Collections Intern @ Las Vegas Natural History Museum

This semester I interned at the Las Vegas Natural History Museum, in the natural and cultural collections departments. Natural Collections include geological, paleontology, Insects, and Taxidermy items. Cultural collections include items created or used by humans, or provide information about their respective cultures. I spent the majority of my time not at the actual museum, but at the annex where many specimens, artifacts, and taxidermy are stored. Some of these items rotate through the museum displays, and others are stored for government and research purposes. The museum is also recognized as a federal repository, where items from the Bureau of Land Management's and other government agencies excavations are stored. I was able to do well at my internship, because of the prior anthropology and archaeology courses I had taken. It gave me the necessary background information I needed for my tasks. This was a great experience for me as it allowed me to learn what collections is really like. I was able to learn how to handle items, and also navigate databases which are vital for this field. It will make it easier to get other internships and to also apply for jobs in the field.

My major is anthropology, and I was able to work with historical items and archaeological items and learn how they were acquired and researched. Additionally, I helped to audit existing items, and also reorganize them in storage. Moreover, I was able to familiarize myself with past perfect, which is archiving software and is the most popular one used at museums. I think I could see myself working in a museum or university collections department. Overall I enjoyed learning about the pieces I was in charge of. My supervisors were realistic in telling me how competitive it is. I will most likely need my master’s degree and probably another internship or two, to be considered qualified for positions. I believe I could also try for jobs within the federal government, in collections, or also managing Cultural sites. I believe this experience was a vital part of my education and allowed me to learn immersively.