Spend your summer on the banks of the beautiful Mystic River, developing your skills as a next-generation museum leader. As an intern at Mystic Seaport Museum, you’ll dive into hands-on projects, explore current and future best practices of the museum field, learn from experts from across Southern New England, and work alongside a dynamic cohort of fellow interns and passionate staff. Our 19-acre campus is your learning laboratory and a place of discovery, where we encourage you to test new ideas, push boundaries, and build your future. Explore the page below to learn more about internship opportunities available at the Museum.
Summer 2025 internships will run from June 2–August 8. Interns should expect to work onsite at Mystic Seaport Museum five days per week, with weekend and evening work required for some positions. All summer interns will participate in a bi-weekly museum studies seminar, weekly community building events, and field trips to museums in Southern New England.
All interns will receive a stipend, and limited onsite housing is available.
APPLICATION DEADLINE IS FEBRUARY 21, 2025.
This paid, interdisciplinary internship engages with BIPOC (Black and Indigenous People of Color) maritime histories and contemporary communities through academic exploration and hands-on practice in public engagement, curation, and community conversations. AIMS interns will work as interpreters in the Museum’s exhibit Entwined: Freedom, Sovereignty, and the Sea, which features a narrative of Indigenous and African-descended maritime cultures whose histories are forever interwoven in the stories of freedom, sovereignty, and the sea. This summer, interns will examine the role of museums in commemorating the nation’s Semiquincentennial in 2026. Interns will explore—and critically examine—the themes set forward by the American Association for State and Local History: Unfinished Revolutions; Power of Place; We the People; American Experiment; and Doing History. In collaboration with the Museum’s America 250 Committee, interns will develop projects, programming, or research that expand and challenge existing narratives of commemoration, and center more inclusive, community-grounded storytelling. Finally, interns will learn alongside the 2025 Frank C. Munson Institute for American Maritime History, traveling on weekly field seminars to cultural institutions across Southern New England.
This internship is open to upper-level undergraduates with demonstrated experience and interest in researching, interpreting, or working with historic and contemporary BIPOC communities, stories, and Belongings.
This is a paid internship, and onsite housing is available. There are four internships available for Summer 2025.
APPLICATION DEADLINE IS FEBRUARY 21, 2025.
The 2025 SNEC Summer Science Intern will work three days each week at the Museum’s Collections and Research Center, focusing on the documentation of objects with scientific relevance, specifically those in the zoological and botanical categories. Key responsibilities include identifying, describing, and documenting specimens; identifying additional objects in the Museum’s General Collections that overlap into the biological or botanical categories; assisting Collections staff in assessing the condition of specimens and identifying those that need rehousing or conservation; and conducting independent research on these objects to highlight their stories and significance. The remaining two days each week, the intern will work with the Museum’s Interpretation Department, interpreting environmental history, conservation, and science for Museum visitors. This work will support the Museum’s ongoing commitment to expanding its interpretation of marine science and focus on topics like invasive species, fouling organisms, marine biology, sea level rise, climate change, and more.
This paid internship is open to rising college sophomores, juniors, or seniors who have permanent residence, or attend a college/university, in Rhode Island or New London County, and must be pursuing a major in Architecture, Biology, Cultural and Historic Preservation, Environmental Biology, or an equivalent field.
This is a paid internship. There is one internship available for Summer 2025.
APPLICATION DEADLINE IS FEBRUARY 21, 2025.
Have a question that’s not listed below? Reach out to internships@mysticseaport.org!
Yes. All internships at Mystic Seaport Museum are paid with a stipend. Please see the individual internship descriptions for more details.
Interns can receive academic credit through their home institution if their home institution allows it. Interns are responsible for the paperwork, arrangements, and fees for receiving academic credit through their home institution.
Internships at Mystic Seaport Museum are open to upper-level undergraduate students. High school students are encouraged to apply for the Museum’s Junior Volunteer Program. Graduate-level students and early career professionals are encouraged to apply for the Frank C. Munson Institute of American Maritime History.
If you are not currently a rising sophomore, junior, or senior in college, but are interested in internship opportunities at Mystic Seaport Museum, reach out to internships@mysticseaport.org.
Each internship offers a different set of experiences and is seeking students with different backgrounds and skills. Please read each internship description carefully to find the position that most fits your interest.
If you are interested and qualified for multiple positions, you are welcome to apply to more than one position. However, please make sure you submit different applications for each position, and tailor your résumé and application towards the position.
Academic year internships may be available on a limited basis depending on department needs and applicant qualifications. Potential applicants must demonstrate interest and experience in working with a specific department or a specific ongoing project at the Museum. If you are interested in an academic year internship, please reach out to internships@mysticseaport.org.
You are able to hold another job during your internship if it does not interfere with your internship responsibilities. Summer internships at Mystic Seaport Museum are rigorous, full-time positions that will take up 35 hours/week. Interns must be available to attend all internship events, work assignments, and professional development activities, and are highly encouraged to spend time at the Museum and with their fellow interns throughout the summer.
If you plan to hold another job while working as an intern, please let us know as soon as possible.
Onsite housing is available for a small monthly fee for select programs. Please see the internship position descriptions for more details.
All interns are welcome to access the research facilities at the Museum’s Collections and Research Center and receive specialized research assistance from Museum staff. Interns also are welcomed to early exhibit openings during their internship. As a Museum Intern, you’ll be able to use the Museum’s fleet of small boats for free, receive a discount at the Museum Store and onsite eateries, free/discounted admission to special Museum programs and events, and free admission for immediate family to the Museum. Additionally, all interns receive a free year-long Museum membership at the conclusion of their internship.
75 Greenmanville Ave
Mystic, CT 06355
860-572-0711
info@mysticseaport.org
Copyright © 2021 Mystic Seaport Museum
75 Greenmanville Ave
Mystic, CT 06355
860-572-0711
