The National Maritime Museum UK is accepting 2013-14 applications for paid interns in the history of science and technology. Deadline Monday 22nd April.  www.rmg.co.uk/researchers/fellowships-and-internships/intern-programme

The Museum created this intern programme to further develop its research activity in the vital fields of time, navigation, astronomy, cartography and nautical technology. Our collections in this area are world-class and we need to ensure they are well researched so that the Museum can make them accessible to a wide range of audiences.

Research at the National Maritime Museum and Royal Observatory is not just for those considering a career in museums or galleries. The Museum’s collections offer rich sources for a wide range of subjects – not only maritime history and history of astronomy, but also the wider history of science and technology, economic and business history, the history of production and consumption, imperial history and exploration. For those considering further research at university, they offer the chance to try out a subject or an approach.

The main emphasis will be on the collections, and although this will include work on archive material, the primary focus will be on the use of artifacts for research. Interns will be supervised by an appropriate member of the curatorial team: Heloise Finch-Boyer (Curator of History of Science and Technology, including oceanography and modern navigation), Richard Dunn (Senior Curator, History of Navigation), Rebekah Higgitt (Curator of History of Science and Technology, including astronomy), Gillian Hutchinson (Curator of Cartography) and Rory McEvoy (Curator of Horology).

The Museum is keen to encourage interdisciplinary and contextual studies. There may also be scope to work with the Exhibition, Digital Media and Education departments on methods of using the results of research to interpret objects for different groups of visitors, including virtual visitors using the website. Others will prefer to use the research for a university dissertation, an article or a seminar paper.
Duration and payment

    Internships will last for 1–2 months, agreed in advance, depending on the scope and level of the proposed project. It will be possible to divide a longer internship into two periods, by agreement with Museum staff, and university tutors if applicable.
    In 2012–13 the bursary offered was £1500 per month, intended to cover living expenses and travel to and from the museum. There will also be a limited amount of additional money for exceptional travel expenses essential to the research and agreed in advance.
    Applications for the 2013–14 scheme are now open. The closing date is Monday 22 April 2013 and the internship may be taken between June 2013 and April 2014.

Who can apply?

    All postgraduate students
    Final year undergraduates who wish to use research on the Museum’s collections for a dissertation or long essay.
    Applicants can also apply for an internship in between courses, for example, between undergraduate and postgraduate study, or to try out a subject which they may wish to propose for an MPhil or PhD.

How to apply

Applications should include:

    A curriculum vitae, giving contact details, educational qualifications, and the names of two referees who know your work.
    An outline of no more than 500 words of the proposed research topic.
    An indication of the output you would hope to achieve from your research, for example article, seminar paper, blog post, online resource or other outcome.

Please send your application by email to: [log in to unmask]
Expectations

Museum staff will expect the intern to:

    Undertake research leading to an agreed piece of work, such as an article or note for a journal, a post on one of the Museum’s blogs, a paper for a staff seminar, entries for the online catalogue, a talk for visitors, text or object labels for an exhibition, and/or part of a postgraduate dissertation. For details of previous project themes, titles and outputs see: RMG History of Science internships: 2004–2012.
    Go through the staff security vetting procedure
    Be in attendance at the museum during normal working hours, unless there has been prior agreement that the research topic requires work in other collections or libraries
    Report absence through illness the same day and provide a doctor’s certificate if away for more than 7 days
    Successfully complete any courses, such as object handling, necessary for safe working
    Complete a brief evaluation report at the end of the internship.

For further information contact: [log in to unmask]

Dr Heloise Finch-Boyer
Curator of Science & Technology

National Maritime Museum  |  Royal Observatory Greenwich  |  The Queen's House

direct +44 (0) 208 312 6617

Greenwich, London SE10 9NF