Job: Graduate Summer Intern

Pay/Hours/Benefits: The internship offers a $8000 stipend for students currently enrolled in or recently graduated (within 2 years) from a graduate training program for conservation. The stipend covers an 8-week, full-time position. Housing, benefits, and transportation are not provided.

Institution: Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC.

Application Deadline: March 18, 2026

Brief Description: 

Each year, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden implements a maintenance program for the outdoor sculpture collection. For the 2026 season, the Museum is offering one full-time, 8-week outdoor sculpture conservation internship position for a student currently enrolled in, or recently graduated from, a graduate conservation program. The internship begins in early/late June, depending upon the availability of the successful candidate. 

With the garden slated to reopen in late 2026, this internship will center around all facets of the sculpture garden revitalization: installation (including lifting, rigging, onsite assembly), maintenance and treatment, acquisition processes, and documentation. The participant will assist conservators in carrying out a variety of conservation treatments on the outdoor sculpture collection, document sculpture treatments through treatment reports and digital documentation, learn the properties and application of a range of conservation materials, and utilize specialized tools and analytical equipment in the performance of their daily activities. The outdoor sculpture annual maintenance conservation treatments may include washing, the application of protective surface coatings, and structural repairs. The work will be performed mostly outdoors, is strenuous, and often requires working in very hot and humid conditions. The size of the sculptures might require working on or around elevated platforms including ladders and lifts. 

As part of the Collection Management department, conservation interns will also work alongside museum colleagues in registration, archives, exhibits and curatorial departments and gain general knowledge of conservation and museum practices. The Outdoor Sculpture conservation intern will also have access to professional development and networking opportunities across the Smithsonian Institution units and other major museums in the area. Located on the National Mall in Washington DC, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is one of many institutions in the National Capital Region dedicated to conservation practice and research.

Contact Info/Link to Online Application: 

To begin the application process, you will create an account through the Smithsonian Online Academic Appointments external application portal (SOLAA) at https://solaa.si.edu. 

After signing in, select ‘start your application’, then select ‘internship’ under Program Category, and select ‘HMSG’ under Office/Museum/Research Center. The HMSG Outdoor Sculpture Conservation Internship will show up at the bottom of the page. Application materials must include: (1) A brief cover letter stating the internship you are applying to and your desired start date (dates are flexible); (2) A current resume; and (3) At least one letter of recommendation from an individual who can speak to your skills or knowledge related to this internship opportunity. 

Only completed applications submitted through SOLAA will be considered. Applications must be completed via https://solaa.si.edu no later than March 18, 2026. Any questions about the internship should be directed to Anouk Verbeek at VerbeekA@si.edu or Sarah Montonchaikul at MontonchaikulS@si.edu. Direct any questions about the application process to Stephanie Lussier, LussierS@si.edu. For more information about the Museum’s collection, please visit the collection.