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Digital Archivist

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Position description

Digital Archivist

Special Collections & Archives/Digital Library Development Program

The University of California San Diego Library seeks applications from highly motivated, innovative, collaborative, and service-oriented professionals to join the Library as our Digital Archivist (Assistant, Associate or Full Librarian). Working primarily in the Special Collections & Archives Program, the Digital Archivist is also a member of the Digital Library Development Program. This position serves an important collaborative role between these programs, as well as working with other subject specialists and programs in the Library. The UC San Diego Library is committed to supporting academic excellence and diversity within the faculty, staff, and student body.

The University and the Library
With 36,000 students, UC San Diego is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through excellence in education and research at the undergraduate, graduate, professional school and postdoctoral levels. UC San Diego has been recognized as one of the top 10 public universities in the nation by US News & World Report, as well as one of the top schools for medical research. UC San Diego is also in the top 10 of all universities in the nation in receiving federal R&D research grants. The UC San Diego Library plays a critical role in advancing and supporting the university's research, teaching, patient care, and public

Responsibilities of the Position
The Digital Archivist is a position shared between Special Collections & Archives (SC&A) and the Digital Library Development Program (DLDP). Reporting to the directors of both programs (60% in SC&A; 40% in DLDP), the Digital Archivist will provide leadership to ensure the long-term preservation, processing, organization, and discovery of the born-digital web and archival content retained by the UC San Diego Library. Given that the preponderance of such materials is held in Special Collections & Archives and is anticipated to grow in quantity as authors, researchers themselves, the campus, and other entities produce more digital content, the position will initially primarily report in that program. The Digital Archivist will:
• Provide library-wide expertise on workflows, tools, and best practices to support the management of born-digital content, including, but not limited to, emails, web content, and social media.
• Strategize, develop, and communicate processes for accessioning, ingesting, processing, describing, and preserving born-digital materials. Process born-digital content for Library collections.
• Advise on and engage with the appropriate capture, management, discovery, and preservation strategies for born-digital materials.
• Set guidelines and identify tools and techniques to review, process, and redact born-digital content with personally identifiable information and other confidential and sensitive information.
• Evaluate proposed processing of born digital materials with Program Directors, the Supervisory Archivist, and other UC San Diego selectors, as appropriate and advise on discovery and delivery options.
• Provide direction for the capture, organization, management, and preservation of selected web-based resources, including, when appropriate, management through the Library’s Digital Asset Management System (DAMS) and the Internet Archive’s Archive It tool.
• Coordinate web archiving projects with appropriate UC San Diego Library specialists, CDL support staff, and colleagues from other UC campuses, as required.
• Work with Library and University IT staff to facilitate the transfer of born-digital materials to library-controlled storage using hard drives, FTP, shared drives, and other methods; advise on digital storage needs.
• Collaborate with other UC Digital Archivists on system wide initiatives and opportunities to share knowledge, resources and workflows.
• Coordinate with curatorial and metadata specialists on the cataloging of born-digital materials and their exposure in library catalogs, the Library’s DAMS, as well as other UC and national digital repositories.
• Work collaboratively with Library public service and outreach professionals on the appropriate presentation of born digital material for instructional and research use, and exhibits.

Required Qualifications
• MLS or equivalent advanced degree. Equivalent combination of relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.
• Knowledge of archival theory and best practices, especially as they relate to the particular issues posed by born-digital content.
• Experience processing digital materials; content both born-digital and content representing reformatted legacy holdings.
• Knowledge of current trends and protocols in digital archiving.
• Thorough and up-to-date knowledge of tools and software used to capture, manage, and deliver born-digital records.
• Knowledge of legacy digital formats, their care and use.
• Experience with social media and web archiving activities and tools.
• Familiarity with social media archiving tools / services such as Crimson Hexagon.
• Familiarity with metadata and other standards in arrangement, description & management of born-digital materials.
• Excellent analytical, interpersonal, time management, and organizational skills, as well as excellent written and oral communication abilities.
• Ability to work creatively, both independently and collaboratively.
• Demonstrated strong commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion in higher education.

Preferred Qualifications
• Experience processing analog archival materials.
• Society of American Archivists Digital Archivist Specialist certificate, or courses toward its completion.
• Knowledge of legal & ethical issues affecting privacy, records restrictions, and access, as they pertain to born-digital materials, especially email.

Librarians at UC San Diego are academic appointees and entitled to appropriate professional leave and all other perquisites granted to non-faculty academic personnel. UC San Diego Librarians are expected to participate in library-wide and system-wide planning and governance and to be professionally active. Appreciation of, a sensitivity to, and respect for a rich and diverse academic environment, inclusive of students, faculty, and staff of varying social, economic, cultural, ideological and ethnic backgrounds, and those with disabilities.

Salary: Salary and level of appointment in the Librarian series commensurate with qualifications and experience and based on the University of California pay scales.

Closing Date: Applications must be received by April 2, 2018.

To Apply: For full consideration, please submit applications to:

https://apol-recruit.ucsd.edu/apply/JPF01686

• Please provide the following:

  1. A short application letter addressing your interest in this position and applicable qualifications
  2. A resume of education and relevant experience
  3. The names of at least three persons who are knowledgeable about your qualifications and/or suitability for this position
  4. A personal statement summarizing your past or planned contributions to diversity; guidance for preparing diversity statements can be found at: Center for Faculty Diversity and Inclusion

Partner Opportunities Program: UC San Diego recognizes that your employment decisions may involve dual career considerations. UCSD provides online and in-person career and relocation assistance to spouses and partners of academic appointees.

AA-EOE: UCSD is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer with a strong institutional commitment to excellence through diversity.

Application Requirements

Document requirements
  • A resume of education and relevant experience

  • A short application letter addressing your interest in this position and applicable qualifications

  • Statement of Contributions to diversity - Applicants should summarize their past or potential contributions to diversity. See our Faculty Equity site for more information.

Reference requirements
  • 3 required (contact information only)

Job location

San Diego, CA