Amherst College — Cataloging & Metadata Librarian
Filed in Administrative on April 13, 2023
Cataloging & Metadata Librarian
Amherst Campus
Full Time
JR3775
Amherst has taken a leadership role among highly selective liberal arts colleges and universities in successfully diversifying the racial, socio-economic, and geographic profile of its student body. The College is similarly committed to enriching its educational experience and its culture through the diversity of its faculty, administration and staff.
Job Description:
Amherst College invites applications for the Cataloging & Metadata Librarian position. The Cataloging & Metadata Librarian is a full-time, year-round position, starting at $61,545 – commensurate with experience. Given Amherst's distinction as one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the country, the successful candidate will demonstrate the ways in which they bring value to and will work towards supporting a broadly diverse community.
The Cataloging & Metadata Librarian performs resource descriptions for all formats of library materials. This includes creating bibliographic records and batch loading electronic resource records using our library services platform (FOLIO) and discovery platform (EDS), and creating metadata for digital materials in Amherst College Digital Collections. Collaborates with colleagues throughout Collection Management and the Library to ensure that cataloging and metadata practices make resources discoverable and usable, with a particular lens for inclusion and the needs of a diverse community. Works effectively with colleagues in the Five Colleges consortium on best practices for our shared systems.
Summary of Responsibilities:
Cataloging
- Creates original and updates bibliographic records for a variety of formats and languages using accepted standards such as MARC, RDA, LCSH, and LC classification
- Manages the batch processing, analysis, and editing of records, working collaboratively with colleagues across the Five Colleges consortium
- Troubleshoots and resolves access issues related to catalog records for ebooks and batch-loaded resources, working collaboratively with Electronic Resources staff
- Contributes to cataloging policies and documentation, working collaboratively with colleagues within the library and the Five Colleges consortium
- Participates in collaborative projects to improve discoverability of our electronic and physical materials, including efforts to implement critical cataloging practices
- Performs authority control and disambiguation of names, including original authority work for NACO
Metadata
- Supports discovery of and access to digital library collections through metadata creation, analysis, enrichment, quality control, and maintenance adhering to appropriate schema, standards, and best practices
- Uses existing and emerging metadata standards and schemas such as MODS, XML, RDF, and JSON to describe and make accessible the Library's unique digital collections, working with controlled vocabulary thesauri such as LCSH, LCNAF, AAT and content standards such as DCRM(MSS)
- Implements policies and procedures and contributes to goals for non-MARC metadata, in consultation with the Metadata Management Librarian
- Assists with establishing appropriate approaches to the creation of metadata for individual projects or categories of material in consultation with various stakeholders
- Maintains an awareness of developments in metadata and participates in resource description initiatives supporting the advancement of the discoverability and use of digital collections
- Engages with community efforts around use of descriptive language and controlled vocabularies through a DEI lens
Supervision of student assistants
- Hires and trains student assistants to help with physical processing and/or data clean-up projects
- Provides quality control for work done by student assistants
Qualifications:
Required
- Master's degree from a program accredited by the American Library Association or foreign equivalent
- Experience in resource description, including MARC bibliographic records and non-MARC metadata for digital collections, using established schemas and controlled vocabularies following accepted standards and best practices
- Experience with adapting to new standards and technologies and a willingness to explore and implement new technologies, standards, and practices to enhance discoverability and use of collections
- Familiarity with how library resources are accessed and used (preferably in an undergraduate context) and a commitment to removing barriers and advocating for users
- Demonstrated analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in a team environment
- Demonstrated commitment to effectively supporting a broadly diverse and intentionally inclusive community
- Awareness of critical concerns in the field, including bias in resource description
Preferred
- Experience with tools and techniques for metadata transformation, remediation, and management (e.g., Oxygen, OpenRefine, Python, XSLT, MARCEdit)
- Familiarity with digital asset management and digital repository systems including their architecture and requirements (e.g., Archipelago, Islandora, etc.)
- Working knowledge of one or more foreign languages
Amherst College offers many opportunities for professional growth and development, continued learning, and career advancement.
Amherst College requires all employees to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 (medical and religious exemptions may apply).
Amherst College is pleased to provide a comprehensive, highly competitive benefits package that meets the needs of staff and faculty and their families. Benefits are an important part of our overall compensation, so it is critical that you review all of the options to ensure it meets your total compensation requirements. Click here for Benefits Information.
Interested candidates are asked to submit a resume and cover letter online at https://amherst.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/Amherst_Jobs. Please be sure to upload all requested documents prior to clicking Submit. Applications cannot be revised once submitted. (Current employees and students should apply by clicking on the Career icon from their Workday home screen) Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled.
To find information about job group and level (JGL) follow this link.
To apply, visit https://amherst.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Amherst_Jobs/job/Amherst-Campus/Cataloging—Metadata-Librarian_JR3775
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