STEAM Pathways at NHMLAC

Students doing fossil prep in the VP lab

STEAM Pathways at NHMLAC

The Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County is developing a strategic, innovative approach to STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics) workforce development through work-based learning, mentorship, and applied skill building. STEAM pathways encompass the many varied types of work happening at our museums, such as research, informal education, creative design, finance, and operations. Through a combination of offerings such as internships, volunteering, apprenticeships, and other mentoring programs, we offer learners of all ages valuable opportunities to explore, contribute to, and continue in STEAM careers.

In this work, we are committed to contributing to the development of a competitive and diverse STEAM workforce by prioritizing participants from communities that have been systematically under-resourced and marginalized in these fields. We are also committed to reaching a wide variety of ages, interests, and needs.

STEAM Pathways is central to both NHMLAC’s Strategic Plan and the IDEA Transformational Framework, and vital to truly embodying the values of inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility throughout our work. This Transformational Framework and its areas of focus, including STEAM Pathways, was developed by a cross-departmental, multilevel team of staff, with input from the NHMLAC Board of Trustees and executive staff.

STEAM Pathways offerings continue to grow at NHMLAC! See a selection of our current suite of programs below.

Internship Programs

Marine Teens

MSTIP recruits 10 high school juniors and seniors from three Boyle Heights schools, who begin as interns in the spring. They become paid Museum employees over the summer, when they develop a marine science-related project.

Group of teens standing with trees in the background

Wild L.A. Outdoor Equity Program

The Wild L.A. Internship builds opportunities for local high schoolers to cultivate their STEM identity and comfort exploring L.A.’s natural areas.

Dinosaur Institute interns standing in front of dinosaur skeletons in the Dinosaur Hall

Dinosaur Institute Summer Internship in Fossil Conservation

Open to students at Howard University and the University of Chicago, this internship develops workforce-related skills in fossil conservation and broad experience in museum collections care.

Student seated at a desk looking into a microscope

GCC Biology internship at NHMLAC

Open to Glendale Community College students, this internship facilitates student-involved collections-based research projects based on specimens housed at NHMLAC. Participating students receive course credit (Biology 50).

Paleo prep students hard at work at LBTP

Paleo Prep School at La Brea Tar Pits

Paleontologically curious undergraduates work behind the scenes collecting data on fossils, excavating the bones of prehistoric creatures, and preparing fossils in the museum’s Fossil Lab.

ACT UP sign install Rise Up LA exhibition

Getty Marrow Undergraduate Internship

This program offers paid internships in core areas of museum work, with the goal of exposing college students from backgrounds that have been underrepresented in the arts to careers in museums and visual arts organizations.

Intern Kassi Price holding a specimenn in a box in the Vert Paleo Lab

Occidental College InternLA Program

NHMLAC hosts one or more Occidental students most summers, providing real-world work experience at a nonprofit organization.

Adriana Stephenson seat at a desk with their hands resting on an open laptop computer

Princeton Internships in Civic Service (PICS)

NHMLAC hosts 1–2 students through the PICS program each summer. Students engage in meaningful service opportunities and connect academic lessons to real-world problems.

Volunteer Program

Volunteer Erin Cervantes seated at a table working with specimens in the Fossil Lab

Since the mid-1900s, the NHMLAC Volunteer Program has been engaging the community of Los Angeles in authentic museum work through meaningful and enriching volunteer experiences. People of all different experience levels, interests, ages (from 16 to into their 90s), and backgrounds bring their passion for lifelong learning to NHMLAC, donating their time to contribute to the educational and research-focused mission of the museum.

Apprenticeship Opportunities

The UNLAB Program: Launched in 2022 and funded by the NSF, “Understanding Nature and Los Angeles Biodiversity (UNLAB) through museum collections and field-based research” is a post-baccalaureate training program based in the Research and Collections Department. Over three years, the program will host three different cohorts of 8–12 mentees for year-long experiences focused on collections-based biodiversity research, professional development, and STEAM/museum learning.

Partnership: The Broad’s Diversity Apprenticeship Program: NHMLAC collaborates with the Diversity Apprenticeship Program (DAP) to host apprentices in exhibition development. The DAP is an initiative by The Broad to create career opportunities for people from underrepresented communities in the museum field broadly and art handling and preparations world specifically, by providing nine-month, full-time paid apprenticeships in art handling and preparations.