Humanities internships offer high school students a opportunity to develop critical reasoning and analytical skills that can be applied in a variety of practical scenarios. These opportunities help you develop analytical, communication, and research skills across fields like history, literature, philosophy, cultural studies, communications, and related disciplines. Unlike standard coursework, humanities internships are often short, structured, and centered around a specific theme or skill area, such as archival research, policy analysis, editorial work, museum studies, digital humanities, or community-focused storytelling.
Many internships involve tasks like source analysis, qualitative research, writing projects, content production, or assisting with public-facing communications. In such programs, you may gain exposure to tools such as digital archiving platforms, qualitative coding software, editorial workflow systems, or historical databases that go beyond what high school coursework typically covers. These internships are a strong fit if you want to explore humanities-driven career paths, practice critical thinking, refine writing and communication skills, or get early experience working with real organizations.
If you’re interested in benefitting from an internship in the humanities, we’ve compiled 15 internship opportunities that offer a valuable combination of rigor, prestige, and exposure to various subjects in the humanities.
1. Library of Congress High School Summer Internship
Stipend: Unpaid.
Program Dates: June 23 – July 17
Application Deadline: Rolling, applications open in Winter.
Location: Hybrid format, with students working virtually and in Washington, D.C.
Eligibility: Current high school students aged 16 years or older.
This program immerses you in the operations of the world’s largest library. It is an opportunity to serve as a teen voice for the Library of Congress, assisting the Center for Learning, Literacy, and Engagement in creating content to support family and youth engagement. You will curate new experiential learning ideas while working with Library staff, researching and recommending Library collection items, and advising on program models for teens. It’s also a solid introduction to careers and resources at the Library and a chance to build strong written and oral communication skills.
2. Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Internship
Stipend: Unpaid.
Program Dates: June – August
Application Deadline: March 1
Location: Washington, D.C. or Remote
Eligibility: High school students (ages 16+)
As an intern, you will work directly with curators and ethnographers to document and present living cultural traditions. You assist with the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, learning event logistics, and cultural sustainability practices. Tasks often include transcribing oral history interviews, tagging audio files in the digital archive, or conducting background research on specific cultural groups to ensure accurate representation in public programming.
3. National Archives (NARA) Volunteer Program
Stipend: Unpaid
Program Dates: Year-round.
Application Deadline: Rolling
Location: Nationwide at Archives and Presidential Libraries in various cities, or Remote
Eligibility: High school students (16+)
This program trains you in the preservation of federal records. You will work with the Citizen Archivist dashboard or onsite teams to tag and transcribe historical documents, making handwritten cursive text searchable for researchers. You will learn the strict chain of custody protocols required for handling government documents and gain proficiency in navigating the National Archives Catalog database. While an unpaid volunteer position, the scope for learning and exposure to public policy and history is immense.
4. The Met Museum High School Internship
Stipend: $1,100
Program Dates: Summer
Application Deadline: Applications open in early February and close when full
Location: Upper East Side, Manhattan
Eligibility: High school sophomores and juniors who reside in and attend a high school or home school in either New York, New Jersey, or Connecticut
This paid summer internship connects you with the inner workings of one of the world’s largest art museums. You will be assigned to a specific department, such as Education, Curatorial, or Conservation, where you will complete a departmental project. There are also plenty of networking opportunities with art, museums, and creative professionals, providing insights into a career in the arts.
5. New-York Historical Society Student Historian Internship
Stipend: $700
Program Dates: October 29 – June 24
Application Deadline: August 24
Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan (In-Person)
Eligibility: High school students entering grades 10, 11, or 12 who live in and attend school in the New York City metro area (includes the five boroughs of New York City, as well as areas of New York State, Connecticut, and New Jersey).
This program is a rigorous bootcamp in American history. You will conduct research using the museum’s vast archives to create digital resources or exhibition materials on specific themes, with the theme for 2025-2026 being Our Composite Nation: Frederick Douglass’ America. You will learn to decipher 18th- and 19th-century primary sources, conduct oral history interviews, and synthesize your findings into accessible public narratives. It’s a great opportunity to learn academic research and writing, and interact with museum staff to learn about the museum, library, digital humanities, and history fields.
6. Brooklyn Museum Apprentice Program
Stipend: $16.50/hour
Program Dates: November – August
Application Deadline: Late October
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Eligibility: High school students from NYC
This internship treats you as a museum educator. You will meet with artists and curators, learn the field of museum education, get trained on the usage of artwork in education, and even develop tours and teach summer camps. It is a great opportunity to learn education programming in a museum setting and to build public speaking, lesson planning, research, and teaching skills.
7. Whitney Museum Youth Insights Leaders
Stipend: Paid.
Program Dates: Year-long program.
Application Deadline: Rolling.
Location: New York, NY
Eligibility: High school students in grades 11–12 who have completed one of the prerequisite Whitney Museum programs.
After completing the prerequisite “Youth Insights Artists” or “Writers” program, selected teens become paid interns who organize public programs. You will help organize public programs and develop community engagement strategies, researching how to make the museum more accessible to local youth. You will also lead tours and collaborate with Whitney artists on long-term installation projects.
8. Getty Museum Teen Gallery Guides
Stipend: Paid
Program Dates: June – August
Application Deadline: April
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Eligibility: High school students in LA County
This internship focuses on audience engagement and public speaking. You will be trained to navigate the Getty’s vast collection of European paintings and antiquities, learning to write your own tour scripts that adhere to the museum’s educational standards. You will learn how to read the room, adjusting your historical analysis to suit audiences ranging from elementary students to foreign tourists.
9. Missouri Historical Society “Teens Make History”
Stipend: Paid
Program Dates: Year-round.
Application Deadline: Rolling
Location: St. Louis, MO
Eligibility: Local high school students who have completed the Teens Make History Academy.
This internship is divided into “Exhibitors” and “Players.” As an Exhibitor, you will research local history to curate and build actual museum exhibits, learning the interpretive planning process. As a Player, you will use archival research to write and perform museum theatre pieces. Both tracks require you to synthesize historical data into public-facing educational content. This is a project-based internship that gives you a high level of ownership and responsibility for theatre work.
10. Project Write Now Teen Internship
Stipend: Unpaid.
Program Dates: Year-round.
Application Deadline: Rolling.
Location: Remote or Red Bank, NJ
Eligibility: High school students aged 15–18
This internship focuses on literary citizenship and non-profit operations. You will serve as an Editorial Assistant for the organization’s anthology or blog, learning to proofread manuscripts and manage an editorial calendar. Or you intern as a teaching assistant and work on curriculum design, helping instructors create writing prompts and lesson plans for younger students, giving you insight into arts education.
11. The Borgen Project Internship
Stipend: Unpaid
Program Dates: 12-week sessions
Application Deadline: Rolling
Location: Seattle, WA
Eligibility: High school students
The Borgen Project offers nonprofit internships in Politics, Public Relations, Human Resources, Development, and Fundraising, and more. You may function as a junior lobbyist, learning to research foreign policy legislation and write constituent letters to Congress. Or you could manage a public relations campaign, drafting press releases and op-eds to raise awareness about global poverty, mastering the inverted pyramid style of journalistic writing. Regardless of your interest, this is a solid entry point into the world of nonprofits and changemaking.
12. Energy Mag Research Internship
Stipend: Unpaid
Program Dates: Rolling. Half-time internships of 2-8 weeks in the summer, quarter-time internships of 1-9 months in the academic year.
Application Deadline: Rolling
Location: Remote
Eligibility: High school sophomores, juniors, and seniors who have completed at least one honors science or honors English class and have a GPA of 3.25.
While focused on energy, the work is deeply rooted in research and technical writing. You will conduct market analysis and policy review on renewable energy topics. You will learn to synthesize complex technical reports into readable articles for a general audience, honing your ability to translate specialized jargon into clear, compelling prose, a key skill in science communication and journalism.
13. Asian Art Museum Art Speak Internship
Stipend: Paid
Program Dates: October – May
Application Deadline: Early September
Location: San Francisco, CA
Eligibility: Bay Area public high school students in grades 10–12
In this internship, you will work behind the scenes to learn about museum curation and cultural programming. As an intern, you will study specific epochs of Asian art history to create educational materials for the museum’s Family Fun Days or teen events. You will learn to facilitate art activities and serve as a cultural ambassador, bridging the gap between the institution’s scholarly work and the public experience.
14. Bloomberg Arts Internship
Stipend: Paid
Program Dates: June 20 – August 15
Application Deadline: February 8
Location: Philadelphia, New York City, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Boston, Detroit, and San Francisco
Eligibility: Rising high school seniors residing in New York City
Managed by the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, this workforce development program places students in specific cultural organizations, ranging from historical societies to literary arts centers. You will undergo a rigorous professional development curriculum alongside your placement, learning the mechanics of the cultural sector economy. Tasks vary by placement but often involve arts administration, such as assisting with grant compliance, managing donor databases, or executing community engagement strategies for non-profit stakeholders.
15. Noguchi Museum Teen Advisory Board
Stipend: $750
Program Dates: November 5 – May 6
Application Deadline: Late October
Location: Queens, NY
Eligibility: Rising junior and senior New York City public school students
This paid internship focuses on museum advocacy and peer engagement. You will advise the museum on how to better serve teen audiences, designing programs and marketing strategies. You will engage in critical dialogue about the work of Isamu Noguchi, learning to interpret abstract sculpture and connect it to contemporary social issues for a youth demographic.
One more option – Horizon Academic Research Program
If you’re looking for a competitive mentored research program in subjects like global politics, geography, history, consider applying to Horizon’s Research Seminars and Labs! This is a selective virtual research program that lets you engage in advanced research and develop a research paper on a subject of your choosing. Horizon has worked with 1000+ high school students so far and offers 600+ research specializations for you to choose from. You can find the application link here!
Image source – Smithsonian