Career opportunity: Assistant Research Scholar, Digital Projects, ISAW Library

By David Ratzan
12/28/2021

The Library of Institute for the Study of the Ancient World (ISAW) at New York University seeks an Assistant Research Scholar (ARS) to help develop and support its growing portfolio of digital projects and services and to participate in the scholarly life of the ISAW community. A key component of the ISAW Library’s mission is to provide access to and support for new and innovative forms of digital scholarship, scholarly communication, and pedagogy in ancient studies. The ARS will help the ISAW Library fulfill this charge by collaborating with a diverse group of academic professionals at ISAW and other schools and divisions of NYU on the development and support of some or all of the following types of projects and services: digital libraries; digital publications; open linked-data projects; digital mapping; archaeological databases; and the digital preservation of ancient studies data and scholarship. The ARS will have the opportunity to contribute to the design and support of digital humanities curricula and public programming at ISAW. Finally, in addition to publishing and presenting on ISAW digital projects and services in appropriate academic and industry venues, the Assistant Research Scholar will be encouraged to pursue an independent research agenda in any area of ancient studies, information science, digital humanities, or at the intersection of any of these fields.

Term

The Assistant Research Scholar is a full-time, continuing appointment, reporting to the Head of the ISAW Library. The funding for this position has been allocated.DutiesUnder the supervision of the Head of the ISAW Library, the Assistant Research Scholar will:

  • Participate in the planning, implementation, support, and ongoing development of ISAW digital projects and services
  • Write and document code for ISAW digital projects, databases, and web applications
  • Work closely with ISAW colleagues, staff, and faculty to help develop and provide high-quality instruction and research support for the ISAW community
  • Contribute to the design and supervision of internships and graduate student practica at ISAW related to digital projects, computational humanities, digital libraries, and digital publishing
  • Participate in the identification of, application to, and fulfillment of grant-funded projects related to the digital humanities, digital libraries, and/or digital publishing
  • Participate in the planning and organization of public programming related to the digital humanities, digital libraries, and/or digital publishing

Qualifications

  • Graduate degree in a field related to ISAW’s academic mission or an MLIS
  • Experience with metadata processing, batch-loading, and transformation tools, such as MarcEdit, Oxygen XML Editor, OpenRefine, or other similar tools
  • Familiarity with a programming language, such as Python, R, Java, and/or Ruby
  • Familiarity with collaborative open-source development using tools such as GitHub
  • Familiarity with emerging trends in resource description, access, and open scholarly practices
  • Excellent interpersonal, communication, project management, and instructional skills
  • Ability to work both independently and as part of a team of mixed professionals in an academic environment

Preferred not required

  • A PhD in a field related to ISAW’s academic mission
  • Two or more years of experience with a digital humanities research or resource project
  • Familiarity with metadata in a digital library environment and/or traditional MARC-based systems
  • Experience with library uses of non-MARC metadata schemas and their applications, such as Linked Open Data (LOD), MODS, RDF, and XML
  • Experience with digital mapping and major tools (e.g., QGIS, ArcGIS, Leaflet)
  • Experience with digital imaging and on-line dissemination of imagery (e.g., IIIF)
  • Ability to work with a web framework (e.g., Flask, Django, Ruby on Rails) or a static website generator (e.g., Jekyll)
  • Working knowledge of one or more of the modern or ancient languages relevant to the areas of study at ISAW
  • Experience in archaeological field projects, museum curation, or other types of material culture projects

Application Instructions

To ensure consideration, submit your resume and letter of application, including the contact information of three professional references. Applications will be considered until the position is filled.

Application Process

We are using Interfolio's Faculty Search to conduct this search. Applicants to this position receive a free Dossier account and can send all application materials, including confidential letters of recommendation, free of charge. https://apply.interfolio.com/99046 

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