Internship Opportunities
We offer internships in the Fall, Winter, and Summer for college and university students. Check this page for current opportunities and application instructions. All opportunities are listed below. If there are no current positions listed, please check back often as we post openings as they become vacant.
InvertEBase Collections Internship (entomology transcription)
Chicago Academy of Sciences / Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
Internship Department: Biology – Collections
Supervisor: Director of Collections, Assistant Collections Manager
Objective: The Chicago Academy of Sciences / Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum’s (CAS/PNNM) natural history collections are a library of the natural world and are accessed by researchers interested in a variety of topics. The entomology collection contains over 70,000 scientific specimens, with species from the orders Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, Coleoptera, Hemiptera, and Orthoptera, just to name a few. This grant-funded internship will focus on curation of targeted portions of the North American, non-Lepidopteran entomology collection to improve data quality, increase accessibility of the collection for research, and address preservation needs of the specimens.
Responsibilities: Under the supervision of Collections staff, the intern will verify the taxonomic nomenclature of insect species, identify insect specimens, ensure specimens are properly labeled, and update and mobilize specimen data. They will reorganize specimens in the collection taxonomically and rehouse specimens to meet preservation standards.
The internship also has two small public engagement projects, aimed at expanding awareness of the scientific collections and topics relating to entomology with museum visitors. The first project is to create social media posts related to the grant project that will be shared through CAS/PNNM channels; the second is to create and present a collections interpretive box that will be used to educate museum visitors about a single theme related to regional entomology, or entomological collections.
Final Product(s): By the end of the internship, the intern will have improved the physical and digital organization of a portion of the North American, non-Lepidopteran entomology collection, thereby improving the accessibility to these specimens for research. This will enable CAS/PNNM staff to migrate specimen data to Arctos, our online collections management system, as well as to biodiversity aggregators including iDigBio and GBIF. The intern will also create social media posts to expand awareness of the collections and the grant project, and create and present a brief educational program to visitors at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum.
Qualifications: The applicant should have some knowledge or experience in entomology. They must be self-motivated, detail oriented, have strong organizational skills, and able to follow directions. They must be familiar with MS Word and Excel. Applicants must be able to lift 25 lbs, climb ladders, and work within 32-inch aisles.
Minimum GPA: 2.5
Desired Year in School: Preference will be given to candidates with some university experience, but current enrollment is not required.
Desired Majors: Preference will be given to those with a background in entomology, ecology, museum studies, and/or the natural sciences.
Learning Potential: This internship will build upon knowledge and skills relating to scientific collections and specifically care for entomology specimens. The intern will be introduced to standards pertaining to museum collections and gain hands-on experience working with specimens and their data.
Compensation: $11/hr for 200 hours
Time Commitment (include hours and weekdays or weekends): Internship may be completed any time between September and December 2017 with a minimum of eight hours per week. Work will be conducted at CAS/PNNM’s off-site Ravenswood Collections Facility (4001 N Ravenswood Ave.). Office hours at the collections facility are Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, 9am – 5pm. The intern’s schedule will be coordinated with Collections staff.
To Apply: Email resume and cover letter in PDF or Word format to collectionsinfo@naturemuseum.org. Please include both documents as attachments in one single email and include “Collections Internship” in the subject line. No phone calls please. Applications will be accepted until this internship is filled.