This fellowship provides one rising senior with training in curatorial skills and culminating in the production of a library exhibition based on the student’s senior essay topic using materials from the Yale Library collections.
One Yale College junior will be selected to receive library funding, mentoring, and exhibit production support over the course of nine months to research, create and curate a professional-quality exhibit opening in spring of their senior year.
The selected student will be awarded a $4,200 stipend to subsidize a five-week summer research fellowship to be completed the summer between their junior and senior years. This research, which must be completed on Yale campus using YUL collections, will become the foundation for the content of the exhibit.
Fellowship duration is from Summer 2025 (five-week research fellowship) through Spring 2026 (senior year research and production).
This opportunity is perfect for students who have experience researching with primary source materials, are curious about the curatorial process, enjoy working collaboratively, and whose senior essay subject can be strongly represented by physical objects from the YUL collections.
Learn more about this year's senior exhibit project on the Yale Library's Website
Review these guidelines to learn about the SML exhibit committee's proposal review criteria and get some tips for creating a strong proposal.
Proposal submission:
- Check back in January 2025 for active link
Eligibility:
- Yale College Class of ’26.
Timeline:
- Proposals due: Early March 2025
- Selected students notified late April 2025
- Summer internship: Curator selects five weeks between June and September
- Exhibition development and production: September – April of senior year
- Opening reception: April 2026. On view: April – October 2026
If you are considering this opportunity:
- Review fellowship recipient roles and responsibilites, as well as deadlines and workflows.
- Discuss the opportunity with a Faculty Advisor and a Librarian Exhibit Advisor. Your selected advisors must agree to work with and advise you throughout the year-long project.
Listen to past Senior Exhibit curators:
If you are just getting started...
Learning how to do research in the collections is the first step toward any exhibit opportunity.
- Start by getting to know your Personal Librarian or subject specialist, as well as archivists and collection specialists.
- Explore and discover the collections at Archives at Yale.
- Get ideas by looking at previous years' exhibits via the SML Exhibits LibGuide.
- Learn about opportunities to create online exhibits at Yale University Library.
Send questions to kerri.sancomb@yale.edu