The Twin Cities are a valuable resource, and students work in many local archives, including the Minnesota Historical Society, Immigration History Research Center, Social Welfare History Archives, YMCA National Archives, and Jewish Historical Archive. Students also intern at sites like the Resource Center of the Americas, Project for Pride in Living, the office of the governor, the Minnesota Children’s Museum, Casa de Esperanza, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the state legislature, local schools, and the Minnesota Historical Society.
The study of history in all its variations provides valuable background for a wide range of careers, including education, law, business and international service. In addition, graduate schools are particularly interested in students from a broad-based history department like Macalester’s. The History Department actively maintains a list that includes internship and job opportunities with options for while students are at Macalester on our Opportunity Updates web page here.
Macalester’s Career Development Center provides access to this What Can I Do With My History Major? list.
The Macalester Internship Office and the Career Development Center provide career tools and resources for internship and job opportunities. Current Macalester students and alumni can access opportunities using the Handshake portal. The Handshake portal, and instructions for accessing it can be found here.
Visit Macalester’s Career Exploration web site.
Visit Macalester’s Internship Program web site.
More resources about careers for history majors:
American Historical Association’s “Careers for History Majors” miniguide.
National Council on Public History shares information for public history professionals, including job listings, internships, publications, and conferences.
Organization of American Historians includes publications and programs that could benefit history majors and recent graduates.
History News Network regularly offers internship and submission opportunities to get started as a writer.
Smithsonian Institution (Washington DC): provides paid and unpaid internships opportunities, including summer and year-round, and virtual internships.
US Department of State (Washington, D.C., or overseas): offers paid and unpaid internships.
Society for Professional Journalists where aspiring journalists can network, access career training resources, and participate in awards contests.
The Columbia Undergraduate Journal of History (CUJH): publishes papers written by undergraduates majoring in history giving students recognition useful to enter graduate school and in job-seeking.