CHML Internship Program

The CHML Internship Program is an undergraduate and graduate-level program for students in archaeology, anthropology, architectural history, art history, classics, history, museum studies, and related fields.  Our two internship programs currently operates in cohorts organized around a geographic area of responsibility (AOR). Interns work together on a single region or conflict event under the guidance of CHML leadership and staff.

Through their cohorts, CHML interns learn how to monitor and identify emerging sources of open information, conduct satellite imagery analysis, and synthesize findings into deliverables. In doing so, students are trained in real-world projects, where their research is delivered to real stakeholders to inform responses, policy, and other actionable outcomes.

CHML staff work with interns on a case-by-case basis to coordinate for-credit or funded options for their internship. To accommodate all students, regardless of location, all CHML internships are virtual with flexible schedules.

The CHML currently operates two internship programs, and accepts 12 interns per year:

CHML Summer Internship Program: (May-August)

Summer undergraduate internships (4 slots per summer) last approximately 12 weeks. Interns receive focused training on research methods to identify threats and impacts to cultural heritage using formal and informal media sources. Students walk away from this internship with a high level of knowledge of global threats and vulnerabilities to cultural heritage, as well as transferable skills in research and geospatial analysis.

*The application deadline for Summer 2021 CHML Internship has now passed. Please check back in the fall for announcements regarding the Summer 2022 CHML Internship.

Virtual Student Federal Service (VSFS): Cultural Heritage Monitoring Lab: (September-May)

As a Smithsonian Institution partner, the Cultural Heritage Monitoring Lab offers Virtual Student Federal Service (VSFS) positions to current undergraduate and graduate students (8 slots per year). These US government internships are highly competitive and last a full academic year. VSFS interns receive training and a high level of responsibilities to create and deliver high-impact data and information to our stakeholders.

The application period for Virtual Student Federal Service (VSFS) positions is in the month of July. VSFS candidates are interviewed and selected in August. Positions begin in September and end the following May. Students work approximately ten hours per week for the academic year.

For more information, head to the U.S. State Department's VSFS website. To apply, select the Smithsonian Institution's Cultural Heritage Destruction in Conflict and Natural Disaster (SI-USA-1) project.