Rare Materials Cataloger, Rare Book School (RBS), Charlottesville, VA

Posted October 28, 2016

Rare Book School (RBS) seeks a motivated, collaborative individual capable of precise and complex work, to join its team as the School’s first full-time Rare Materials Cataloger. The successful candidate will be responsible for contributing to the cataloging and processing of RBS’s teaching collections. This is a two-year full-time contract, with the possibility of renewal for up to one additional year.

Located on central Grounds at the University of Virginia, RBS offers a close-knit, highly collaborative, mission-centered work environment with an abundance of engaging, bookish people and fascinating historical objects. The School currently maintains a teaching collection of more than 80,000 items, including papyri, medieval manuscripts, incunabula and rare printed books, prints, photographs, ephemera, printing and book-making equipment, artists’ books, and other artifacts.

Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Assistant Curator of Collections, the Rare Materials Cataloger’s primary responsibility will be to catalog a wide range of books, ephemera, manuscripts, periodicals, realia, and related items according to the School’s in-house cataloging procedures. The cataloger will also: enhance records for previously cataloged items; contribute to the ongoing maintenance and development of the School’s new online catalog; assist with the processing, preservation, and shifting of materials; and occasionally perform programs-related tasks during RBS course sessions, as required.

Required qualifications:

• Master’s degree in library and information science from an ALA-accredited institution

• Demonstrated knowledge of and professional experience with rare book cataloging standards, including DCRM(B) and RBMS Controlled Vocabularies

• Service-oriented, systematic, analytical thinker with excellent communication skills

• Demonstrated interest in and engagement with book history and bibliography, the humanities, special collections librarianship, conservation, and/or the antiquarian book trade

• Basic knowledge of two or more languages, in addition to English (e.g. Latin, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Greek, Italian, Arabic, Hebrew, Chinese, Japanese, &c.)

Desired qualifications:

• An advanced degree with a concentration or specialization in bibliography and/or book history

• Training in digital photography as related to conservation and collections documentation

• Knowledge of or interest in RDA and BIBFRAME

The salary for this position ranges from $35,000 to $40,000, depending upon experience and academic/professional achievement. The successful candidate will receive three weeks of paid vacation, as well as sick leave, health insurance, and retirement benefits after the first year of employment. In addition, the successful candidate will be able to attend one or more RBS courses (tuition-free), and may also be eligible to receive travel funding to attend the annual RBMS conference.

The RBS work space is a standard special collections library environment with possible exposure to mold and dust; work will likely entail the occasional lifting of boxes of up to 40 pounds in weight, and the repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation. Saturday and Sunday shifts are typically required when RBS courses are in session.

Applicants should submit the following materials:

• A cover letter discussing: a) your interest in RBS; b) the various strengths you could bring to RBS’s collections and staff; c) the skills you hope to cultivate at RBS and the areas in which you hope to grow; and d) the ways in which this position would inform your longer-term professional goals

• A c.v. listing three professional references

• A writing sample demonstrating your best work

Please send electronic copies of application materials to the attention of Ruth-Ellen St. Onge, Assistant Curator of Collections, at [email protected].

Deadline for applications: 15 November 2016

Desired start date: February-March 2017

Rare Book School is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity, equity, and inclusiveness.