Digital Curation in Action

Interning at the U.S. Copyright Office

Emma Lubove had a background in dance and was working in the service industry when she decided to reevaluate her long-term career goals. Interested in a field that combined her passion for cultural preservation with a growing interest in digital records management, she began exploring online graduate degree programs on the University of North Carolina’s website.

One program stood out: the Master’s in Professional Science (MPS) in Digital Curation and Management.

“I’ve always valued preservation and the accessibility of cultural materials. I didn’t want to leave that world entirely, so this program stood out as a way to equip myself with the skills needed to manage and archive digital records. I wanted to ensure they’re accessible not only for people today but also for generations to come,” Lubove shared.

Gaining Hands-On Experience

A key feature of the MPS program is its emphasis on career preparation, including a required internship. While exploring opportunities through UNC’s Handshake platform, Lubove discovered an internship with the U.S. Copyright Office, a historic institution managing around 500,000 copyright registrations annually and maintaining a vast repository of digital records.

The opportunity to work with historical, artistic, and cultural materials excited her.

“I started out with an inventorying project. I took detailed inventories of copyright registrations, matching the metadata with the new pilot program that the Copyright Office is working on for the public. Then I went on to a PII—personally identifiable information—redaction project. Right now I’m taking quality assurance samples and I’m giving them to the federal research division to make sure working on a metadata cleanup project with the virtual power catalogs, so I’m using Microsoft Access and XML and verifying and updating metadata on those card catalog. It’s been really fun!”

One of her favorite moments was discovering a batch of 1942 musical compositions, featuring themes that reflected the era’s political and emotional climate. The work also sparked her interest in archival “sleuthing,” such as identifying Armenian script in song titles through extensive research.

“They (the Copyright Office) have been really, really welcoming, and they create a safe space for you to explore new areas. As someone that didn’t have a big background in this area or field, they really welcomed me in and showed me the ropes,” said Lubove.

“The Copyright Office welcomes interns to our team to support our work of promoting creativity and free expression and administering the nation’s copyright system,” said Assistant Register and Director of Operations Jacklyn Napier. “The Office benefits when interns share skills and knowledge from their college experiences with our staff, and we look forward to continuing to welcome interns, college student volunteers, law clerks, and others at the Office.”

The Role of Digital Curation Education

Lubove credits her success to the MPS in Digital Curation and Management program.

“I found this program gave me a good foundation and a lot of terms and different tools that I could use for the internship. I think that the sense of community that I really get, even though I am fully remote, has helped me a lot with creating connections and working remotely,” said Lubove.

She continued, “It’s a really good opportunity to build a career, especially if you are someone like me who’s transitioning from a different field. Or if you are trying to enhance any existing skills, it does provide a really strong foundation in not only teaching you what terms are, but also in managing digital records and understanding the difference between what managing records is like in government or a museum or a library or in a corporate area. And I I found it really approachable for just anyone who doesn’t have an IT background. You don’t have to be tech savvy to join in. It’s really welcoming.”

What’s Next

Lubove’s internship with the U.S. Copyright Office has been extended until May 2025, allowing her to deepen her expertise and take on new projects. She’s excited to expand her work into historical book records and delve further into technical aspects like XML and metadata processing.

Looking ahead, Lubove hopes to become a digital archivist, ideally in a role that merges her passions for history, art, and cultural preservation.

“I just want to reiterate how foundational the program has been for me, especially as someone with little to no background in digital creation and management. It’s helped me reflect on my experiences and start to know what I want to do with my life,” she said