Student Assistant, Heavy Metals in Bookbinding Project

University of Kansas • Lawrence, KS

2d • Onsite

About The Position

Staff in Conservation Services, KU Libraries, are working on a project to identify heavy metals in 19th-century bookbindings using analytical techniques. We seek a KU student to help us with the work. This position would be ideal for an advanced undergraduate or graduate student interested in cultural heritage conservation, libraries, collection management, materials science, and/or chemistry. The student assistant will learn about 19th century bookbinding attributes, library catalog searching, digital imaging, color measuring (colorimetry), and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) testing.

Requirements

• Excellent organizational skills, accuracy, and attention to detail, as evidenced by application materials.
• Excellent communication skills, as evidenced by application materials.
• Experience in Microsoft Office Applications (Word, Excel, Outlook, etc.), as evidenced by application materials.
• Ability to work 12-15 hours/week between 9:00 AM and 4:30 PM M-F in at least 2-hour shifts, as evidenced by application materials.
• Previous experience working with databases and data entry, as evidenced by application materials.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently on complex tasks with little direct supervision, as evidenced by application materials.
• Student must be enrolled in no fewer than 6 credit hours during the semester term of the appointment.
• For summer periods the student hourly must: (1) have been enrolled in no less than 6 hours in the past spring semester or (2) be pre-enrolled in the upcoming fall semester in no less than 6 hours or (3) be enrolled in summer session or (4) be admitted to study in the upcoming fall semester.
• Student Hourlies may be undergraduate or graduate students.

Nice To Haves

• Previous experience with historic or archival research or working or volunteering in a library, archives, or museum, as evidenced by application materials.

Responsibilities

• Record bookbinding attributes, scientific data, and colorimetry readings in a custom database.
• Prepare reports from the recorded data.
• Measure books for boxes and creating custom housings.
• Manage shelving and workflows.
• Digital imaging of bookbindings.
• Complete other duties as required, including writing blog posts and participating in public-facing events about the project.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Part-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed