Digital Collections and Humanities Internship
The Digital Center for Americana (DCA), a subset of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania’s (HSP) Library Division, is responsible for managing HSP’s digital collections, library systems, and handling the licensing image usage rights and providing photographic reproductions of HSP’s graphics and manuscript collection holdings to patrons. HSP is building a sizeable digital image collection consisting of high-resolution digital surrogates of its many engravings, lithographs, watercolors, lantern slides, architectural drawings, manuscripts and photographs that document both Philadelphia’s and America’s history. In order to gain intellectual and physical control over the growing digital collection, as well as make it searchable for patrons, HSP has begun to formalize its digitization program by establishing official policies and procedures, initiating a digital asset management system, and committing to build the digital collection.
Summary of Position
The Digital Collections and Humanities Intern will play an important role in helping HSP move forward with its digitization program. The goal of the internship is to gain hands-on experience in an archives environment similar to that of an entry level digital humanities position. This position has a focus on the digitization of archival collection material and the documentation and dissemination of archival digital images. More specifically, the Digital Collections and Humanities Intern’s responsibilities include:
- Documenting and inventorying HSP’s digital collection holdings
- Creating metadata to aid in discovery of materials through CollectiveAccess and Archivists' Toolkit
- Researching and pulling visual and manuscript materials from collections to be digitized
- Assisting with digitization preparation, digital imaging, and quality control of digital images
Requirements
- Interest in archives, libraries, the digital humanities and/or digital preservation
- Familiarity with Philadelphia and American history, as well as with visual materials, including various print and photographic processes
- Working knowledge of databases; experience with Archivists’ Toolkit or MySQL a plus
- Highly organized and detail oriented
- Ability to work both independently and collaboratively, with both onsite and distance workers
- Basic programming skills in Php, Java or Javascript a plus but not a requirement
Interns who are receiving class credit for the internship must meet the requirements of the home department and make sure HSP staff knows about the requirements as well. All interns should have at least eight hours per week to devote to their internship.
Term: Negotiable
Deadline: December 1 for spring internships; April 15 for summer internships; July 15 for fall internships.
Stipend: Currently, HSP does not have any archival internship stipends available.
Please send a cover letter and resume along with contact information for 3 references to:
Hillary Kativa
Rights and Reproductions Associate
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania
1300 Locust Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Tel: 215/732-6200 ext. 302
Fax: 215/732-2680