Publishing Internships: Fall 2024 (NJ or PA)

Princeton University Press (PUP) is pleased to offer publishing internships for Fall 2024 through the end of 2024 in several department areas, including Editorial, Paperbacks, and Promotions. 

PUP is a strong advocate for greater diversity, equity, and inclusion in the university press community. Individuals who are members of groups underrepresented in academic publishing (which is, according to research by Lee & Low, historically a majority white, straight, cisgender, and nondisabled industry) are encouraged to apply. 

In this program, students observe firsthand the inner workings of a major university press and learn about all aspects of the publishing industry. Interns will be paid $15.13 per hour. Work location will be at the discretion of each employee’s comfort level, and a hybrid schedule (option for in-office days) will be coordinated with managers. Due to payroll tax set-up, we will only be able to consider applicants who can either work in the Princeton office or provide a NJ or PA address for their employment/payroll processing.  

Scheduled work hours (total 15 hours per week) and the specific start and end date for PUP internships are flexible, depending on each intern’s respective academic schedule.  

The perks of being a PUP intern! 

• Office and administrative experience that will introduce interns to the Press and to publishing in a concrete way. 

• Opportunities to learn from a variety of departments and meet with staff throughout the Press.  

• Writing and professional development workshops to support the acquisition of skills useful to pursuing future careers in publishing, scholarly communications, academia, or other writing-related fields. 

• Opportunity to attend meetings to gain insight into editorial, marketing, design, and sales-related decision-making processes.  

• Supervisors who act as mentors, providing support and advice, and who work to further the intern’s appreciation and understanding of academic publishing. 

• Celebratory lunch at the end of the program with Press colleagues and a member of PUP’s senior management. 

Department Internship Descriptions  

Editorial Internship 

Editorial interns support editorial assistants, editorial associates, and assistant editors in performing office and administrative tasks involved in the signing, developing, and publishing of distinctive and outstanding books. Primary responsibilities include processing advance and fee payments; drafting and mailing form letters; ordering complimentary copies to send to readers and authors; drafting and compiling materials for dossiers for Editorial Board approval; and mailing manuscripts, page proofs, and books to authors, readers, and endorsers. Interns may also have opportunities to take on other tasks, such as reading and evaluating proposals under consideration for publication, filling out permissions logs and conducting permissions research, researching and contacting potential peer reviewers, or other special projects. The editorial intern reports to a designated editorial associate on a day-to-day basis, and to the Editorial Administrator/Coordinator for overall supervision. 

Paperbacks Internship  

The Paperbacks Internship provides an opportunity to become familiar with, and to participate in, the tasks which go into selecting, producing, marketing, and publicizing paperback books for a major university press. The Paperbacks Intern reports to the Paperbacks Manager and to the Assistant Editor, Paperbacks for overall supervision and coordination. Specific responsibilities include evaluating author manuscripts and requested corrections; readying files for transmittal to production, for copyediting, and for typesetting; proofreading typeset interior pages and book covers; tracking and recording the book’s progress using our in-house database; researching the status of already-published book files; conducting market research; preparing materials for the seasonal presentations of the list.  

Promotions Internship 

The Promotions Department works with the media to generate coverage of PUP books through reviews, interviews, op-eds, planned author tours, and other public book events. The position is an opportunity to become familiar with, and to participate in, the tasks which go into publicizing books for a major university press.  Responsibilities include fulfilling book requests by mailing print copies or emailing digital copies; conducting research for various books and media for publicity purposes; researching and updating contact information for media and book requests in Salesforce; creating e-galley pages; reading and logging book reviews on SharePoint and updating our title management system and website with pull quotes; and other administrative tasks. The intern reports to the Monograph Publicity and Promotions Assistant and provides support to both the US and UK Promotions teams. The intern is invited to participate in PUP’s seasonal marketing planning, launch, project review, and other cross-department meetings. Preference for the ability to work a minimum of one full (7.5 hours) day each week or two half days each week to assist with in-office mailing and administrative tasks. 

• Must be at least 18 years old.  

• An undergraduate degree is not required. PUP strongly encourages applications from individuals who will contribute to increasing representation, and diversity of thought and experience within the publishing industry. 

• Must possess basic familiarity and proficiency with Microsoft Office suite and be comfortable with internet research. 

• Must possess excellent communication skills, both written and verbal. 

• Must be detail-oriented, organized, and attentive to established procedures. 

• Must be able to multitask and prioritize tasks. 

• Must be able to work well both independently and with others and have ability to synthesize feedback. 

• Enthusiasm for collaboration, and commitment to professional codes of conduct, located at https://press.princeton.edu/about/mission-values. 

• Ability to work from Princeton office and/or NJ or PA residence/address. While the Princeton, NJ office is at limited capacity, interested candidates may be able to work from the Press’s NJ office for networking and professional development. Flexibility with in-office days will be permitted. For 100% remote interns, a NJ or PA address must be provided for employment/payroll purposes. 

To Apply: 

The deadline for applications is Sunday, July 7 at 11:59PM ET. 

We thank all applicants; however, only short-listed candidates will be contacted for interviews. 

For the Fall 2024 intern cohort session, we are currently accepting applications for internships in the following departments: Editorial, Paperbacks, and Promotions 

Applications will only be accepted in Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF formatting. Please submit to our recruiting website (URL listed below) a cover letter and resume and indicate which department(s) you are applying for an internship in the cover letter. We recommend that you look on the Princeton University Press website to find one of our books that feels meaningful to you. Mention the book in your cover letter and explain why you chose it. 

Due to application volume, only finalists will be contacted. For more information on Princeton University Press, visit http://press.princeton.edu/.