Ryan Learning Center Internship

The Art Institute of Chicago shares its singular collections with our city and the world. We collect, care for, and interpret works of art across time, cultures, geographies, and identities, centering the vision of artists and makers. We recognize that all art is made in a particular context, demanding continual, dynamic reconsideration in the present. We are a place of gathering; we foster the exchange of ideas and inspire an expansive, inclusive understanding of human creativity.

Expected Range: $16.73 per hour

Job Classification: Intern

Grade Level: Not Applicable

This role is not eligible for benefits or PTO.

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT

The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Learning Center is a platform for culturally responsive experiences that bring young people and the adults around them into dynamic and inspiring encounters with art and creativity. The Ryan Learning Center team:

champions the role of art and culture in people’s lives,

promotes access and equitable participation in art and the museum,

fosters critical and creative thinking.

As a result, youth, teens, families, students, and educators from various backgrounds and abilities engage with each other and with works of art from across time, cultures, geographies, and identities, activating the museum as a place for learning, insight, inspiration, and community. These museum experiences enable young people and the adults around them to feel more connected and confident in their capacity to imagine, create, and make sense of art and their world.

ABOUT THE RYAN LEARNING CENTER INTERNSHIP

Duration of Program: 8 weeks / June 19, 2025 through August 1, 2025

Compensation: Paid / $16.73/hr / Full-time 

Additional housing and transportation stipends will be awarded to all participating interns. Further details will be included in internship offers.

Schedule: This is a full-time, 8-week position. The intern will work 35 hours per week, Monday-Friday with some weekend or evening hours required. 

Format: The internship will be primarily onsite, with limited remote shifts or hours. Internet access and appropriate technology will be necessary to complete this internship, but technological accommodations can be provided by the Art Institute of Chicago based on necessity.

Number of openings: 8

Internship Description:

The Ryan Learning Center department (RLC) invites students to apply for an immersive eight-week experience in museum teaching. Interns will engage in intensive training in museum education practice and pedagogy, with a focus on hands-on learning, designing and facilitating tours and art experiences for a variety of audiences. Primary internship projects might include:

developing and leading thematic tours for visiting family, community, and adult audiences

designing and facilitating gallery activities

supporting hands-on learning in the museum’s Ryan Learning Center

participating in research and writing projects

attending weekly museum career seminar

active reflection through writing and conversation

Internship Outcomes

Ryan Learning Center Summer interns will:

 Gain practical experience in the field of museum learning and begin to develop a teaching practice

 Gain behind-the-scenes insights into the operations of a large museum and develop an understanding of the broader context of informal learning in the museum and the city

 Build a network of peers and mentors

 Collaborate with staff mentors to create individualized goals unique to each intern’s career aspirations and personal growth.

Goals of the McMullan Arts Leadership Internship Program

The Ryan Learning Center Internship is funded through a generous donation from the James and Madeleine McMullan Family Foundation. This McMullan Arts Leadership internship is part of a museum-wide effort to provide students the opportunity to gain experience, career awareness, networks, and skills that will position them to thrive as future art museum leaders.

The primary objective of this internship is to support students who will encounter economic challenges if considering a career in the arts. Aligned with this goal, we aim to shape a diverse group of leaders whose actions are informed by a wide range of perspectives, varying career paths, and values inspired by their own lived experiences.

Required Qualifications and Desired Skills:

Qualified applicants will be rising senior undergraduates, graduating seniors, or Master’s Degree students in any year (undergraduate applicants must have completed their junior year by May 2025 and will not have graduated before December 2024; graduate applicants will not have graduated before December 2024). In addition to these requirements, applicants should possess:

Interest in the arts and/or museums, demonstrated through academic study, work experience, or by other means

Experience teaching, assisting teaching, tutoring, or mentoring in informal or formal education settings (in-person or virtual) such as a school, camp, college, after-school program, community center, or museum

Strong communication, creative thinking, and research skills

 Physical Requirements:

The physical demands described are representative of those that must be met by a teammate to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Daily standing or active movement for periods of 2-3 hours

With training and under the supervision of staff, operates cutting equipment such as paper cutting guillotines, Xacto knives, and scissors

Occasionally lifts and moves packages of up to 25 pounds

Operates computers, printers, and other standard office equipment

Strong preference will be given to candidates who speak Spanish fluently

HOW TO APPLY

To apply for this internship, tell us your story. We want to understand who you are, what motivates you, how you think, and where you’re coming from. Please submit the following materials:

Résumé

In lieu of a traditional cover letter, please respond to the following questions in short essays (no more than 300 words per answer.) We encourage you to provide specific examples to support your answers or to illustrate your ideas:

What about this opportunity interests you the most?

With the goals of the McMullan Arts Leadership intern program in mind, what unique values, experiences, or perspectives would you bring to this role?

What do you appreciate about working with children and teens, and what approaches might you bring to working with youth and families in an art museum?

How do you envision this opportunity helping you towards your professional goals?

Upload all materials into one pdf document and list your last name and “Summer 2025” in the title of the file (example: [LAST NAME]_Summer2025.pdf.) The application will close on March 7, 2025 at 11:59 PM CDT. Selected applicants will be asked to interview, either in-person if conditions allow (for local candidates) or via video conference (non-local candidates or for all candidates depending on safety precautions). Applicants must be authorized for employment in the United States.

The Art Institute of Chicago is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits, hires and promotes qualified individuals without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, ancestry, veteran status or citizenship. The Institute complies with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact the Department of Human Resources at apply_help@artic.edu.