As a second year Northumbria University student studying History and Politics, I applied for this Digital Archive Internship with Dr Helena Goodwyn in November 2022, and worked until March 2023. This internship was focused on digitising the manuscript of Joseph O. Baylen’s biography of W. T. Stead, a prominent nineteenth-century newspaper editor and a pioneer of modern journalism in England.
I was tasked with digitally transcribing the typewritten documents of Baylen’s work. The pages were scanned and uploaded online for me to then use Adobe Acrobat OCR technology to turn the PDF pages into Microsoft Word documents. This work included making sure that all the transcribed documents were coherent, correct, and set out in the right format, as the OCR technology meant that the documents were often not legible. As well as the transcriptions, I ensured that there were detailed, yet condensed, summaries of each page in order for everyone who will be working on the archive to be aware of the specifics and topics of each page and chapter. These tasks required being able to pay close attention to detail, to avoid mistranslations, along with being able to communicate effectively.
I was able to work closely with Dr Goodwyn. I was provided with a lot of help initially as I learned how to undertake the allocated tasks and how to do them effectively. This included many regular meetings with Dr Goodwyn, which turned to biweekly updates once we were both confident in my understanding and abilities. This internship allowed me to work in my own time to accommodate my schedule, as I was completing this alongside my studies as well as a part-time weekend job. Whenever issues arose, like illegible handwriting, it was very easy to contact Dr Goodwyn and gain her advice in the meantime.
I found this internship to be an amazing opportunity. It helped me to expand my skills in Microsoft programmes for the transcriptions of each document itself, along with allowing me to gain new skills in other programmes and technologies like Adobe Acrobat. Not only were my skills in technologies improved, but due to the nature of work I was completing, it helped me to expand my writing and communication skills, along with other professional skills like interviewing. Overall, it gave me insight into a discipline that I have never experienced before, and has helped me in deciding what area of work I may like to pursue outside of my university degree.
This internship has been a rewarding experience, as it has allowed me to gain knowledge of a new area of study that I have not previously encountered. It has allowed me to build and develop my CV by providing professional work experience in the field that I may be exploring in the future. It was a great experience that was workable alongside my other commitments. It has been an incredible opportunity to work with Helena and to expand my skillset in a professional capacity.
Northumbria Englishes 