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MLIS Internships

The UCLA Department of Information Studies operates a dynamic and progressive internship program. This program provides students enrolled in the MLIS or Ph.D. degree programs with a wide range of opportunities to apply their knowledge and skills in a structured professional environment under the supervision, guidance and mentoring of current practitioners in the information profession.
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Internship Sites

The internship program has been in place since the 1970s and has grown to include nearly 250 sites. Our Los Angeles location allows us to offer an exciting and diverse range of local internship sites. Our program is highly regarded among local organizations and companies. Among those working with UCLA to offer internships to our students are:

Winter 2021

  • Chicana Por Mi Raza Digital Memory Collective
  • Getty Conservation Institute (AATA)
  • Inglewood Public Library
  • LA City College
  • La Historia Historical Society
  • LACMA – Digital Preservation (CIDA)
  • San Francisco Cinematheque
  • SFPL Jail & Reentry Services
  • Skid Row Museum
  • UCLA Library – Resource Acquisitions & Metadata
  • University of Sydney, Fine Arts Library
  • USC Libraries
  • USC Archives and Special Collections
  • Visual Communications
  • Wende Museum

Internship/Fieldwork sites from previous years

Dates and Forms

Internship hours must be completed during the quarter in which the student is enrolled; regular academic year quarters are ten weeks, and summer sessions may be six, eight, or ten weeks. See the Annual Academic Calendar for term start and end dates.

Agreement to Supervise an MLIS Intern/Fieldwork (PDF)

Suggested Practices for Site Supervisors (PDF)

Internship Evaluation Criteria (PDF)

Internship Evaluation Form (for supervisors) (PDF)

Internship/Fieldwork Site Application (Google Form)

Become a Fieldwork Site

Interested in working with our skilled and motivated graduate students as a new Fieldwork or Internship site? The first step is to complete the online Internship/Fieldwork Site Application. The Department’s requirement for a 4-unit Internship (IS498) or Fieldwork (IS497) course is a minimum of 120 hours per quarter of responsible work at the professional level, supervised and evaluated by a qualified and appropriately credentialed professional in an information agency, archive or library approved by the Department. Internship supervisors typically hold an MLIS degree. Fieldwork supervisors must be professionals with appropriate training or credentials to oversee the type of experience offered, and will work with an instructor of record from the IS department faculty (either the student’s academic advisor or another faculty member with relevant expertise). For more information, please contact Dee Winn, the Internship Coordinator, at winn@seis.ucla.edu.