Graduate traineeships in the Library and Archives

Kew has one of the world’s most important plant science libraries and archives. Each year, the Library and Archives offers two twelve-month paid traineeships for graduates interested in careers in librarianship or in archives administration and records management.

Graduate trainees assist visitors in the Library Reading Room

The Library and Archives at Kew

With its wide-ranging collections of plant science and horticulture books, journals and other literature, Kew's Library represents an essential resource for botanists, conservationists, historians and many other groups of researchers. Kew's Archives hold historical records and correspondence relating to the development of the Gardens, its botanical collections and its activities worldwide. Each year, Kew’s Herbarium, Library, Art and Archives Department offers two paid traineeships for graduates interested in working in a library or archives.

Library Graduate Traineeships

Based in Kew’s Main Library, the Library Graduate Traineeship provides the library management and cataloguing experience needed by graduates embarking on a professional librarianship qualification. Over the course of the year, the trainee will catalogue new acquisitions, curate a section of the Main Library, staff the Enquiry Desk, compile library statistics and undertake project work with the Library, Art and Archives collections.

Work experience for Archive graduate trainees can involve answering queries using Kew's historical records Marie Humphries, RBG Kew

Archives Graduate Traineeships

Kew’s Archives Graduate Traineeship offers graduates an opportunity to gain experience in archival administration and records management before beginning a professional archives qualification. The year-long paid traineeship involves assisting with the full range of archival and records management activities, including dealing with enquiries and readers, staffing the Reading Room Enquiry Desk, cataloguing and preservation work, contributing to the departmental blog and staff magazine, modern records file management and project work with the Library, Art and Archives collections.

Read the blog about the work of the trainees and the Library, Art and Archives.