Winterthur Museum -- Curatorial/Collections Internship (Interviews)

[ArtHistoryandMuseum]

Hello all,

I am wonder if anyone here has interned or interviewed at Winterthur Museum for their one year (or summer) curatorial/collections internships? Personally, I love early American history and material culture, and I have been considering applying for their MA in American Material Culture for Fall 2013; as I seek to one day curate at a museum, the internship is a terrific fit for my current research interests, and also my professional and academic goals. I feel fortunate to interview.

Winterthur Museum

1.) Have you interviewed for the internships? What is the process like? How can I best prepare for the hour and a half interview? What kinds of questions might I field?

2.) If so, where did you go after the internship? Did you advance in the museum field, or return for further graduate school (as I hope to do these both)?

2a.) If a return to academia -- Were you able to conduct research/do conferences, and generally, develop academically, concurrent to the internship? Did you connect with the department of art history at University of Delaware or the profs in the American Material Culture program?

To add to this internship interview, I also have applications out for non-academic museum positions. Positions which are not too taxing (so in the evenings I can work on my SOPs and study GREs), and positions which are higher paying, so that I might be able to submit more grad school apps.

Of course, it depends on what I am offered, and if I am offered suitable museum employment, I will definitely accept it however it comes, because I want to keep working in the field. Although, if I have two or more offers on the table, I want to start thinking about how to prioritize short-term... for the long-term goals (of further graduate school.) Any thoughts are welcome.

[GreenePony]

There is someone on here who was accepted to Winterthur's MA program but not sure if they are still on the forum to give advice about that. But from what I saw when I went through it- it is very competitive. But I can't comment on the internship process- but I'm sure it's a worthwhile pursuit since it is Winterthur.

[ArtHistoryandMuseum]

Thanks for speaking up Greenepony. She or he may have interacted with the curators I will be speaking with, as they too participate in the MA in American Material Culture program.

Personally, I would be over the moon to have the internship; it is ABSOLUTELY in line with my academic interests. I get to work with my subfocus, which is most exciting. I just never had a quasi-academic conversation like this before -- I have interviewed in the past for "professional" museum positions -- and I want to best prepare for what I expect to be a rigorous interview.

[ArtHistoryandMuseum]

The second point I discuss, perhaps too early, is one of practicality. I have been interviewing lately for museum and art-related work, too. However the positions are not the dream for me that Winterthur is, although the positions offer some short-term financial benefits, as well as other advantages as I apply for MA/PhD in Art History during Fall 2012, such as those discussed in the OP. I also may not be accepted into Winterthur. I expect my competition to be tough.

I have come to realize, though, if I end up elsewhere and if I am accepted into Winterthur, I can always take it.

[ArtHistoryandMuseum]

Thanks on the congrats for the interview! I was and am still so excited. I started my career in a museum with an eclectic collection of decorative arts. When I left a few years later for a job opportunity, I photographed so many objects of that very collection I loved to look at: pewter, ceramics, and glassware. I remember those days at the museum; I recall presenting a tour to my boyfriend of the time and pointing out to him Staffordshire spaniels. We departed the museum in separate vehicles and upon arrival at the shared destination, I found I had arrived first; so, I looked up the answer, in one of my decorative arts books I had in the car, to his question he asked about the Staffordshire. That experience came to me because I love the subject, and the stories of material culture, very much.

The interview is an hour and half because I will be speaking with three staff; a half hour with each person. It does sound a bit different and more intense than the graduate interview, as this is a full-year internship and not a two year graduate program, but keep in mind that I did not send in SOPs, recommendations from my professors of Art History, and submit a writing sample(s). Thus I have a lot more information to provide about why I am absolutely interested in Winterthur, and what my academic interests are.

I feel fortunate to have the luxury of time, then -- I do not think I shine as well on paper. Sure, I have conferences I attended and presented, and won some scholarships, but I am more importantly creative, persistent, and ebullient. I see relations to contemporary design today. I also talked with an Art History professor tonight, through which I realized how decorative arts is not widely known or understood; there is a lot of scholarship to do to study and share. I see starting a lifetime career in the subject of American art and design, and this internship would be a wonderful beginning of that journey.

Although I care a lot about the subject of decorative arts and its relevance in today's society, I also know that I have a lot of work to do in the field; my experience studying decorative arts is strong but only a few years' worth. this would be a terrific opportunity to continue exploring American material culture full-time.

Now as for the preparation of the interview, I am studying the collections from what I can see online, and I certainly have my art history books out...

Many thanks for speaking up, and I hope to see you too!