Digital Cultural Heritage and Public Outreach through Social Media Micro-internship
With the Manar al-Athar Digital Archive
Monday 9 May, midday
In person | Oxford
Petra - Deir (No. 462) البتراء - الدير Photo Credit: Otto Nieminen / Manar al-Athar (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Oxford University students are warmly invited to undertake a remote micro-internship with the Manar al-Athar Digital Archive in late June-early July 2022. This micro-internship was organised through the Careers Service Micro-Internship Programme. You can find out more about the experience of previous Manar al-Athar micro-interns here and here.
Working alongside the Manar al-Athar team, participants will undertake research into the broader social media landscape around Mediterranean heritage. Focussing on a specific geographical region of the Middle East or North Africa, you will then examine accounts in English (or other relevant languages) which share heritage-related content as well as the kind of content they achieve and the engagement it generates. Based on this work, you will develop a curated set of social media content based around a unifying theme of your choice, and make recommendations of the types of content Manar al-Athar should prioritise for future work.
The Manar al-Athar photo-archive, based in the Faculty of Classics at the University of Oxford, provides high-resolution, searchable images for teaching, research, publication, and heritage work. These images of archaeological sites and historic buildings cover the areas of the former Roman Empire which later came under Islamic rule (such as Syro-Palestine/the Levant, Egypt and North Africa), and adjoining regions (such as Armenia and Georgia). The chronological range is from c. 300 BC through the Islamic period. Manar al-Athar means ‘Guide to Archaeology’ in Arabic.
The photo-archive is open-access so that it can be freely used by anyone anywhere in the world. Photographs can be freely downloaded as original high-resolution images (tif images) without water marks, making them immediately available in a format suitable for publication or research, simply by acknowledging the source. Material is labelled in both English and Arabic to facilitate regional use.
The photo-archive was originally conceived as a resource for teaching and research, and the higher education sector (both in the UK and worldwide) remains a key audience. However, Manar al-Athar is also seeking to widen its user base beyond academia and is currently exploring increasing various means of utilizing social media platforms in order to do so. This micro-internship will focus on social media research and content creation skills in order to do so.
Please note that, due to staff availability, this micro-internship will only be offered for the week 27 June – 1 July 2022.
What you will do
Working both independently and as part of a team, you will analyse social media coverage of cultural heritage sites of the Middle East and North Africa, identifying key influencers in the sector and analysing the types of content that they share.
Receive an introduction to social media analytics.
Create a themed set of social media posts by selecting and curating material from the Manar al-Athar photo archive.
You will also have the opportunity to undertake a short training course delivered by a representative from Wikipedia.
You will present your findings in team briefings, and in two written formats: You will write a short report to be used by the Manar al-Athar team when developing social media content and strategy, as well as making recommendations for future content.
What you will gain
By the end of the internship you will have gained:
A knowledge of the major cultural heritage sites in a specific region of the Middle East or North Africa.
An introductory understanding of social media research skills (including tools like CrowdTangle Link Checker).
Insight into how community engagement with digital cultural heritage can be developed, and experience of contributing to strategic plans for such engagement through social media.
Experience in writing for both a professional and a general audience.
Experience in working as part of a team.
Presentation skills.
Candidates will be considered from any subject area, from second-year undergraduate level and above. They should possess good written communication skills, experience of reviewing and summarising information, and the ability to work both independently and as part of a team. An interest in the cultural heritage of the Middle East and/or North Africa, the heritage sector (broadly defined), community engagement with research, social media management, and/or digital humanities is desirable.
Further details & how to apply
Application closing date: Monday 9 May, 2022, midday.
Reference ID: 74KX7
27 June – 1 July 2022. Please note that the Employer is unable to accommodate another week.
Students are required to commit to the full micro-internship - as with any professional placement - and any concerns about dates should be raised with the Internship Office in advance of making an application.
A personal statement, explaining both why they are interested in the placement and the Manar al-Athar project, and why they would be well-suited to the post
