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Summer Humanities EXCEL is a new 10-week program for UC Santa Cruz Humanities undergrads that offers paid, project-based internships with nonprofit organizations and public agencies across Los Angeles County (plus Riverside and Irvine!!) The program allows you to live at home while gaining meaningful professional experience in your community.
10-week term: 285 total hours from June 22 -- August 28, 2026
Recieve a scholarship for up to $4,000 and 10 tuition-free summer session credits. This program does not arrange or provide transportation, nor does it reimburse driving expenses. To be eligible, you must have a reliable means of transportation to reach the specified address.
Downtown Riverside, Riverside County
Downtown Riverside, Riverside County
This is a great opportunity to gain hands-on experience in public service, policy, and civic communication while working closely with local government leadership.
Mayor’s Office Policy and Communications Intern
Mayor’s Office Policy and Communications Intern
As an intern in the Mayor’s Office, you will support daily operations while contributing to key initiatives that shape the city’s priorities. Your work will include administrative tasks alongside substantive writing, such as drafting proclamations for the City Council, responding to constituent inquiries, and preparing talking points, briefings, and memos for the Mayor.
You will also assist with broader projects related to economic development, sustainability, and quality of life by researching initiatives, developing clear public-facing materials, and supporting analysis of potential city programs. In addition, you will help coordinate major events, including the Mayor’s College Tour, by assisting with logistics, stakeholder communication, and preparation of engagement and presentation materials.
This internship requires a background check.
The Mayor’s Office for the Riverside County serves as a central link between residents, local government, and the broader community. Guided by its mission, the office represents and advocates for the interests of Riverside’s residents while working closely with the City Council to shape thoughtful and effective public policy. It also acts as the city’s primary voice, communicating key initiatives and serving as an ambassador to strengthen relationships both within Riverside and beyond.
Irvine, Orange County
Irvine, Orange County
Development and Grant Research Intern
Development and Grant Research Intern
In this role, you’ll support a development initiative to strengthen UCHRI’s donor communication and grant readiness, gaining hands-on experience in fundraising for public humanities work. The project includes researching funding sources, creating donor communication materials, developing a grant prospect profile, and drafting a case for support and staff recommendations. A structured work plan with goals, timelines, and deliverables will be established at the start of the internship.
The University of California Humanities Research (UCHRI) Institute is located at UC Irvine. It facilitates experimental, interdisciplinary humanities scholarship through partnerships, research initiatives, and competitive grants.
Los Angeles Organizations
Los Angeles Organizations
826LA is dedicated to unlocking and cultivating the creative power of writing for students ages 6 to 18 and helping teachers inspire their students to write.
826LA envisions a Los Angeles where every child has access to quality writing education and is empowered to express themselves creatively through writing, and envisions a Los Angeles where every teacher is supported in their writing-based educational objectives. 826LA internships require a background check because you'll work with minors.
Two location options and three different internships below!
Two location options and three different internships below!
Workshops Internship
Workshops Internship
You’ll support a community-based Summer Writers Workshop by helping plan and run sessions for young writers. This includes setting up spaces, organizing materials, assisting with outreach, and tracking attendance and program data. You’ll also have the opportunity to complete an independent project to improve the workshop experience. The role offers hands-on experience in education, community engagement, and program coordination, with a structured work plan established at the start of the internship.
Community Engagement
Community Engagement
As a Community Engagement Intern with 826LA, you’ll support a volunteer program that drives creative writing opportunities for students. You’ll help recruit, train, and communicate with volunteers, coordinate orientations, and maintain program data. The role also includes analyzing data to improve engagement and leading projects that enhance the volunteer experience.
This is a great fit for students interested in community engagement, education, nonprofit work, or program management.
Programs Internship
Programs Internship
This internship will take place at various high schools around South LA. As an In-Schools Programs Intern with 826LA, you’ll support creative writing programs in high school classrooms by assisting with lessons, working with students, and helping create an inclusive learning environment. You may co-lead workshops, guide volunteers, and support outreach to schools and community partners.
This is a great fit for students interested in education, youth development, writing, or nonprofit work. Get experience in teaching support, program coordination, communication, and project development.
Literary Education Intern
Literary Education Intern
You’ll support LARB’s Publishing Workshop by helping run virtual sessions, assisting guest speakers, and facilitating discussions. You’ll also contribute to outreach and development by researching speakers and opportunities, creating social media content, and supporting program growth. This role builds skills in research, communication, and event coordination while offering direct exposure to the publishing industry, with a structured work plan set at the start of the internship.
The Los Angeles Review of Books is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting literary culture through essays, reviews, events, and educational programs. It serves as a major platform connecting writers, scholars, and readers, while also offering professional development opportunities in publishing and the literary arts.
They are located on the edge of Koreatown.
Exhibition Development Intern
Exhibition Development Intern
The Curatorial department at the Autry Museum seeks research support for a small installation on its founders (Gene and Jackie Autry and Joanne and Monty Hale), highlighting their legacy and role in the museum’s creation.
You will engage in archival and historical research conducted in close collaboration with the Curatorial, Library, and Collections teams, as well as selecting objects and potential loans and developing interpretive panels and labels. Through this process, you will build experience in developing museum exhibits from scratch.
The Autry Museum of the American West is located in beautiful Griffith Park. The Autry features unique galleries filled with paintings, sculptures, film memorabilia, photographs, historic firearms, and so much more, all related to the American West. The Autry’s more than 600,000 pieces of art and cultural objects include one of the largest and most significant collections of Native American materials in the United States.
The Autry presents a wide range of events and public programs, including lectures, films, theater performances, festivals, and family activities.
The Fowler Museum at UCLA explores art and material culture from Africa, Asia, the Pacific, and the Americas, past and present. Through hands-on internships, you can pursue two pathways: digital storytelling and public engagement, or curatorial research and exhibition development. You will build practical skills, collaborate with museum professionals, and contribute to meaningful, public-facing work.
Digital Communications Intern
Digital Communications Intern
As a Digital Communications Intern, you will gain hands-on experience across multiple areas of museum practice, including digital publishing, content strategy, marketing, and media production. You will contribute to the museum's communication with diverse audiences by helping to shape both scholarly and public-facing content.
Through this role, you will develop strong writing, research, and organizational skills while learning to translate complex ideas into clear, accessible materials. You will work with digital tools and content management systems and collaborate across departments, gaining a broader understanding of how museums operate. This experience offers mentorship, insight into career pathways in the arts and media, and the opportunity to produce meaningful work that supports your academic and professional goals.
Curatorial Development Intern
Curatorial Development Intern
You will work with the curatorial team at the Fowler to support research for a future exhibition that examines museum collecting practices. This role offers the opportunity to conduct in-depth, collections-based research and engage in the early conceptual stages of exhibition development. Your work will include producing short essays on collection highlights, developing a curator-guided bibliography, and contributing recommendations on innovative display techniques.
Through this experience, you will collaborate closely with curators to interpret objects, build skills in archival and library research, and develop provenance narratives tracing objects' histories. You will also engage with broader questions about access to cultural heritage, the role of museums, and how research can bring forward under-recognized communities while contributing to conversations on ethical stewardship.
The Fowler Museum explores global arts and cultures with an emphasis on Africa, Asia, the Pacific, and the Indigenous Americas—past and present. The Fowler enhances understanding and appreciation of the diverse peoples, cultures, and religions of the world through dynamic exhibitions, publications, and public programs, informed by interdisciplinary approaches and the perspectives of the cultures represented. Also featured is the work of international contemporary artists presented within the complex frameworks of politics, culture, and social action.
If you have questions with us, reach out!
Contact Kylie Rachwalski, Assistant Director of Experiential Learning, Humanities Division
hum-experiential-learning@ucsc.edu
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