Job Description
Summary: The Peabody Essex Museum’s Phillips Library seeks a full-time Assistant Cataloging Librarian to fulfill the role of primary cataloger on staff, an essential role to improve intellectual and physical access to our collections. They will work closely with the Technical Services Librarian to identify cataloging priorities, implement equitable descriptive practices, streamline workflows, reduce the backlog, and maintain cataloging-related systems. The Assistant Cataloging Librarian is expected to participate collaboratively in library-wide and museum-wide projects and initiatives.
Desired qualifications: 1–2 years cataloging experience. Knowledge of library and archival standards such as RDA, DCRM(B), LCSH, and MARC. Experience with OCLC Connexion preferred. Excellent communication, problem-solving skills, flexibility, and a commitment to teamwork. Sensitivity to proper care and handling of materials; working knowledge of Chinese and/or Japanese is a plus.
Bachelor’s degree and work towards an ALA-accredited degree in library/information science, or an equivalent combination of education and experience. The abilities to use computing tools and to lift, carry, and position books and other materials weighing up to 15 lbs. Library materials may be stored on shelves up to 12 feet high and much of the work will take place at a desk at PEM’s Collection Center in Rowley, Massachusetts, with occasional responsibilities at the museum campus in Salem. Reliable transportation is required.
PEM is committed to diversity among its employees and encourages qualified candidates from all backgrounds to apply.
Additional Info & Requirements
Equivalent combination of education and experience considered.
The Community
PEM’s Phillips Library is among the oldest libraries in the country. Rich primary and secondary sources — including vast quantities of manuscripts, books, photographs, maps, broadsides, and ephemera — make it a productive location for research and discovery. Our resources highlight New England’s importance as one of the nation’s earliest settled areas and connect our nation’s past to cultures around the world. Materials in our print and manuscript collections capture the history of early America, material culture, foreign relations, and international trade and commerce.