Applications Now Open for Junior Fellows Program 2022

UPDATED: The new deadline for applications is Monday, November 29, 2021.

The Library of Congress seeks applicants for its next Junior Fellows Summer Internship Program, which will run from May 23, 2022 – July 29, 2022. This 10-week paid internship is open to undergraduate and graduate students interested in learning and conducting research at the largest library in the world. For the third year in a row, the internship will be conducted virtually.

The deadline to apply is Monday, November 29, 2021.  Students can learn more and apply to the program by visiting loc.gov/item/internships/junior-fellows-program/.

The 2022 Junior Fellows program is supported by a grant from the Mellon Foundation to the Library for a multiyear initiative to connect more deeply with Black, Hispanic, Indigenous and other communities of color by expanding its collections, using technology to enable storytelling, and offering more internship and fellowship opportunities. The initiative, Of the People: Widening the Path, creates new opportunities for more people to engage with the Library, thus weaving a more inclusive American story. This work will expand the Library’s efforts to ensure that a diversity of experiences is reflected in our historical record and inform how we use those materials to understand our past.

The initiative is part of a larger vision at the Library to connect with all Americans by inviting new generations to participate in creating, preserving, and sharing the nation’s cultural treasures and building on the Library’s commitment to collect and preserve more underrepresented perspectives and experiences. The Junior Fellows portion of the initiative funds paid internships and fellowships to benefit from the wisdom of students, engage the next generation of diverse librarians, and create a range of digital engagements to connect with underserved communities and institutions.

The 2022 Junior Fellows Program projects show strong alignment to Of the People goals to highlight collections that more fully represent the rich cultural heritage of the United States. These projects include cultural, scientific, and digital projects that enhance access and engagement with the collections. Below is a sampling of the 2022 projects:

Mapping the Stories: The Legacy of Daniel A. P. Murray. A pioneering African American bibliographer and historian, Daniel

Alexander Payne Murray spent 51 years (1871-1922) working at the Library of Congress, leaving a legacy of rare and important literary materials that document the lives and accomplishments of African Americans. The Junior Fellow will research the history of Daniel A. P. Murray and his historical relevance to the Library’s efforts and create a story map telling the stories of African-American contributions.

Allillanchu! Andean Stories. This project will surface collections that represent the rich and vast cultural heritage of the United States in connection to the Latin American countries. The Junior Fellow will conduct research to create storytelling projects to expand indigenous study engagement with the collections at the Library of Congress.

Mapping Historical Demographics: Race and Inequality. This project will uncover and delve deeply into old Census maps, maps produced by researchers and by other cartographers in the U.S., from 1800 to the present, which show the historical demographics of race and economic inequality in the U.S. The Junior Fellow will collect and present documents in a web mapping application available as a group for the public.

Content Development: Library of Congress Youth Center. This project supports development of a new experiential learning space in the Library of Congress. Project tasks include content support for interactives, working with content specialist liaisons to identify collections, and research on informal learning practices including benchmarking studies of similar programs at cultural institutions.

Enhancing Access: Creative Digital Projects. This project will involve the creative re-use and re-mixing of digital materials from the Library of Congress towards creating new digital exhibits, publications, or works of art that center the lives, experiences and perspectives of communities of color.

All of the proposed projects provide invaluable opportunities for interns to engage with the Library’s resources, interpret collections, and share their findings with audiences through a wide variety of virtual channels. The Library anticipates hiring 46 interns for 27 projects. Read the full list of projects and their descriptions here.

The Junior Fellows summer intern program has been a signature initiative of the Library of Congress since 1991. The Junior Fellows Program is made possible by a gift from the late James Madison Council member Nancy Glanville Jewell through the Glanville Family Foundation and the Knowledge Navigators Trust Fund and by an investment from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.