The History Department sponsors an internship program—formally known as its Professional Practices program—to give its students the opportunity to gain practical experience in a variety of arenas. Students in this program can earn academic credit while also exploring career options, both within and outside the field of history. Interns typically work within museums, in archives and within other historical agencies, conducting research, preparing reports, developing various types of educational programs and materials, and even making public presentations. Interns, however, can also explore how the skills and knowledge they have acquired as students in history can be of value outside of the field of history itself—on a newspaper, within a political office, or perhaps even in a bank.
Due in no small part to the flexibility of the program, students have consistently reported that their internships have been one of the most rewarding academic experiences that they have had in their stay at the university. In general, we give students the freedom to design—in consultation with a sponsoring agency—their own internship experience.
If you still have questions after reviewing the information on this site, please feel free to contact:
Clifton H. Jones
Professor of History
and Coordinator, Internship Program
Schroeder 324
(309) 438-5920
Email: chjones@ilstu.edu