Libraries Special Collections Learning Lab Offering Paid Research Internships for Undergrads

photo of interns working in Special Collections Learning Lab

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 1, 2017) University of Kentucky Libraries Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) is offering undergraduates one-of-a-kind internship opportunities working with primary resources in the SCRC Learning Lab. Through this paid internship undergraduate students from all disciplines can receive training in archival methods while working with unprocessed or under-processed archival collections in their research area. Applications for fall and spring internships are due Sept. 15, 2017.

The SCRC Learning Lab is a center of primary research, experiential learning and training. Undergraduate students interning with the lab will learn how to arrange and describe rare or unique collections in their area of research interest, while enhancing access through the production of guides, exhibits or transcriptions. In addition to their training, at the end of their internship students will create and present a poster, presentation or exhibit, reflecting on the impact the position had on their research.

“Our undergraduates learn skills that we know are important to employers such as critical thinking, problem solving, communicating and working on a team,” said Interim Dean of UK Libraries Deirdre Scaggs. “The goal of the SCRC Learning Lab is to help our students become successful in whatever they do.”

Students interested in internships with the SCRC Learning Lab this year will have the opportunity to work with collections that span a wide range of interests:

  • two collections of 19th century medicine formulations and prescriptions;
  • papers and maps from an engineer aboard the first submarine expedition to the North Pole in 1931;
  • correspondence between brothers who were medical doctors during the Civil War;
  • a Jean-Paul Sartre journal the existential philosopher wrote while in Italy;
  • seed catalogs from 1890 to 1970;
  • fashion illustrations by a Lexington artist from the 1960s to the 1970s;
  • an early 20th century federal narcotic record book; or
  • an extensive collection of prints, paintings and book arts by James Guthrie, the founder of Pear Tree Press.

More information about these collections can be found on the Learning Lab website.

Interns will be expected to work five to 10 hours a week and will receive $8.80 per hour.

To apply for the SCRC Learning Lab internship, undergraduates should complete the internship application at: http://libraries.uky.edu/user_uploads/558_LearningLabApplication2017.pdf. The application, a resume/CV, and one faculty reference should then be submitted by mail or email Friday, Sept. 15. To submit by mail, send internship packets to:

Carol Street

Undergraduate Research Archivist

UK Libraries

Margaret I. King Library Building

Lexington, KY  40506-0039.

To email an internship packet, send the application to carolstreet@uky.edu.

The SCRC at UK Libraries is home to a collection of rare books, Kentuckiana, the Archives, the Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, the King Library Press, the Wendell H. Ford Public Policy Research Center, the Bert T. Combs Appalachian Collection, the John G. Heyburn Initiative and ExploreUK. The mission of the center is to locate and preserve materials documenting the social, cultural, economic and political history of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.