Archives Assistant

Berklee College of Music•Boston, MA

2d•$18•Onsite

About The Position

Berklee Archives seeks a diligent, detail-oriented, investigative student assistant to support the Collections Archivist with on-campus collection processing, digitization, and reference and research activities for Berklee Archives. The Archives Assistant will assist with accession workflows; inventory creation and assessment; onsite digitization and digital collections projects; and logging, triaging, and fulfilling reference requests from the Berklee community and general public. Graduate students and undergraduates in their fourth semester or beyond are encouraged to apply.

Requirements

Organized and detail-oriented; able to perform repetitive tasks for an extended period, and conduct multi-step processes across multiple platforms/systems
Excellent reading and typing skills
Effective oral and written communication in English; able to document actions and decisions in written form
Experience with data-entry in Google Sheets, Excel, or similar spreadsheet or database software
Comfortable working independently under guidelines, collaboratively with fellow student workers, and referring problems as appropriate
Friendly, curious, and public-service oriented; comfortable interacting with Berklee students, staff, faculty, alumni, and outside researchers
Academic or professional research experience
Able to complete all physical requirements of the job, including sitting, standing, and lifting boxes up to 35 lbs

Nice To Haves

Work or volunteer experience in libraries, archives, museums, cultural heritage institutions, or similar fields
Interest in Berklee and/or music history
Familiarity with contemporary and classical repertoire a plus but not required

Responsibilities

Assist with collection processing according to repository best practices, including accessioning workflows, rehousing materials, inventorying, and performing biographical research on collection creators and subjects
Log reference requests received by email, phone, or request form; maintain up to date tracking spreadsheets as requests are fulfilled.
Propose preliminary research steps and conduct research within onsite archival collections, indices, databases, and other resources as directed by Collections Archivist, documenting findings and coordinate responses with Collections Archivist
Execute digitization, ingest, and cataloging workflows of documents, photographs, and recordings for researcher, staff, faculty, alumni, student, or public access and use, in accordance with repository rights and permissions
As schedule permits, supervise reference appointments
Communicate regularly with Collections Archivist about progress and problems
Opportunities to assist with other archival projects depending on availability and interest, including adding material to digital collections platform, exhibit development, and social media content creation
Note: This position often requires use of a personal laptop.

Stand Out From the Crowd

Upload your resume and get instant feedback on how well it matches this job.

Upload and Match Resume