Handshake. You can also email Special Collections staff at speccoll@umbc.edu for more information.
Former Special Collections students and graduate assistants have secured jobs with the National Archives, the Baltimore Museum of Industry, Creekside Digital, the National Library of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, University of Maryland Libraries, Enoch Pratt Free Library, and the Maryland State Archives.
Internship and volunteer opportunities
Special Collections accepts interns and volunteers year-round, as allowed by staff availability. Contact Special Collections staff at speccoll@umbc.edu to begin the application process. All applicants will be required to complete an interview and submit 3 professional or educational references. Most projects require work on-site at the UMBC campus; remote options are available by request. Possible projects include:
Exhibit assistance: help to curate, install, and promote an original exhibit, either in the Library Rotunda, Special Collections reading room, or online.
Archival processing: rehouse, arrange, and describe analog and digital archival collections.
Collection-level description: create collection-level records for archival and photography collections
Digitization: prepare, scan, record technical metadata, QC, and upload collection materials to CONTENTdm
Metadata creation: Learn/practice subject analysis, use of controlled vocabularies, CONTENTdm, and PastPerfect as you create item-level descriptions for digitized collections
Outreach: raise awareness of collections and resources
Reference and instruction: assist in class development and research services including subject guides, reference transactions, the Special Collections Reading Room, and remote reference services
Sample student and volunteer projects:
Exhibits
- “Writing to the Beat: The Poetry & Prose of Langston Hughes,” Library Rotunda exhibit, May 2017. Curated by Nathaniel Mesekale, Student Assistant in Special Collections and Graduating Senior in the Department of History, and Tom Beck, Chief Curator.
- “The Evolution of 20th Century Camera Technology from the William B. Cavanaugh Collection,” Online exhibit by Dorothy B. Alexander, historical studies ’13, and Alex D. Geiger, visual arts ’14.
- “The Coslet-Sapienza Collection of fanzines at UMBC”: This exhibit was created by 2018 Interdisciplinary CoLab participants Marzuq Hakim, Ashley Mitchell, and Rebecca Wireman.
Archival processing and description
- International Union of Immunological Societies records, collection 9. Elizabeth Pente, historical studies ’13. Learn more.
- Joseph L. Arnold papers, collection 111. Auni Gelles, historical studies’14. Learn more.
- Conversion of finding aids to EAD-XML by graduate assistant Emily Somach. Learn more.
Digitization and metadata
- Baltimore Collection photographs, metadata and digitization completed by Sarah Klimek, history ’15.
- Mildred Grossman collection, metadata and digitization of a selection of photographs completed by intern Melissa Lohrey