The National Music Museum welcomes young people for the development of projects based on its collections and activities through protocols established with schools for independent internships or through support programs.

Internships at the National Music Museum have an educational component whose goal is to offer introductive museum-related job experiences to anyone who's interested in museological work (from collection management, inventory, cultural mediation, museography...), in music (namely in its performance and history and the development of the design and construction of musical instruments) and also in subjects like art, art history, conservation and restoration and information and documentation sciences.

Who are the internships for?
The internships are for young adults, with preference given to those that have:

 — Formation or knowledge in subjects like Museology, Musical Sciences, Art History, Conservation and Restoration, Information and Documentation Sciences or any other with museological or cultural component compatible with the performance standards required the National Music Museum;
 — Strong interest in museological work;
 — Musical formation and/or interest in music and musical instruments;
 — Good knowledge of languages, mostly english;
 — Good knowledge of computers from the user's point of view;
 — Good communication and writing skills;
 — Motivation, autonomy and organisation skills;
 — Will to work as a team;
 — Residence in Lisbon.

What will the interns do?
It's our goal to create diverse internships that explore the different parts of music and museums. The duties are defined with the chosen advisor, taking into account the trainee's interests, their formation and National Music Museum's needs. The point is for these duties to be defined in a professional mission with clear goals from the beginning, to allow a certain degree of responsibility and autonomy.

The interns will perform tasks in the following lines of work:
 — Scanning of collections — input of information related to the Museum's pieces in the program Matriz or scanning of photographs and documents;
 — Inventory and documental investigation — gathering and systematisation of information with the purpose of having deep knowledge about the Museum's collections and insert it in the program Matriz, but also production of texts and tables to publish in catalogues and other editions;
 — Mediation and education services — support the preparation and implementation of activities such as guided tours, making of the support materials (texts, illustrations, graphic design and others), promotion of workshops, organisation of conferences and debates, realisation of shows, etc;
 — Interpretation and exhibition — following the several stages of an exhibition while supporting the team, conservators e commissionaires during the preparation, installation and unmounting of the exhibition;
 — Communication and image — supporting the Museum's communication strategies, through the collaboration in preparing promotion tools in several supports (radio, television, newspapers and the internet); in editing the promotion materials like posters, fliers, invites, programs, and etc; in communicating the Museum's activities (mailing, newsletter or press kits); in managing and developing of the Museum's website;
 — Preventive conservation — supporting the conservator or technician in the many aspects related to the conservation of collections, supporting in filing the reports on the verification of the pieces' conservation state
 — Documentation centre — supporting the conception, planning, implementing and developing work of the documental information services and of the archive managing services of the Museum.

There can also be other duties, according to the Museum's priorities during the internship.

What are the conditions to participate in the internship?
The interns are accompanied by one of the permanent collaborators of the Museum, with whom they define the goals and the work plan and method. The final results of the developed work will be publicly presented to the rest of the team and, if such is needed, to other professionals, investigators or teachers of institutions from where the interns come. These results should be shared in a report that will integrate the Museum's Documentation Centre.

The internships do not involve the payment of a scholarship. It doesn't eliminate the possibility, however, that in exceptional cases, the internships are based in special protocols established with institutions that may support the interns with scholarships. In those cases, the work accident insurance is provided by the entity that has made the protocol with the museum.

The interns can benefit from the following perks:

Invites to exhibition inaugurations or other activities or initiatives developed by the Monuments/Museums/Palaces under DGPC;

Certification of the developed duties through the emission of a document;
2 free accesses a year to the exhibitions organised by services under DGPC, as well as temporary events, for the intern and a member of the family, through the presentation of a document given by the National Music Museum;
Access to conferences and debates held by the Monuments/Museums/Palaces under DGPC;
Access to the DGPC libraries to consult the catalogues and bibliographies;
Work accident insurance;
10% discount in the stores of the Monuments/Museums/Palaces under DGPC.

What is the internships' schedule?

The internships usually have a workload of seventeen and a half weekly hours, distributed by 5 three-and-a-half hour blocks, from Monday to Friday.

The exact schedule is defined by both the intern and the advisor, according to the following shifts:

9h30-13h00
14h00-17h30

The lack of attendance, whatever the reason, will be taken into account when deciding to terminate or give continuity to the internship.

How long are the internships?
The internships are three to four months long, but they can, in exceptional cases, be extended to the maximum of one year. The exact duration will be individually discussed.

What are the internship's goals?
The National Music Museum's internships aim to:
 — Grow interest and the participation of young, qualified people in the museological activity;
 — Rehearse practices adjusted to the daily works of a museum;
 — Integrate the intern in the museum's team spirit and in the general works of the museum.

 — It's expected that the internships are enriching formative experiences that help the interns:
 — Articulate and complement the educative system with the required experience in the job market;
 — Reforce and solidify their personal, professional and cultural skills;
 — Develop adequate principles and practices to the professional world that easen their professional integration;
 — Acquire skills focused on practical duties;
 — Favour the development of an autonomous and responsible ethic.

How are the interns evaluated?
The final evaluation will be based on the report made by the intern and their oral presentation to the Museum's team. These elements, together with others collected by the advisor during the internship (like attendance and punctuality), will be considered for the attribution of a final grade, certified through a document to be emitted by the National Music Museum.

How to apply:
Anyone who's interested can download and fill the application form and send it by email (to  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) or by letter (to Museu Nacional da Música, Estação do Metropolitano Alto dos Moinhos, Rua João de Freitas Branco, 1500-359 LISBOA), accompanied by:
 — Updated Curriculum Vitae, including list of curricular and extracurricular works that might be of interest to the internship and a photograph;
 — Motivation Letter specifying the reason for the application and referencing career goals, interests in museum work and music, as well as the skills that the candidate thinks are valuable.

Depending on the situation, the National Music Museum might ask for more information.

When you should apply:

The applications are open year-round and obey to the following deadlines:

Summer Internships (July/Aug/Sep/Oct) - Applications until the end of May;
Fall/Winter Internships (Nov/Dec/Jan/Feb) - Applications until the end of September;
Spring Internships (March/April/May/June) - Applications until the end of January.

The National Music Museum has a limited number of vacancies for each of the three internship terms, and the respective duties might be defined a priori.

How does the selection process work?
Firstly, the selection takes into account the number of applications and the priorities in the Museum's work for the internship period. The best qualified candidates will also be interviewed, from which will be decided if they are selected or not.

Lastly, the internships are dependent of the approval of the Direction of the National Music Museum, that may decide not to fill the vacancies.

How are the internships formalised?
The internships are formalised through the celebration of the agreement between the intern and the National Music Museum, where the responsibilities of both parties and the Museum rules are defined. This agreement, that may implicate an intermediation by the intern's school, is accompanied by an internship plan created and accepted by the National Music Museum and the intern, where it is defined:

The general goal of the internship and following specific goals;

The activities plan;

The internship duration;
The schedule.

For more information please contact:

Rui Pedro Nunes

Music Museum

Estação do Metropolitano Alto dos Moinhos

Rua João Freitas Branco

1500-359 LISBOA

T. (351) 21 771 09 90 / F. (351) 21 771 09 99 / E. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it