Sample memos announcing an organizational meeting about internships:
SAMPLE IUP MEMO
Date: Current date
To: All Anthropology Faculty
From: Internship Coordinator, Department of Anthropology
Re: Summer 1994 Anthropology Internships
Please announce to your advanced anthropology classes:
All anthropology majors are invited to attend the Department's 1994 Internship orientation session on January 31, 3:30, Keith 104. Internships are reserved for those students who have completed 57 credit hours and have a QPA of 2.5 or above. If you plan to apply for an internship this summer, this is a required meeting. If you cannot attend the meeting please see the Internship Advisor in advance. Important information and forms will be distributed.
This meeting is especially important because the University application deadline for internships is in March and it takes time to arrange internship sites.
SAMPLE FLYER
attention:
anthropology majors
Summer 1995 Anthropology Internship Meeting
All anthropology majors are invited to attend the Department's 1994 Internship orientation session on Monday, January30, 3:30, Keith 105. Internships are reserved for those students who have completed 57 credit hours and have a GPA of 2.5 or above. If you plan to apply for an internship this summer, this is a required meeting. If you can not attend the meeting please see the Internship Advisor, in advance. Important information and forms will be distributed at this meeting.
This meeting is especially important because the University application deadline for internships is in March and it takes time to arrange internship sites.
SAMPLE INTRODUCTORY LETTER
Dear Sir or Madam:
I am writing for information regarding internship or undergraduate research opportunities that may be taking place at (name of institution) during this come summer of 1997.
Currently, I am a college student in my junior year at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP), majoring in Anthropology/Archaeology. I have taken basic though advanced undergraduate courses in archaeology, anthropology, and geology, as well as other required liberal studies courses, maintaining to date a 4.0 (A) grade point average. I have completed a required six-week archaeological field school this past summer of 1996. I have also participated in a number of other shorter CRM "digs" here in Pennsylvania as part of the crew.
I am interested in obtaining additional experience in archaeology before completing my undergraduate work at IUP. I have a particular interest in human osteology and would be especially pleased to find an opportunity to work in a lab setting, studying human remains and/or excavating human remains. Also, I am quite familiar with the use of the (IBM) personal computer in general data processing and analysis, and in report preparation; and I would be interested in participating in the use and development of computer software in the managing and interpretation of archaeological/osteological data.
Please send any available information relation to undergraduate internships and/or research participation opportunities at (name of institution), including also applications, deadlines, associated fees or stipends, housing arrangements, room/board, etc.
Thank you for your kind attention to this request.
Yours truly,
Matthew P. Rhode
SAMPLE INTRODUCTORY LETTER
Dear Ms Boulis:
As requested, I have enclosed a vita along with two letters of recommendation as part of my application for a summer internship at the University Museum. Because of my participation in the 1994 Summer Field School at IUP, I would not be able to start my internship until July. However, the dates are not firm, and there is some degree of flexibility regarding the date upon which I would be able to start my internship.
There are several goals which I hope to accomplish through this internship. First, I would like to gain experience as a professional in the field of anthropology. In the process, I hope to gain a working knowledge of the functioning of a museum. Second, I would like the opportunity to utilize the skills that I have acquired (please see vita). I would also like to come into contact with other professionals in the field so that I might become more aware of career opportunities that are open to me. Ultimately, I hope to be exposed to the many different facets of anthropology in order to aid me in deciding an a specialty in graduate school.
Through this internship experience, I hope to obtain 6 credits toward my undergraduate degree. In order to do this, it is necessary that I meet IUP's internship requirements including a project report (Dr. Kruckman, internship coordinator, will send you more information regarding the specific requirements).
As Dr. Kruckman informed you on the phone, IUP has an application deadline for internships in April. It would be greatly appreciated if you would contact me at the above address or the following phone number as soon as possible regarding my internship application. The number at which I can be reached is (412) 357-3572. Thank you very much for you time and effort. I am looking forward to hearing from you in the future.
Sincerely,
Katherine J. Ruppel
SAMPLE STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
Statement of Purpose
Osteological Internship
Matthew P. Rhode
I have had an interest in osteology for a number of years now. My interest in this subject began with the plethora of TV programs that dealt with Egyptians and mummies I had seen as a young child. This predisposition to subjects relating to Egyptians and mummies led me to write a number of papers on mummification and ancient middle eastern civilizations during my time in high school. The information I gained from those papers and my general interest in ancient civilization and ancient peoples then led me to pursue a degree in Archaeology. However, as I have taken a number of courses in Anthropology and Archaeology I have come to find that my interests really lie in studies that deal with the skeletal remains of past cultures, more importantly human skeletal populations. Questions posed to the archaeologist about culture that stem from the examination of skeletal materials fascinate me. Trying to figure out the sex, age, stature, race, health or cause of death of an individual, to me is a very valuable facet of Archaeological research. When osteological data is combined with other Archaeological information (subsistence, housing, tool use, etc.) a researcher can begin to finally gain an understanding for just exactly what "culture" is.
Presently, I have only had three courses that required me to directly deal with human remains and burial customs. These courses are "Anthropology of Bone," "Archaeological Research Design and Analysis," and "Archaeology and the Bible." Through these courses, I have been introduced by course work or discovery, to basic osteological analysis, burial customs, cremations, and designing Archaeological research projects. Through participation in an internship I feel that I would be trying to attain several goals. First, I want to be introduced to real osteological analysis, to affirm or negate my interest in this field. Second, if I find I am truly interested in this subject, I want to see what the actual areas of research are that one could pursue. This involves learning what the essential literature is for an osteological researcher. Thirdly, a major goals would be to attain hands on experience in recording information from bones and then placing that data in computer programs and getting results that would be used to make reliable determinations about the skeletal materials.
I feel that I would be able to perform well during an internship because I have a basic knowledge in a number of osteological techniques. I know how to identify human bones and differentiate then from faunal remains. I also know how to determine the sex, age, and race of a skeleton. This determination is based on such things as examination of the medial surface of the pubic symphsis, use of the phenice method, and non-metric variables. I know how to conduct research and am able to pull relevant information out of articles on a specific top. In the area of research, I have done research on the burial customs of the Israelites of the second temple period in Palestine. I have also conducted a research project on cremated remains that are of supposed Hohokam origin. During that research project, I was able to apply my abilities of identification to figure out specific human bones from an extremely fragmented sample. I also have a number of other skills, such as: Computer Literacy (and willingness to work with computers), general knowledge of Biological Anthropology, North American Archaeology, Archaeological field methods, extensive field experience (digging, mapping, surveying, etc.), Cultural Anthropology, and Geology (physical, historical).
Overall, I hope you see, that I have a good foundation of knowledge in a number of important osteological fields. Through this internship, I would like to get my first taste of hands on intensive osteological analysis. By having such an experience, I can learn techniques, tools, and about literature that can help me when I continue on to graduate school.
SAMPLE RESUME
Objective
Immediate = For the summer of 1997, to undertake an internship that will expand and broaden my interest in human osteology (methods, techniques, and fields of osteological research).
Long Term = After completing my BA at IUP, to go on to graduate school and secure first an MA, then a Doctorate in archaeology with an emphasis on osteology, then to attain a position at a major research institution.
Qualifications
strong work ethic and desire to perform tasks to the best of my abilities
general knowledge of basic osteological methods and techniques
strong interest in field of human osteology
willingness to explore the various theories and methods of osteological research
Education
Presently completing a BA in anthropology (expected 5/98) Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana, PA
Concentration on archaeology track of anthropology curriculum
Have maintained to date a 4.0 GPA overall and major
Pursuing a minor in geology
Have completed 3 semesters of Arabic (MSA) and currently pursuing 4th
Relevant Courses
Anthropology of Bone (general osteological course with emphasis in human and animal remains
Research Design and Analysis (designing research and conducting analysis on project of your own design)
North American Archaeology (general background to North American Archaeology from early pre-history up to present historic materials)
Archaeology and the Bible (overview Palestinian archaeology and relationship to Bible)
presently taking World Religions, CRM, and Museum Methods
Relevant Course Projects
(Paper) Second Temple Period Burials and the Coin on Eye Custom, this paper looked to the burial customs of Palestine in the second temple period (1st century BC to 1st century AD) and the questions of whether the placing of the coins upon the eyes of the dead was a custom held over from Greek influences.
(Semester Project) A study of the cremated human remains of probable Hohokam origin.
Archaeology, Work, and Volunteer Experiences
Freeport Dock Phase I (crew) Fall 1996
Liverpool Access Phase (crew) Fall 1996
Summer 1996 Field School (Smicksburg, PA) (6 weeks) (student)
Bogus Run preliminary excavations (Allegheny National Forest) (crew) Spring 1996
Semester Cataloguing Excavations at Smicksburg (volunteer) Spring 1995
Preliminary Excavations at Smicksburg (volunteer) Spring 1995
Smicksburg 2-day excavation (student) Fall 1995
Eliza Furnace 2-day excavation (volunteer) Fall 1994
Interests
Reading: Fiction (Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Classics), Non-Fiction (materials relevant to my area of interest)
Computers: IBM PC (working knowledge of Word 6.0, Win 95, Netscape (surfing the net), and gaming
History (overall world history, focus on near-east, Nabateans, Petra)
Religion (the interaction of culture and religion, how it relates to burials and the treatment of the dead)
Memberships
Lambda Alpha (Epsilon chapter) Anthropology Honor Society lifetime member (1996-present)
Anthropology Club (member) 1994-present
References
Dr. Sarah Neusius, Associate Professor, IUP Anthropology Department, (She is the professor from which I took the Anthropology of Bone, basic osteology class.)
Dr. Philip Neusius, Associate Professor, IUP Anthropology Department, (He is the professor of the six week field school I attended.)
Dr. Laurence Kruckman, Professor, IUP Anthropology Department, (Internship Advisor, Character reference)
Dr. Todd Koetje, Assistant Professor, IUP Anthropology Department, ( I have worked with him during the Bogus Run, Liverpool Access, and Freeport Dock projects.)