The Walters Art Museum values creating knowledge and mentoring future leaders in the museum field, both of which we deem critical to the realization of our institutional mission. To achieve these goals the museum has a lively research and fellowship program, opening up new opportunities for training and diversifying the fields of art history and museum practice. Within the Art & Program division, these opportunities are in the fields of curatorial, conservation and conservation science, education, and collections management.
The Walters offers the following fellowship and internship opportunities. These positions will be listed online when they are available for application.
The Carol Bates Fellowship
The Carol Bates Fellowship is a 32-hour per week position designed for creative individuals who are either enrolled in or are recent graduates of Museum Studies, Museum Education, Education, Fine Arts, Art History or Liberal Arts programs. Fellows spend ten months working in the Education department on a project that integrates curriculum and program design, evaluation practice, and interpretation.
UALP Fellowship
The Walters is proud to be a part of the Urban Arts Leadership Program (UALP). The UALP Fellowship was created to increase diversity in the management of cultural and artistic organizations by building a pipeline for high-achieving emerging leaders.
The UALP is a program of the Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance. The development of UALP has been guided by community input and the participation of more than 30 administrators from partnering cultural organizations. The UALP offers professional development and network-building opportunities to develop and empower tomorrow’s leaders. UALP fellows engage in a rigorous training program and are matched with host organizations where they contribute to the organization’s culture, and additionally, manage core projects.
The Robert and Nancy Hall Fellowship Program
The Robert and Nancy Hall Fellowship Program provides undergraduate and graduate students at Johns Hopkins University with the opportunity to gain substantive understanding of the museum profession and to contribute to the work of the Walters.
The program is intended for students to work on one or more curatorial projects in the Art & Program division. Successful candidates will work closely with a curator or another appropriate staff member as his or her mentor and supervisor. The fellow will research the Walters’ internationally-acclaimed collections and make this research accessible through online cataloguing and other platforms in service of the museum’s mission.
Two opportunities are awarded each year: one to an undergraduate student for a three-month fellowship in the summer, and one to a graduate student for a nine-month fellowship during the academic year.
Applicants must be currently enrolled full-time in either the undergraduate or graduate programs at the Homewood campus of Johns Hopkins University. Students must have some background in art history. Seniors are not eligible to apply for fellowships for the period following their graduation.
Zanvyl Krieger Curatorial Fellowship
The Zanvyl Krieger Curatorial Fellowship is designed to provide museum and curatorial training for advanced graduate students (PhD candidates) in the Department of the History of Art at Johns Hopkins University. Fellows conduct research projects and play a part in the day-to-day running of the Manuscripts department, which has more than 900 illuminated medieval manuscripts, 1,300 incunabula, and 2,000 rare printed books.
The fellowship supports half-time work on the fellow’s dissertation and half-time work as a curatorial assistant for a two-year period. If the fellow has completed a dissertation by the end of the second year, the Walters has the option to award a third year at full-time status.
The Andrew W. Mellon and Wieler-Mellon Post-Doctoral Curatorial Fellowships
The Andrew W. Mellon and Wieler-Mellon Post-Doctoral Curatorial Fellowships are designed for outstanding scholars who have recently finished his or her PhD and wish to pursue a curatorial career in the art museum field. These two-year fellowships support scholarly research related to the collections of the Walters and provide curatorial training and experience.
These fellows will be fully integrated into the daily working environment of the Art & Program division and will work closely with an individual curator. The fellows will also have the opportunity to work with conservators and museum educators in service of the museum and its mission. They will have access to museum collections and research libraries, both within the museum and in the region, and enjoy all of the professional privileges given to other museum staff members.
The fellows will divide their time between specific research projects (two-fifths) and more general curatorial work (three-fifths). General curatorial activities include research on the collection, work on the display of the collection and its publication in print or online, and participation in special exhibition projects. The fellows will be expected to participate in the museum’s education and public programs and deliver public lectures and gallery talks. The fellows will receive an annual stipend and a travel allowance.
The Bard Graduate Center Internship at the Walters
The Bard Graduate Center Internship at the Walters provides an opportunity each summer for a student from the Bard Graduate Center (BGC) to work on the museum’s collections of decorative arts. BGC is a graduate research institute devoted to the study of the decorative arts, design history, and material culture. This internship is designated for an MA or a PhD student who will be fully integrated into the Art & Program division for a period of six weeks. Students should apply through the BGC. For questions, please contact [email protected].
The Bard Graduate Center Curatorial Internship provides MA and PhD students with the opportunity to work on a research and cataloguing project. An intern works closely with a curator, who serves as his or her mentor and supervisor. The intern will research the Walters’ internationally-acclaimed collections and make this research accessible through online cataloguing and other platforms in service of the museum’s mission. Up to three curatorial internships are awarded each year. Credit can be arranged through the student’s college or university.
The Andrew W. Mellon Advanced Training in Conservation Fellowship
The Andrew W. Mellon Advanced Training in Conservation Fellowship is a two-year fellowship that is open to recent graduates of conservation training programs or candidates with comparable experience. It is offered on a rotating basis among the Paintings, Objects, and Book and Paper labs.
The fellow is fully integrated into the department of Conservation and Technical Research and has the opportunity to work closely with conservators and the museum’s conservation scientist, as well curators and educators.
The fellow has access to the museum collections, analytical facilities, and research libraries, both within the museum and in the region, and will enjoy all of the professional privileges of the museum’s staff. The Conservation staff at the Walters is committed to supporting professional activities nationally and internationally. The fellow will be encouraged to play an active role in a broad range of professional activities.
Conservation Graduate Student Internships
Conservation Graduate Student Internships are available in the Conservation and Technical Research lab, which was established in 1934 as one of the first museum labs in the United States. These internships are for a full academic year and offer advanced training in conservation. The department is committed to the training of emerging conservation professionals and has hosted hundreds of interns since the 1970s.
Through hands-on examination, treatment and research, and outreach opportunities, interns gain an understanding of conservation’s role in museums today. Internships are offered in several areas of specialization including: paintings, book and paper, and objects and conservation science.