Library Intern

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is one of the largest museums of modern and contemporary art in the United States and a thriving cultural center for the Bay Area. We cannot imagine life without art; it inspires and connects us every day. Now more than ever, these connections matter and are aligned with our values.

Inclusive: We strive to be a museum of many voices in dialogue.  

Passionate: We believe working with art is more than a job or trusteeship - it's a way of life.  

Brave: We are committed to approaching our work with courage and a sense of adventure, always ready to explore new perspectives.

Empathic: We aim to act like a person, not an institution. 

SFMOMA is a place for the infinitely curious to explore, support, and experience the art of our time. We believe that modern and contemporary art can influence the way we think, view the world, and embrace the many voices and perspectives around us. We aspire to foster an environment that elicits joy, nurtures a sense of belonging and purpose—where difference is seen as a strength, and every one is appreciated for their whole self.

SCHEDULE: Full Time, 35 hours/week, June 16 - August 15, 2025, three days working onsite

DEPARTMENT DESCRIPTION

Ever since SFMOMA opened in 1935, the Library has been dedicated to advancing scholarship in modern and contemporary art. In other words, we’re here to help you learn. Our holdings reflect art movements, organizations, historians, critics, and makers of modern and contemporary art, as well as SFMOMA’s collections, exhibitions, and programming. SFMOMA Library’s holdings of books, serials and ephemera broadly document local and international history of modern and contemporary art and the collections are housed both at the Museum and off-site at the Museum’s Collections Center.   

POSITION DESCRIPTION

The aim of SFMOMA’s Library Department is to provide interns with a well-rounded experience in an art library environment. This internship opportunity works directly with our Library collections and participates in a processing project within our diverse holdings. The interns will work with professional librarians on our staff to support an on-going project to fully inventory our museum’s publications by providing quality control for our bibliographic metadata and holdings records related to our museum publications collection.  

PROJECT PLAN

Over the 9-week program, under the guidance of our staff, the Library intern will

· Edit and update bibliographic records for museum publications.

· Scan selected exhibition catalogs

· Review collection for preservation needs

· Scan SFMOMA supplements from our collections

· Create inventory lists for items in our backlog

· Upload digital assets into our museum’s DAM and add necessary metadata

· Provide basic technical services support for processing new items 

EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES

· Learn basic library cataloging skills in our field

· Training in metadata quality control in library and museum systems

· Gain experience with preservation tasks in special collections library

· Learn basic scanning methods for digitizing printed materials

· Introduction to various roles within a museum's library  

· Connect to the larger museum community about roles and activities in the museum field. 

ADDITIONAL INTERNSHIP PROGRAMMING

The Summer 2025 Internship will offer 9 weeks of hands-on experience and mentorship along with weekly presentations and discussions with various departments in the museum, off-site educational visits within the Bay Area community, and access to various tours and events within the museum. 

QUALIFICATIONS & SKILLS

· Applicants must be currently enrolled in school or a recent graduate. The SFMOMA recognizes a graduation date within 6 months of the internship start date as a recent graduate. Work towards or recent graduate of an MLIS degree program preferred. 

· Good communication skills and attention to detail 

· Background in modern and contemporary art history 

· Basic knowledge of library processes, some existing library experience preferred 

**Current SFMOMA employees are not eligible to apply for the Summer 2025 internship.**

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

· Completed application via SFMOMA's job site

· Resume

· Cover letter stating the specific internship of interest. Describe the experience you bring, why you are interested in museum or nonprofit work, reasons for applying to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and your goals for the internship.

· Two letters of recommendation from either a college professor or former employer.

· College transcript: Transcripts can be unofficial but need to be legible.

Application Deadline: March 14, 2025

You do not need separate letters of recommendation for each intern application - please just let each of the recommenders know which internships (up to 3) you're applying to and we'll review those two letters across all of your internship applications.

Location: San Francisco, 151 3rd Street. 

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records. 

SFMOMA is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. No person shall be discriminated against based on race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, age, genetic information, ancestry/national origin, marital status, disability, medical condition, HIV status, sexual orientation, veteran/military status, and any other category protected by federal of state law.

You may request reasonable accommodation if you are unable to or are limited in your ability to access job postings or provide additional information asked in the job posting.

You can request reasonable accommodation by contacting the People Team at talent@sfmoma.org.