More resources are on the way!
We’re building and adding to the Resource Portals and Common Career Path resources regularly so check back frequently for the most current updates.
Already have a career path identified?
Find specialized sample resumes, job/internship sites, career tips, and more.
Career paths: musical performer or producer; studio artist or designer; theatre professional; film or television professional; arts administrator.
Gain Experience
Sample Internships
These are examples of organizations that have hired Lawrence interns in recent years.
- Merit School of Music – (Handshake Profile)
- New York Jazz Academy – (Organization Website)
- Carnegie Hall Weill Music Institute – (Organization Website)
- The Metropolitan Opera (Handshake Profile)
- Center for Deep Listening – (Organization Website)
- Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Handshake Profile)
- Lyric Opera of Chicago (Handshake Profile)
- Aspen Music Festival (Handshake Profile)
- Interlochen Center for the Arts (Handshake Profile)
- Wisconsin Conservatory of Music (Handshake Profile)
- Peninsula Players (Handshake Profile)
- Fox Cities Performing Arts Center (Handshake Profile)
- The Grand Oshkosh (Handshake Profile)
- Broadway Cares (Handshake Profile)
- Kairos Alive! – (Organization Website)
- The Smithsonian
- Sotheby’s (Handshake Profile)
- Americans for the Arts (Handshake Profile)
- The Trout Museum – (Handshake Profile)
- Wisconsin Conservatory of Music – (Handshake Profile)
- Stone Soup Theatre – (Organization Website)
- Forte Community Music Project – (Organization Website)
- Art Institute of Chicago – (Handshake Profile)
- John Michael Kohler Arts Center – (Handshake Profile)
- Hearthstone Historic House Museum (Organization Website)
- History Museum at the Castle (Handshake Profile)
- Peninsula School of Art and Gallery (Organization Website)
- Wisconsin Arts Board (Organization Web Site)
- Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (Handshake Profile)
- Museum of Wisconsin Art (Handshake Profile)
- Milwaukee Art Museum (Handshake Profile)
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The MET) (Handshake Profile)
- Museum of Modern Art (Handshake Profile)
- Walker Art Center (Handshake Profile)
- St. Louis Art Museum (Handshake Profile)
- Toledo Museum of Art (Handshake Profile)
- Dallas Museum of Art (Handshake Profile)
- Houston Museum of Fine Arts (Handshake Profile)
- Walters Art Museum (Organization Web Site)
Current Internships from Handshake
The following internships are pulled directly from Handshake and are updated regularly.
See more VPA internships in Handshake.
Hiring Programs
See a spreadsheet of hiring programs from around the country, including internships and post-grad rotational programs.
This is a list of nearly 100 arts organizations generally known to hire summer interns. The link provided from the title should take you to the company’s careers page, if available. The link on the organization name should take you to the general website. Specific opportunities are not linked as those links expire and would not be reliable year-round.
Please note that internship availability, deadlines, and compensation may vary from year to year. It’s always best to check the organization’s website for the most up-to-date information
If necessary, click on the “VPA Common Internships” tab.
Conduct Summer Research
You can receive up to a $4,000 stipend to participate in intensive 10-week summer research projects either at Lawrence or major research institutions around the world. (Opens in early January.)
Funding for Experiences
Make Connections
Related Student Organizations at Lawrence
Related Professional Associations
Gain leadership and industry experience by actively participating in student organizations.
Keep up with the latest industry trends and make professional connections through national or regional professional associations.
- Deep Listeners of Lawrence University
- Diversity in Fine Arts (DIFA)
- Lawrence Inclusive Theatre
- Performers Enhancing Diversity at Lawrence
- Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia
- Student Produced Amateur Musical Productions at Lawrence University (SPAMALU)
- Sigma Alpha Iota
- Student Panel of the LU Symphony Orchestra
- Students of Lawrence Studio (SOL Studio)
- WLFM Lawrence Student Radio
See Lawrence’s Directory of Student Organizations.
- College Art Association
- Association of Performing Arts Professionals
- American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers
- National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA)
- American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA)
- National Association for Music Education (NAfME)
- American Art Therapy Association
- American Music Therapy Association
- Music Teachers National Association (MTNA)
- Stage Directors and Choreographers Society
- Theatre Communications Group
Check out even more professional music organizations.
Articles for #VPA Careers
Read up on topics related to careers in the visual and performing arts.
Want even more? See all articles tagged #VPA.
Current Jobs from Handshake
View active job postings from Handshake for this community; updated regularly.
See more VPA jobs in Handshake.
Gap Year Opportunities
General Job & Internship Resources
- Identify your job or internship target
- Learn to write a résumé OR use VMock SMART Résumé Platform
- Learn to write a cover letter
- Build your professional community and social capital (Network!)
- Prepare to interview OR use Big Interview Interview preparation platform
- Find out about academic internship
- Find OPT/CPT forms OR use Interstride
- Job search sites
- Identity-based resources
- Fellowships