Interns Enjoy Networking, Fun at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis

This week, Indiana INTERNnet partnered with The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis to host our second intern engagement event. Several local companies and their interns enjoyed a day off of their normal work routine and networked with mentors and peers. We wanted to provide an opportunity for the students to enhance their social and professional networks, devote time to career development, and have FUN! Since the Children’s Museum is the “biggest and best” in the world, we knew this would be a day to remember!

The morning started with professional development where students learned about the museum’s fantastic internship program. In 2012, Vault, Inc. named the museum’s internship program one of the top 10 non-profit programs for interns in the nation. In 2013, Indiana INTERNnet named The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis Employer of the Year at the annual IMPACT Awards luncheon (LINK). Many were surprised to hear the Children’s Museum offers more positions within their facility that don’t directly interact with children, like Marketing, Gallery Curation, Research and Development, and Family Programming and Education. Additionally, interns got the chance to come together and lead discussions with mentors and exchange ideas with other students. They learned about other interns’ roles within their companies, what they study, and how they plan to build their career after graduation.

During the second half of the day, we got an amazing behind-the-scenes look at the collections of the museum. We went behind doors that were authorized for museum staff only and traveled down into the bowels of the museum to see the artifacts it has collected in more than 80 years. Because the museum only displays up to 15% of its collection at a time, the other 85% was archived below the main floor.

Students and mentors interacted with some of these artifacts and gained an historical outlook on pieces ranging from fossils and bones of Natural History to Americana works of art. It was truly an incredible experience.

We were so happy with the outcome of this event and with everyone that helped make the day successful and fun. Additionally, we are looking forward to hosting two more intern engagement events at the Indianapolis Zoo and the Indiana State Fair. Stay tuned for more!