Princeton University Press (PUP) is pleased to offer publishing internships starting Fall 2023 and through Spring 2024 in several department areas, including Editorial, Higher Education Marketing & Sales, Paperbacks, and Production Editorial.

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 to 20 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, as public health conditions permit.

Position Requirements

• Must be at least 18 years old.
• Preference for candidates attending a two or four-year college or university or a recent college graduate. 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 Monday, June 26 at 11:59PM ET.

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

For the Fall 2023 to Spring 2024 intern cohort session, we are currently accepting applications for internships in the following departments: Editorial, Higher Education Marketing & Sales, Paperbacks, and Production Editorial.

Applications will only be accepted in Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF formatting. Please submit to our recruiting website 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.

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 manager for overall supervision.

Higher Education Sales & Marketing Internship

The Higher Education Sales & Marketing internship will be focused on supporting marketing and sales activities associated with the promotion of textbooks and preparation for academic conferences. This intern will work with two distinct sub-depts of Sales & Marketing and will play a key role in communicating with faculty who consider adopting PUP textbooks as well as conducting research/outreach to promote PUP’s common reading program. Under Textbook Sales, the intern will process book requests, assist with faculty list research, draft email marketing campaigns, run surveys, collect feedback, and enter feedback into a Marketing Management System; report on and share these survey results with key members of the Press; as well as support and complete all other duties as assigned or requested for the general support of the department. Under Exhibits, day-to-day work will include proofreading promotional literature that will be used at PUP booths; printing, copying, and binding booth materials; assisting the Exhibits Specialist with preparing shipments to conferences; and completing all other duties as assigned or requested for the general support of the department. [Please note: A hybrid or in-person schedule is necessary for some of these tasks.] The Intern will have the opportunity to attend all related meetings and participate in Press-wide activities, including Internship events.

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.

Production Editorial Internship

The production editorial department manages manuscripts through copyediting, design, page proof, release of files for printing, and approval of printer proofs. Responsibilities of the production editorial intern include logging art for new manuscripts, prepping manuscripts for copyediting, completing design checks of templated books, copyediting and proofreading indexes, quality reviews of ebooks, applying for Cataloging-in-Publication data, and checking cover and jacket proofs as appropriate. Production editorial processes cross departmental lines, so the intern has the opportunity to interact with members of the broader Press community, including colleagues in design, acquisitions, and sales and marketing. The production editorial intern reports to the managing editor for overall supervision.

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