Storytelling and Community Research Intern (Fall Semester, Part Time)

Program Overview

We are excited to offer a 10-week Storytelling and Community Research Internship designed to immerse students and early-career professionals in the dynamic world of inclusive research and exhibit design. The Storytelling and Community Research Intern will support the development of a new storytelling exhibit focused on people's experiences with earthquakes, earthquake science, preparedness, and emergency response. Working closely with the exhibit development team, the intern will help identify, collect, document, and curate first-person stories that can bring a human perspective to the exhibit.

A primary focus of the internship will be qualitative research and oral history. The intern may assist with identifying potential interview participants, researching their backgrounds, developing interview questions, conducting or supporting interviews, reviewing recordings and transcripts, and identifying compelling excerpts for possible use in the exhibit. Interviewees may include local residents who have experienced significant earthquakes as well as scientists, engineers, emergency responders, preparedness experts, and other subject matter experts.

The intern will also help investigate existing stories contained in archival collections, oral history projects, news archives, libraries, museums, universities, and other sources. This work may include researching provenance, attribution, permissions, rights, and acquisition requirements so that the exhibit team can evaluate whether existing recordings, quotations, photographs, or other materials may be appropriately incorporated into the experience.

Through this work, the intern will gain practical experience applying sociological and anthropological research methods to a public-facing project while learning how museums translate complex research and lived experience into accessible interpretive content. 

Learning Outcomes: 

• Conduct First-Person Research: Gain hands-on experience in qualitative interviewing, oral history techniques, and archival research methods to collect and analyze primary sources effectively.
• Apply Ethical Frameworks: Ensure proper documentation of permissions, donor rights, and attribution requirements while handling sensitive first-person narratives.
• Execute Thematic Analysis: Synthesize complex interview transcripts and historical findings into thematic categories to identify key narrative threads.
• Translate Research for Public Audiences: Develop clear, engaging, and accessible written content suitable for museum exhibitions and public display.
• Collaborate in a Professional Setting: Enhance project management, interpersonal, and team communication skills by working cross-functionally with an interdisciplinary museum team.

Responsibilities: 

• Interns will be supporting the initial design and prototyping of digital, game-based interactive exhibits. They will be expected to:
• Collaborate with exhibit team members on the conceptualizing of digital, game-based interactives
• Create a variety of low to high fidelity prototypes to support testing of overall gameplay and game mechanics 
• Assist with visitor prototyping to evaluate overall audience engagement, accessibility, and learning takeaways. 
• Make design iterations based on visitor feedback and prototyping learnings. 
• Maintain documentation of their design process to inform final exhibit design

Qualifications:

• must be currently enrolled in a college or university undergraduate or graduate program with a focus on: sociology, anthropology, public history, oral history, museum studies, communications, ethnic studies, or a similarly related field. 
• Strong listening, writing, research, organizational, and interpersonal skills, along with an interest in community storytelling, museums, public history, science communication, or disaster studies. 
• Additional language skills, particularly Spanish or Vietnamese, are welcome. 
• Experience with qualitative research, interviewing, oral history, archival collections, transcription tools, or research databases is helpful but not required. 

Working Conditions and Schedule

• This role is based at The Tech Interactive in downtown San Jose and requires a meaningful on-site presence.
• Available to work 8-12 hours per week from October 14 - December 23, 2026, Monday through Friday (flexible)
• Requires prolonged computer work, and active hands-on prototyping which requires frequent standing, bending, fine motor tool use, and the ability to lift up to 25 pounds with or without reasonable accommodation.

Deadline to Apply:
Please submit your application by October 1, 2026 to guarantee review, as applications received after this date may not be considered.

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) at The Tech

Our success is dependent on building teams that include people from different backgrounds and experiences who challenge each other’s assumptions with fresh perspectives. To that end, we look for a diverse pool of applicants including but not limited to those from historically marginalized groups — women, people with disabilities, people of color, people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or nonconforming, veterans, and people from different socioeconomic backgrounds.

The Tech will provide an equal opportunity in recruitment and employment to all individuals and will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), gender identity, gender expression, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, physical or mental disability, legally protected medical condition, military or veteran status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, genetic information, or any other basis protected by applicable law. Any applicant with a disability may contact The Tech Interactive to arrange for accommodations. Please contact the Tech at [email protected] or call (408) 795-6248.