The Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers University offers one Graduate Assistantship in the office of the Andrew W. Mellon Liaison for Academic Programs and Curator to students in the Department of Art History at Rutgers. The one-year assistantship of 15 hours a week provides full tuition, fees, and health benefits, as well as a stipend for living expenses. The Graduate Assistantship may be renewed for an additional year.

The assistant’s work at the Zimmerli Art Museum is supervised by Dr. Donna Gustafson, Andrew W. Mellon Liaison for Academic Programs and Curator. Activities vary from year to year, depending on the exhibitions and programs planned at the museum, and may include:

·         contributing to the planning and implementation of Mellon Programs including symposia, guest lectures, and film screenings with an interdisciplinary focus

·         identifying and researching interdisciplinary topics for university collaborative programming

·         providing curatorial assistance, from the conception to the installation of exhibitions

·         assigned and, as appropriate, independent research on exhibitions and publications

·         assisting with management, care, and research of the collection

·         providing museum tours for faculty and students

The goal of the Graduate Assistantship is to create opportunities for students to contribute to the programmatic and curatorial work of the university art museum. Typically, the Graduate Assistant participates in the long and short range goals of the office for Academic Programs to integrate the museum into the life of the university. As a result of their work within the museum, students gain a broad range of professional experience that advances their careers, whether as museum curators or academics.

The Zimmerli Art Museum (link to museum website) is one of the largest and most distinguished university-based museums in the country. The museum is headquartered in a 70,000-square-foot facility on Rutgers’ New Brunswick campus, and maintains a collection of 60,000 objects, ranging from ancient to contemporary art. The permanent collection features work in all media, with particularly rich holdings in nineteenth-century French art; Russian art from icons to the avant-garde; Soviet unofficial art from the Dodge Collection; and American art, with notable holdings of prints. In addition, small groups of antiquities, old master paintings, art inspired by Japan, original illustrations for children’s books, and rare books help to fulfill the museum’s research and teaching goals at Rutgers.

Application and Selection Process:  Eligible students must be enrolled in the Graduate Program of the Department of Art History at Rutgers. Qualified students should send a letter of interest and curriculum vitae by April 1 to the Director of the Graduate Program in the Department of Art History, who forwards candidates to the museum for interviews. For additional information, please contact Dr. Donna Gustafson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit the museum’s website at www.zimmerlimuseum.rutgers.edu.