Finding Opportunities in Arts & Creative Careers

Introduction

This document contains many resources collected by our Center for Career Design staff. Log into Handshake and schedule an appointment with a Career Coach to discuss your interests and strengths, explore your options, get help with networking and perfecting your application materials.

Many U.S. based opportunities listed here may require U.S. permanent work authorization or citizenship. As always, any student requiring U.S. work authorization should check with the Office of Visa & Immigration Services (OVIS) prior to accepting employment offers.

Where Can Your Interest in the Arts and Creative Areas Take You?

Do you aspire to a career in the arts or other creative fields? Or perhaps you’re curious how your artistic interests—whether personal or academic—can shape your career design? You may be surprised by how many directions a creative path can take.

Some students pursue work as practicing artists or creatives, while others find fulfilling roles supporting arts and cultural organizations—in areas such as administration, education, fundraising, collections management, public programming, publishing, or art law. There are also opportunities that bridge the creative and corporate worlds, from marketing and communications to design, media, and technology.

Careers in the arts may follow a less linear path than many corporate roles, but that’s part of their strength. Applying the principles of career design can help you navigate the process intentionally—starting from where you are and designing forward.

Here’s how to begin:

  • Start with yourself. Clarify what matters most—your interests, values, goals, and ambitions.
  • Explore what’s out there. Brainstorm and research the many roles and sectors that align with your interests. The Hopkins Center’s Arts Majors Career Resources is a great place to start.
  • Connect and experiment. Reach out for informational conversations with alumni and professionals working in areas that intrigue you. Networking is not about asking for jobs—it’s about learning, trying, and discovering. These connections can spark insights and lead to opportunities you might never have anticipated.

Career Idea Brainstorming

When brainstorming career ideas, it can sometimes be difficult to know where to start—especially if you’re not yet familiar with the kinds of roles that exist within specific industries. For example, who would have guessed there’s a job like Exhibition Registrar, who coordinates artwork loans and logistics for major museum shows, or Curatorial Project Manager, who oversees the planning and production of large-scale exhibitions? Or that arts organizations hire professionals such as Development Operations Specialists or Visitor Engagement Coordinators to manage fundraising data and design audience experiences?

One great tool to help you explore these possibilities is our Career Exploration Generator, a hands-on lab experience you can sign up for on Handshake. The Exploration Generator offers a guided space to reflect on what matters most to you—your interests, values, and motivations—and discover career paths that align with them.

You can also brainstorm with others. Meeting with a Career Coach, professor, or other mentors across campus can be an excellent way to expand your ideas, learn from different perspectives, and identify next steps.

Finally, here are some Sample Fields, Jobs, and Internships to prompt your exploration:

Sample Fields, Jobs, and Internships

Arts Administration in Museums

  • Smithsonian Museum Curator (Digital)
  • Curator of Education – Mulvane Art Museum, Washburn University
  • Historic Saranac Lake Museum Assistant
  • Curatorial Assistant –National September 11 Memorial & Museum
  • Assistant Director for Learning and Community Engagement – Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center
  • Program Manager DEAI – Yolanda Hester

Sample Internships and Fellowships:

  • World Awareness Children’s Museum Internship
  • New London County Historical Society- Museum Education Internship
  • Music Hall of Fame and Museum Internship
  • Centennial Research Fellow- Museum of the City of NY
  • Archeological Collections Fellowship- Fort Ticonderoga

Visual Arts and Design

  • Junior Artist- Frame Store
  • Design Assistant- Jordan’s Furniture
  • Entry Level – Associate Designer (Commercial) at IBM
  • Junior Interior Designer at The Designer Group

Sample Internships:

  • TikTok Design Internship
  • Photography Internships
  • Royal Caribbean Digital Product Design Internship
  • Alteryx Graphic Design Intern

Music

  • ESPN Music Licensing Assistant
  • Assistant/ Coordinator, A&R Administration- Warner Music Group
  • Global Marketing Coordinator- Disney Music Group
  • Apple Supervising Sound Editor
  • Spotify Product Manager, Research (Music Vertical Platform)

Sample Internships:

  • BluZone Entertainment Music Production Intern
  • Audio Design Desk Composer Intern
  • Rise Up Music Group Internships
  • SiriusXM Intern

Communications

  • Trademark Management Group Junior Marketing and Communications Assistant
  • Avenica Communications Entry Level Associate
  • Precision Marketing Public Relations and Communications Assistant 
  • Nestegg Marketing Specialist
  • L Mae Boutique Marketing and Sales Associate
  • E-Cloth Inc Community Marketing Associate

Sample Internships:

  • Alhambra Internship
  • HeyMama Internship
  • LucentBrand Internship
  • Zwift Tech Writer Intern

Content Production

  • Peacock: Production Coordinator
  • Disney: Junior Generalist Artist
  • Netflix: Associate, Production Finance – Animation
  • Crunchyroll: Jr. Producer, Creative Services
  • IGN: Streaming Editor

Sample Internships:

  • HBOMax: Virtual Marketing Analytics Internships
  • Virtual HBO Documentary Intern
  • Soprano: Broadcast Media Intern
  • AT&T: Video Technology and Operations Intern
  • CBS: Creative Development Intern 5r

User Interface Design/Usability

  • Behr Paint Company, Assistant Product Manager
  • Washington Post, Subscriptions Product Designer
  • The Reynolds and Reynolds Company Graphic Designer
  • KiwiCo UI/UX Designer

Sample Internships:

  • Biolog-id UI/UX Micro Internship
  • DataVisor, Technical Writing Intern
  • Imre Marketing & Communications, Fall UX Intern
  • Nokia Interaction Designer, Summer Intern
  • WellSky, Junior UX/UI Summer Intern

Gaming

  • Epic Games: 3D Motion Designer
  • Epic Games: Cinematic FX Artist
  • FIFA (EA): Producer
  • Activision: Marketing Manager, Social
  • Twitch: Product Designer
  • Discord: Junior Marketing Manager

Sample Internships:

  • EA: Summer Program/Product Management and Analytics Internships
  • Activision: Internship Program
  • Twitch: Engineering Intern
  • Tesla: Software – Infotainment UI & Video Games Internship
  • Ubisoft: Summer Internship Program

Below are additional lists of sample careers for different arts industries: 

Gaining Experience: Internships, Projects, and More

One of the best ways to discover whether a particular area of interest might be a good fit for you is to seek out an internship or similar early career experience. These opportunities can take many forms—from traditional internships to short-term, project-based experiences that allow you to apply your skills and explore a specific aspect of the arts or creative sector.

You can find opportunities through Handshake and other job and internship boards (see below for recommendations). However, it’s also very common in the arts to create your own opportunity by reaching out directly to an organization of interest. Often, students connect through a Dartmouth alum or another professional contact to inquire about potential internships, externships, or collaborative projects.

Many students have designed meaningful, customized experiences simply by proactively contacting organizationswhose missions inspire them. A Career Coach can help you develop outreach strategies, draft messages, and identify effective approaches to make the most of these connections.

Recommended job/internship sites:

Cross Industry Resources

Visual Arts & Design

Art Galleries, Art Centers, Museums, Auction Houses, etc.

Museum & Cultural Heritage Career Resources

Arts Grants

Architecture/Interior Design

Fashion/Business of Fashion

French & Italian Opportunities

Theater

Entertainment

Music

Film Production, Animation, Gaming and Virtual Worlds

User Interface Design/Usability

Publishing/Literary

Writing/Screenwriting

Communications & Media

Marketing & Advertising

Resume & Additional Career Tips

Audio Resources

Portfolio Tips

Portfolios are an important piece of applications for many of these jobs and internships. The Center for Career Design recommends getting your portfolio reviewed by Career Coach Chris Jordan and a professor or staff member within your specific department. Below is a list of links to creative departments at Dartmouth:

Informational Interviews

When exploring a career area that you are curious about, informational interviews can help you find out more about the industry, role, or company you’re interested in. An Informational Interview is a conversation in which a person seeks insights on a career path, an industry, a company and/or general career advice from someone with experience and knowledge in the areas of interest. 

Networking

The vast majority of opportunities in creative careers are found through networking. Networking is integral to creating, finding, and landing opportunities. It is also key to becoming known to those who may be in a position to help or hire you. Even applications to publicly-posted positions can benefit from a networking strategy. Finding the right people at the appropriate moment can generate important information, and possibly, opportunities you could not find elsewhere. 

Schedule an appointmentwith a Career Coach to explore your informational interview and/or networking strategy.  For ideas about what questions to ask in an informational interview, please refer to our Outreach and Interview Templates.

LinkedIn and Handshake are two of many ways to begin building your network. Career coaches and faculty can help you strategize on identifying contacts, sculpting “your ask,” and building your network. Here are a few resources to get you started.

Interview Preparation

Interviews for creative industry opportunities often include specific questions related to the industry and job function. Here are a few samples from one company in Entertainment/Media: 

  • Why do you want to work in entertainment?
  • What kind of content do you want to make?
  • What role do you take on within group projects?
  • What is a skillset you’re looking to acquire with your next internship?
  • Which movies and tv shows are you watching? Which podcasts are you listening to?
  • What are your interests outside of film and tv?

Faculty, alumni, and Center for Career Design Career Coaches can help you identify potential questions and prepare for your upcoming interview. Schedule an appointment with a Career Coach for a practice interview.

Alumni in the Arts recordings and interviews

Four Ways to Find Arts Opportunities Using Handshake 

You can find many different jobs and internships in Handshake. Check out this spreadsheet for sample results from February 2022. Follow these steps below to stay connected and receive alerts as new opportunities arise: 

  1. Complete your profile. 

A complete profile means you will be served opportunities that are interesting to you and start getting outreach from employers with relevant opportunities. 80% of students who share their interests on Handshake receive a message from a recruiter. The more you include, the better your chances of having a recruiter find you.

  1. Use filters to narrow your search. 

When searching for jobs and internships in Handshake, you can apply various filters to narrow your search and/or enter keywords. Here is an example of a filter you can use to narrow your search.

  1. Follow employers that interest you to receive email notifications for when the employer posts a job, internship or event. 

Students can follow employers in Handshake to stay updated on any new employer activity in the system, including posting jobs, internships and events. 

  1. Build your network with alumni and peers who have worked at organizations of interest. 

On an individual employer’s page, scroll to find a box titled “Who’s Worked Here.” Click on the list to view peers and alumni who have worked at the organization and send a message to invite a conversation to learn more about their experience and receive advice.  

As you can see, there are many exciting creative opportunities and careers! Log into Handshake and schedule an appointment with a Center for Career Design Career Coach to discuss your unique situation and plan next steps. Professors and alumni in your department of interest have valuable advice to share as well!