This internship program has been developed by six Indigenous partners: the Musqueam Indian Band, the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre, the Haida Gwaii Museum, the U’mista Cultural Society, the Nlaka’pamux Nation, the Coqualeetza Cultural Society, and the Museum of Anthropology at UBC. The Indigenous Internship Program is funded by the Mellon Foundation.

The Indigenous Internship Program provides training opportunities for people working in museums and cultural heritage management or people who would like to do this kind of work.

The internships are flexible in terms of focus and training will be customized to individuals to support their current or future work goals.

Areas of focus include: Collections Management, Conservation, Library and Archives, Oral History Language Laboratory and Curatorial work. 

There are two annual calls for applicants: Spring and Fall. Internships are 12 weeks, 35 hours per week.

Location: At the Museum of Anthropology at UBC, in Vancouver, for ten weeks with a two-week placement at one of the six Indigenous partner organizations.

Accommodation: Housing on the UBC campus will be available to rent for the Spring internship period. Please indicate if you would like to access accommodation on campus in your cover letter.

Who can apply? Indigenous community members from North America with a demonstrated interest in cultural heritage management, as well as people whose creative, professional or academic work supports the continuation, interpretation and safeguarding of Indigenous cultures.

Wages: Interns will receive an hourly wage of $25/hour. Travel costs to MOA (return) will be provided. Travel (return) and accommodation costs for community placements will also be provided.

2026 Internship Program

We are excited to offer a new fellowship opportunity for the Spring 2026 session! This pilot program is open to former IIP participants who would like to build on their previous experience in the program to develop and complete specific projects within their cultural institutions, or to support the advancement of their personal career goals. 

This opportunity is idea for individuals who have a project in mind that has a clear focus and specific outcomes. Depending on the proposed project, the fellowship may take place at MOA, the applicant’s home institution, in an IIP partner community, or a combination of the three locations. The program may take place during a concentrated 12-week period or over a longer time to a total of 420 hours.

Application Deadline: March 20, 2026

How to apply:

Please send your application documents to:
iip@moa.ubc.ca 

Please include:

• Resume
• Project proposal*

* Project Proposal

Please include the following information in your project proposal:

• Your area of interest (Library and Archives, Conservation, Oral History Language Laboratory, Curation, Exhibit Design, and Laboratory of Archaeology)
• Outline what you are hoping to achieve including potential deliverables (e.g. digitization, exhibit, emergency plan and training)
• Describe why you would like to undertake this project
• Outline the expected timeline for completing your project

Accommodation

UBC campus housing will be available to rent between May 4 – August 14 for those wishing to complete projects, or components of projects at MOA.

If you have any questions about the internship program or the application, please e-mail iip@moa.ubc.ca. 

Pictured in the banner image: Interns from the Spring 2023 cohort (left to right), Tannis Wilson (Haisla), Aaron Rice (Kanien’keha:ka/Mohawk), Haleigh Lamarche (Sucker Creek) in MOA’s conservation lab. Photo by Shabnam Honarbakhsh.