Ayesha Bulchandani Curatorial Internship for Graduate Students

Description

Background

Internationally recognized as a premier museum and research center, the Frick is known for its distinguished Old Master paintings and outstanding examples of European sculpture and decorative arts.

The collection originated with Henry Clay Frick (1849–1919), who bequeathed his home, paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts to the public for their enjoyment. The institution’s holdings—which encompass masterworks from the Renaissance through the nineteenth century—have grown over the decades, more than doubling in size since the opening of the museum in 1935. A critical component of the institution is the Frick Art Research Library, founded in 1920 by Helen Clay Frick, daughter of the museum’s founder. Recognized as one of the world’s top art history research centers, it has served students, scholars, and members of the public free of charge for generations.

Workplace Culture

At The Frick Collection, we pride ourselves on promoting an open and welcoming workplace culture that supports diversity and work-life balance. The Frick strives to provide our employees with competitive salaries and exceptional benefits in a beautiful and pleasant work setting, while offering an excellent opportunity to appreciate some of the world’s finest works of art.

Equal Employment Opportunity has been, and will continue to be, a fundamental principle at The Frick Collection, where employment is based upon personal capabilities and qualifications without discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, alienage or citizenship status, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, military status, creed, genetic predisposition or carrier status or any other protected characteristic as established by law. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

Qualified candidates of diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply for vacant positions at all levels.

Position Summary

Curatorial interns assist specialists in European painting, sculpture, and decorative arts from the Renaissance to the early twentieth century, collaborating with curatorial staff on research projects pertaining to areas of art history represented in the Frick Collection. This internship provides a superb opportunity for participation in all aspects of curatorial work in a small, dynamic department and for interacting with staff across the institution.

Requirements

The Ayesha Bulchandani Curatorial Internship is open to qualified graduate students pursuing a degree in art history. Preference will be given to students with a background in Western art and a demonstrated interest in museum work. Candidates with an interest in 16th–19th-century decorative arts and/or 15th–16th-century Italian art are particularly encouraged to apply. Applicants should be extremely detail oriented, and reading proficiency in French and/or Italian is beneficial. International candidates must have eligibility to participate in paid internship placements in the U.S. Applicants are responsible for their own housing and travel arrangements. While all applicants are welcome, we strongly encourage applications from:

• Students from underserved communities who bring unique perspectives and experiences.
• Candidates receiving need-based financial aid from their academic institution.
• First-generation college students navigating graduate education as pioneers in their families.

Time Commitment

The internship is generally eight to ten weeks, with activities carried out four to five days a week between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Interns may work up to 28 hours/week.

Stipend

In addition to hourly compensation and the aforementioned benefits, we provide an onboarding stipend of $1,500.00 to cover travel or other expenses to all interns who are engaged to work onsite 8-10 weeks.

Benefits of Employment at The Frick Collection

Paid Holidays: All full-time employees are eligible for 14 paid holidays (all federal holidays including Juneteenth, and Election Day), including four floating holidays; two may be used in the first half of the calendar year, two may be used in the second half of the calendar year.

Retirement: The Frick supports all employees in planning for retirement. The Frick provides all eligible employees with a defined benefit pension plan, the value of which is equivalent to an additional 12% in compensation. Employees may also choose to make additional contributions to the Frick's Tax Deferred Savings Plan (403(b)).

Wellness Programs: The Frick offers an Employee Assistance Plan, a discount on Citi Bike memberships, and a discount on bike helmets.

Meal Discount: When employees are working on-site, they may access a discount on food pickup or delivery through Seamless/Grubhub.

MetroCard: all interns will receive a monthly unlimited Metro Card for the month(s) they are working onsite at The Frick.

Application Process and Timeline

Applications for the Spring 2026 Ayesha Bulchandani Curatorial Internship must be submitted no later than March 22, 2026.

Selected candidates will be contacted for interviews, and applicants will be notified in April 2026.

To apply:

Submit PDF of cover letter and résumé. Include the following in your cover letter:

• Your reasons for applying for the internship, including a statement describing how this internship would enhance your career plans or academic course of study
• The names, professional affiliations, telephone numbers, and email addresses of two references, at least one of which must be academic
• Current GPA (if applicable)

Apply here or send required materials to:

Please note that internship applications to multiple departments are not accepted; please apply to only one department.

Equal Employment Opportunity has been, and will continue to be, a fundamental principle at The Collection, where employment is based upon personal capabilities and qualifications without discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, alienage or citizenship status, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, military status, creed, genetic predisposition or carrier status or any other protected characteristic as established by law. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

This description shall not be construed as a contract of any sort for a specific period of employment.