Graduate Assistant- Collections Intern
Position Overview
The Collections Intern assists with various aspects of collection management for the museum collection. Interns will participate in a full range of professional staff activities. All interns will assist with a variety of departmental duties in order to gain broad understanding of museum operations, including attending various staff meetings and assisting at the visitor services desk.
Additional Information:
Additional Information:
- This internship is an hourly, approximately 20 hours/week, position for 24, 2-week pay periods.
- This position is an 11-month (24 pay periods) appointment beginning August 17, 2026 and ending July 16, 2027.
- This position is also eligible to participate in the university health insurance program. Visit http://policy.ku.edu/graduate-studies/benefits-for-GRAs-GTAs-GAs for more information.
- Students may apply for one or more positions.
- Students who previously have held an SMA internship are also eligible to apply again for the same internships or different internship.
- Interns are also eligible for a $1,000 travel stipend contingent upon available funding.
- SMA interns receive a tuition waiver for up to 9 credit hours for both the fall and spring semesters.
Job Description
90%- Collection Care
- Cataloguing and data entry (recording measurements, condition reporting, recording inscriptions, location codes, etc.).
- Assist with processing new acquisitions.
- Inscribe objects.
- Process rights and reproductions requests.
- Prepare Incoming and Outgoing receipts.
- Assist with art handling.
- Participate in intern meetings and activities, including collaborative intern project.
- Attend related lectures and other events on campus and in the community.
- Perform other duties and special projects as specified.
Required Qualifications
- Must be a University of Kansas graduate student seeking a master's or Ph.D. degree, as indicated in application materials.
- Enrolled in six credit hours of graduate coursework or at least one hour of thesis/dissertation (approval form from graduate program required).
- Fluency in spoken and written English, as evidenced by application materials and interview.
- Demonstrated computer competency (Office, Outlook, databases, web skills).
- Must have a flexible schedule and be available to work weekends and after hours if needed, as indicated in application materials.
- Routinely lift items weighing 20–40 lbs with or without assistance.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with data entry or collection management databases, as evidenced in application materials.
- Experience with or knowledge of art making techniques e.g. printmaking, photography, drawing, painting, and sculpture, as evidenced in application materials.
- Knowledge of object-based teaching and learning.
- Willingness to work independently and in collaboration with museum staff, university faculty, and students.
- Knowledge of a foreign language.
- Interest in pursuing a museum career, as evidenced in application materials.
- Outstanding written and communication skills, as evidenced in application materials.
Position Requirements
During the semester term of the appointment, the student hourly must be enrolled in no fewer than 6 credit hours. For summer periods the student hourly must: (1) have been enrolled in no less than 6 hours in the past spring semester or (2) be pre-enrolled in the upcoming fall semester in no less than 6 hours or (3) be enrolled in summer session or (4) be admitted to study in the upcoming fall semester. Student Hourlies may be undergraduate or graduate students. (Exceptions granted for GRA/GTA/GA appointments DO NOT apply to Student Hourly appointments).
Employment Conditions
(1) Student employees are not eligible for remote work arrangements unless an exception is approved by the unit leadership and HR.
(2) This is an hourly/non-exempt position. A student employee cannot hold an hourly/non-exempt position and a salaried/exempt graduate or undergraduate position (GRA/GTA/GA/RUA/RGA) concurrently.
(2) This is an hourly/non-exempt position. A student employee cannot hold an hourly/non-exempt position and a salaried/exempt graduate or undergraduate position (GRA/GTA/GA/RUA/RGA) concurrently.
Additional Candidate Instructions
The Spencer Museum of Art currently has multiple internship opportunities available beginning August 2026 through July 2027. Please rank in order of preference which internship you prefer to be considered in your cover letter, as well as be sure to apply to EACH of the internships you are interested in. To ensure consideration, please apply by February 8th, 2026.
Please provide the following information in your application materials (CV and cover letter):
Please provide the following information in your application materials (CV and cover letter):
- Museum or related career goals.
- Educational experience in relevant fields of study.
- Work experience.
- Brief writing sample.
- Language skills.
- Other skills such as computer use, database experience, matting and framing.
- Provide telephone number and email address where you can be reached.
Contact Information to Applicants
Sofia Galarza Liu
reina@ku.edu
reina@ku.edu
Advertised Salary Range
$20.50
Anticipated Start Date
Saturday August 1, 2026