MAPH UChicago Editorial Intern – Publishing (Summer 2026)

About the Art Institute of Chicago

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. We are a place of gathering and learning, committed to fostering an inclusive understanding of human creativity.

Position Summary

This internship offers the opportunity to gain experience and knowledge of the fields of both museum publishing and art museum work more broadly. In the department of Publishing, the intern will learn about the rigorous, multifaceted editorial process that informs the creation of the Art Institute’s print and digital publications, from gallery labels to exhibition and collection catalogues. The intern will work closely with the Editorial Director, Senior Editor, and project editors on various projects, as well as colleagues in production. Due to the cross-institutional nature of our work, the intern will also have the opportunity to collaborate with curators, interpretation staff, project managers, imaging staff, freelancers (including indexers, translators, and proofreaders), and other personnel.

Internship Outcomes

In this position, the intern will have the opportunity to:

• Introduction to the field of museum publishing—what we do and how we do it
• Introduction to editing at the Art Institute of Chicago, including developmental editing, copyediting, and proofreading, as well as our Style Guide and Inclusive Language Guidelines
• Opportunities to edit and proofread book and didactics—in manuscript and in designed layouts
• Introduction to museum interpretation and how we write for museum visitors at the Art Institute
• Opportunities to meet and collaborate with colleagues in publishing (editors, production staff, photo editor, and interpretation specialists) and across the museum (including but not limited to curators, designers, imaging specialists, and conservators)
• Develop mentor relationships with field practitioners
• Build peer-to-peer relationships with fellow interns and take part in intern cohort programming (including but not limited to artist talks, career development workshops, and curator-led gallery tours)

Responsibilities

• Assists with the developmental editing, copyediting, proofreading, and fact checking of a range of print and digital publications, including exhibition and collection catalogues, books for general readers, and in-gallery didactics
• Assists with the editing of in-gallery didactics, including labels, wall texts, digital labels, and other interpretive materials
• Cleans up and formats Word docs of essays, figure captions lists, labels, and more

Qualifications

• Current MAPH program participant.

Compensation & Benefits

Hiring Range:  $20.00 per hour. Maximum of 25 hours per week (250 hours over the course of the internship). Paid through University of Chicago’s Master of Arts Program in the Humanities.

This position is not benefits eligible.

• Job Classification: Hourly
• Employment Category: Intern (temporary)

If you are accessing this listing from a third party, not all links to salary and benefits information may work. Please visit our career page at saic/artic.edu/employment for complete information

Internship Information

Duration of Position: 10 weeks / June 2026 (start date anytime between June 9-June 23) through August 2026 (end date anytime before September 1, 2026).

Schedule: The intern will work for a total of 250 hours. The internship will start in June and continue through the summer for 25 hours per week over the course of 10 weeks or through September 1.

Hour long virtual and in-person intern professional development programs will be scheduled throughout the internship term that the student is strongly encouraged to attend. These programs will occur during the week; we ask that the intern make this part of their internship schedule.

Format: The internship will occur fully onsite. Due to onsite necessity, applicants based or attending school in the Chicagoland area during the internship timeframe will be prioritized. Internet access and appropriate technology will be necessary to complete this internship, but technological accommodations will be provided by the Art Institute of Chicago.

Application Instructions

You must upload all of the requested materials below. Please upload your materials where asked in the online application.

Please Note: You will not be considered if any requested application element is missing.

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:

1. Résumé / CV
2. Cover Letter
3. Writing Sample

Deadline: Applications will be reviewed as they’re received. The selected candidate for this role will be contacted within two weeks of the position’s posting.

Accessibility

If you are a job seeker with a disability and require a reasonable accommodation to apply for one of our jobs, you will find the contact information to request the appropriate accommodation by visiting the following page:

Accessibility Accommodation for Applicants

Equal Opportunity Statement

The Art Institute of Chicago is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits, hires and promotes qualified individuals compliant with federal and state laws. 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.