Citizen Historian - Oral History Program

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Citizen Historian - Oral History Internship

Internship (6 months) - Graduate as a trained oral historian. Conduct a total of 18 oral history interviews of Partition witnesses, which is roughly 1 interview every 2 weeks over a period of 6 months. Learn field documentary work (modified during the Pandemic) and practice it under expert supervision while contributing to building The 1947 Partition Archive.
Internship Time Period - 6 months or 2 months (summer)

SIX MONTHS POSITION: Position opens every quarter. Intern needs to commit to recording and submitting one Partition Witness interview once every two weeks. Minimum 6 months commitment.
Remote position.


Job Description

• Train as an oral historian via online workshops
• Engage with and conduct oral history interviews with Partition witnesses
• Meet interesting people and learn of their life story
• Maintain communications with interviewees; manage scheduling, answer questions, etc.
• Manage post interview paperwork, oral history data and online material submission
• Engage in public outreach
• Engage in discussions with global 1947 Partition Archive community
• Engage in regular communication with The 1947 Partition Archive global team

Job Requirements

• Attend mandatory Oral History Workshop. Register here (on front page, click COLLECT STORIES): https://www.1947partitionarchive.org/collect_stories
• Strong oral and written communication skills
• Ability to interview subjects of diverse backgrounds
• Proficiency with internet usage and access to reliable internet
• Documentation skills including basic video skills
• Experience managing databases (such as Excel/ Google Sheets)
• Organization skills in managing different types of interview material
• Meet submission deadlines
• Language skills appropriate to geography
• Ability to work and travel independently
• A passion for preserving stories from your region
• Deep dedication and strong focus on the job
• Public speaking abilities
• Collect and submit a total of 18 interviews (1 every other week).

Internship Expectations

Meet incredible personalities. Listen to amazing stories. Feel connected. Be transported back in time to a different world. Make a difference of historical proportions.

Interns are expected to develop ownership of their projects and encouraged to build creative solutions. Intern must have a strong passion for and dedication to our mission and goals. Interns will receive relevant training, fieldwork experience as well as guaranteed references if she/he completes their internship term. Successful interns, at the end of their tenure, will be considered for any paid positions that may be available. This internship is unpaid but interns may apply for credit or funding through their college or university. For this position, you will learn to communicate with diverse constituencies and learn how a nonprofit cultural organization functions.

All interns will be working remotely.


About the 1947 Partition Archive

The Partition of British India in 1947 was a major 20th century event that affected millions of lives and played a key role in shaping the world in which we live today, both culturally and geopolitically. Nearly two million lost their lives and 15 million people were displaced, making it the largest mass migration. The 1947 Partition Archive (incubated by UC Berkeley’s Skydeck) is a grassroots non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the fast disappearing memory of Partition by capturing and preserving the people's history through crowdsourced oral history collection.