Special Collections: Volunteering and Work Experience placements

Are you keen to discover what goes on behind-the-scenes in Special Collections? Would you like the opportunity to get hands-on with unique and rare items of historical importance? Are you interested in a career in heritage? Then a work experience placement in Special Collections may be for you!

Work experience is a fantastic way to get a feel for working with archives and rare books. During your placement you will:

• gain experience in retrieving, handling and re-shelving archives and rare books;
• learn how we care for our collections and make them accessible for people to use in our reading room, in teaching, in exhibitions, and in events;
• work closely with the Special Collections team to find out about the various roles and to learn about different aspects of Special Collections work;
• understand how Special Collections works within the wider University, including its links with the Library, the Bill Douglas Cinema Museum, and the Digital Humanities Lab;
• be given an independent project, which may include researching, listing or repackaging archive materials;
• and have the opportunity to write a blog about your experience.

You can find out more about what a possible placement might include by reading blog posts by former work experience students on our Special Collections blog.

Special Collections is pleased to offer work experience placements for Year 10 and Year 12 students from schools in Devon and Cornwall in July each year. One week-long placement is reserved for two students from a local school. One additional week-long placement is available for up to two students to apply via email to libspc@exeter.ac.uk. Please include details about your school, the dates of your work experience week, and why you would like to apply for a work experience placement in Special Collections. We would be very pleased to hear from students directly. Please note that we usually receive more applications than we can support, so it is advisable to contact us as early as possible to secure a placement. Applicants who are not successful are welcome to request a visit that will include an informal chat about working in archives and a tour of our collections.

Please note: our available spaces for work experience placements in 2025 have now been filled.

Since 2023, Special Collections has been pleased to offer paid internships to University of Exeter students on the Pathways to Arts, Culture and Heritage programme. If you are a University of Exeter student, you can find out more about this programme and how to apply here.