About HWS Internships

The Department of History & War Studies (HWS) sponsors several trip sections and Academic Individual Advanced Development (AIAD) opportunities every year that allow cadets to visit places about which most have only read. From local day trips around the Hudson Valley and New York City to immersive trips abroad to locations such as France and Rwanda, there is a destination for every cadet.

These trips give cadets the opportunity to experience history where it happened.

Examples of History & War Studies Internships

  • D-Day: Study and honor the courage and legacy of those who crossed the channel and stormed the beaches of Normandy, kicking off the invasion and liberation of Europe in June 1944.
  • Civil War History: Gain an on-the-ground perspective of issues involving antebellum slavery, emancipation, and Civil War service, focusing on the bravery of such regiments as the 1st South Carolina Volunteers and the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry.
  • Modern Britain: Take a deep dive to better understand 19th and 20th-century British history with a few excursions further into the past. They also conduct archival research in London as part of this trip.
  • World War I Pilgrimage: Follow in the footsteps of the 26th Division of the U.S. Army as it arrived in Europe, trained, and deployed to the front.

Three-week internship with the G5 War Plans Division of the United States Army Pacific at Fort Shafter, Hawaii. Learn how the U.S. Army projects lethality in the Indo-Pacific and see how the Army is transforming in contact to meet present and future challenges. Work on real-world contingency plans and learn how an Army Service Component Command sets the theater for combat operations.

Three-week internship with the Command Historian of Joint Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Learn about the work of America’s elite quiet professionals while furthering the JSOC mission alongside command historians conducting research, preparing briefings, participating in After Action Reviews, and collecting oral histories.

Three-week internship with the Mission Command Training Program at Warfighter Exercise 26-4. Work alongside observer controller/trainers to see how the Army trains and challenges divisions to win the future fight, and understand the link between tactics and strategy through scenario design and the operations process in a virtual/constructive environment. Locations include Fort Hood, Fort Indiantown Gap, and Camp Atterbury.

Three-week research internship with faculty at the U.S. Army War College at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. Apply critical thinking to current challenges and practice research skills. Past internships have focused on the expansion of Chinese land power, studied applications for machine learning, and designed wargame scenarios for potential conflict in Eastern Europe, Africa, Latin America, and the Arctic.

A three-week internship at Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) in the National Capital Region. Participants will research the role ANC plays in commemorating warfighter legacies, preserving memories, and telling the national story by honoring the fallen.

Interested Cadets

Cadets interested in learning more about current HWS internship opportunities should contact the Department of History and War Studies.