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Library Staff

DOJ Libraries Internships

Overview

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) Libraries is pleased to accept applications for our Summer 2025 Internship Program. DOJ Libraries will provide students in library, information science, history, museum studies, archival, and related disciplines the opportunity to work with expert librarians to gain hands-on skills and experience needed for today’s government information services.

DOJ Libraries supports the agency by providing expert legal and general reference and research, along with acquisitions, cataloging, and digitization services. DOJ librarians play key leadership roles in meeting information needs of the DOJ, on the cutting edge of changes and trends in legal practice and emerging information technologies.

Internship application packages for the Summer 2025 semester are due no later than Tuesday, March 15, 2025.

Internship Descriptions

You will work under the guidance of and assist expert librarians on one of the following internships. In your application materials, please specify which internship(s) you are interested in.

The Electronic Collections Internship

Location: DOJ Libraries, 4CON Library, 150 M St NE, Washington, DC 20002
Mode:  8 to 16 hours per week, days TBA

Projects may include:

  • Assisting in applying consistent branding across the DOJ Libraries electronic collections
  • Integrating electronic resources into library LibGuides and the library’s discovery service
  • Updating and developing comprehensive instructions for remote and offline access to electronic resources
  • Tracking usage statistics and creating a library-wide newsletter for monthly distribution
  • Other available projects that align with the intern’s interests and skills

The Electronic Services Internship

Location: DOJ Libraries, 4CON Library, 150 M St NE, Washington, DC 20002
Mode: 8 to 16 hours per week, days TBA

Projects may include:

  • Assisting in the update of the DOJ Libraries discovery service
  • Updating the DOJ Libraries web policies and procedures
  • Developing the DOJ Libraries SharePoint site (prior experience with SharePoint required)
  • Reviewing and updating the DOJ Libraries website
  • Other available projects that align with the intern’s interests and skills

The Supreme Court Records and Briefs (SCRB) Internship

Location: DOJ Libraries Main Justice Library, 950 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington DC 20530
Mode: on-site, in-person, 8 to 16 hours per week on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.

Primary Project: Candidates will have the opportunity to develop a searchable inventory of the library’s bound collection of Supreme Court Records and Briefs. This collection runs from 1880 to present and includes all cases where the Solicitor General represented the United States in the U.S. Supreme Court. The project will include collection inventory and management, metadata development, query optimization, end-user impact analysis and database development. This internship will be an excellent opportunity for students interested in collections management, database design, and law librarianship.

Additional opportunities may include:

  • Assisting DOJ librarians in answering reference questions from DOJ employees
  • Gaining experience working at a library reference desk, both in-person and virtually
  • Learning about managing a large collection of legal resources and government documents
  • Other available projects that align with the intern’s interests and skills

The Legal Research Internship

Location: DOJ Libraries, 4CON Library, 150 M St NE, Washington DC 20002
Mode: 8 to 16 hours per week, days TBA

Projects may include:

  • Research and update topical legal research guides.
  • Support and gain experience creating or updating research training classes and orientation scripts
  • Work on legal research/reference assignments based on experience and patron demand
  • Other projects that align with the intern’s interests and skills.

Who Can Apply?

DOJ Libraries Internships are open to U.S. Citizens and U.S. Nationals who are students and who are enrolled on at least a half-time basis in a qualifying graduate degree program in library sciences or a related discipline in an accredited college or university.

Academic Credit

Internships are unpaid, but students may be eligible to receive academic credit from their school for their participation. Depending on their college or university, students may be required to enroll in academic credits for their participation in this internship program. It is the student’s responsibility to determine in advance whether enrolling in academic credit is required, and to make arrangements to receive credit from their school.

Eligibility

To be eligible for a DOJ Libraries Internship, students must:

  • Have a grade point average of "B" (3.0 on a 4.0-point scale) or higher;
  • Maintain such grade point average throughout the duration of the internship;
  • Successfully complete a background investigation;
  • Be able to work 8 to 16 hours per week, on-site in Washington, D.C.

How to Apply

To apply, please email your cover letter, current résumé, and unofficial graduate transcripts to Library.Interns@usdoj.gov.

NOTE: Your cover letter should include the following information:

  • Which internship(s) you are interested in
  • An explanation of your interest in an internship with DOJ Libraries
  • A description of how the internship will help your career plans
  • Knowledge, skills, and experiences you have that make you a good candidate for a DOJ Libraries Internship

Internship application packages for summer 2025 internships are due no later than March 15, 2025.  

Updated January 22, 2025