Last updated July 10, 2024

Graduate Assistantships: Academic Year
The WLA typically employs two graduate assistants during the academic year, one second-year (returning) student and one first-year (new) student. Assistantships are open to Loyola students in a MA program, who are eligible to work the given hours a week, through the entire academic year. Priority is given to applicants who are able to work 16 hours a week. Shifts are typically between 9:30am-4:30pm Tuesday-Thursday. Shifts occur in person at the Women and Leadership Archives. Graduate assistants may occasionally be asked to work nights or weekends for class visits or special events. Priority is given to students in public history, history, digital humanities, and WSGS, however, those studying other disciplines are welcome to apply.

Duties may include:

Weekly

• Stacks maintenance, including paging requested materials and shelf inventories
• Answering the WLA phone and tracking requests
• Assisting onsite researchers, including introducing Reading Room rules, completing forms, and answering questions
• Completing scans for researchers
• Conducting research for remote researchers
• Rehousing and basic inventories of collections
• Regularly attending meetings and check-ins with supervisor

Monthly

• Assisting with special events and class visits, including preparation, promotion, and staffing

Once a semester

• Writing a blog post on an approved topic for the WLA blog

Annually

• Creating content for social media
• Tracking content for ArchiveIt
• Working on special projects, including oral histories
• Transcribing text and audio files
• Creating metadata and digitizing select materials

Rarely

• Assisting with exhibits

Project positions are also available on occasion. Information about these positions are posted to the WLA's webpage and social media. For more information or to apply, please contact us at: WLArchives@LUC.edu. Applications for the academic year are open March 1st and are accepted on a rolling basis. Application packages should include a cover letter and resume or CV.

Graduate Assistantships: Summer
The WLA rarely accepts new applicants for summer-only work. Summer positions are not guaranteed and are only offered as funding is available. Summer work is first offered to current academic year workers, and then those who have been employed by the WLA in the past (ie. for a project/grant). Current/recently graduated MA and PhD students are eligible. Recently graduated undergrads may be considered. The duration of summer work is typically four weeks - the week of commencement through early June. Information on summer work is typically available sometime in April. For more information, please contact us at: WLArchives@LUC.edu.

Undergraduate Internships
The WLA welcomes the opportunity to work in structured and supervised internships with undergraduate students from Loyola. The internships are based in the archives, typically working with original primary sources material in small-to-moderately sized processing projects. However, we also have several ongoing special projects that the intern is encouraged and welcomed to assist with.

Each internship can be catered to meet the needs of the student's educational and experiential goals/skills. Additionally, each intern can receive on-the-job training in archival best practices related to appraisal, collection management, legal issues, preservation, arrangement and description, reference, and outreach.

Typically, one intern is accepted per semester (Fall/Spring). The WLA does not offer summer internships. We especially encourage students majoring in history, anthropology, political science, and women studies & gender studies, but all applicants are welcome. Interns must be in their junior or senior year at Loyola. The length of each internship varies, though a minimum one semester commitment is strongly preferred. All internships are unpaid. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, but must be sent the semester prior. Applications should include a cover letter and resume or CV. For more information, please contact us at WLArchives@LUC.edu.

Examples of Recent Internship Projects:

• Physical collections management
• Rehousing portions of collections in most need; labeling containers
• Basic description of select materials for inclusion in Finding Aids
• Preparing and organizing archival supplies for use
• Digitizing materials using flatbed and/or book scanner
• Transcription of text and audio files
• Educational outreach/program design
• Writing blog posts
• Exhibit design
• Event staffing

Volunteers
On rare occasion, the WLA will create a volunteer project for a junior or senior undergraduate student. Projects for volunteers are more limited in scope than those for interns. Recent projects have included rehousing and writing folder titles.

Additionally, current undergraduate and graduate Loyola students may pitch an idea for a guest blog post or enquire about event assistance.