Hello historians of Reddit, I don't really know if this is the right place to ask this, but I will try.
I am a history student at a university in Germany looking forward to my job-focused internship. But I am uncertain about where to do that internship, I can only think about a museum, but that can't be all there is. I am especially interested in german and european history, but I would also say that i am very interested in history as a subject in general. I am still not sure what I want to do in the future, but I thought of historian or a profession that is in some kind history-related. Can you guys maybe give me an idea, telling me about how you got into your profession? And do you have a proposal on what place a good internship place for a history student could be? Thanks, and sorry for bothering you guys! :)
In the US, about half the employed historians find places outside of teaching. I was a state historic preservation officer in my career (working to save or address historic buildings and sites and archaeological sites).
I frequently placed history students in various internships, including in my own agency. Others became interns in archives and museums.
Internships are a great way to explore various employment opportunities. Students can learn more history, but they also learn about what various careers offer. As for me, I would have had a hard time working in an archive, but I could imagine having had a happy career in a museum. That is only a personal reaction, and a student exploring the possibilities with internships is likely to have completely different reactions – which is a good part of the learning process.
I’m not sure how this would unfold in Germany. I always appreciated history (and archaeology) students who contacted me so we could discuss interests and possibilities. With that, I was able to do what I could for the student. But it often began with the student contacting me, since I wasn’t likely to go to campus and walk the halls looking for candidates. When I needed an intern, I sometimes contacted professors I respected and asked for candidates, but most often, it began with the student who was ambitious enough to ask.
I hope this helps. Good luck on your journey.