Cataloguing Internship

October 22, 2024

Website Congregational Library & Archives

Job Title

Church History Cataloguing Intern

Job Purpose

The Church History Cataloguing Library intern will manage a project to increase intellectual control and access of uncatalogued local church history publications. The material is largely ephemeral, such as brochures and typescripts, and has been organized and inventoried. Under the supervision of the Librarian, the intern will add material to existing collections of church history by removing out-of-scope and duplicate material, updating the catalog record, and physically integrating and arranging the material according to local standards and workflows. An introduction to the ILS (Softlink Liberty) and basic cataloguing processing (e.g. MARC and RDA) will be included as part of the training. The internship is – hours per week with a flexible weekly schedule to be determined in consultation with the candidate. 

Job Duties and Responsibilities 

  • Maintain and update inventory of local church history files
  • Handle historical material 
  • Identify and remove manuscript and duplicate material 
  • Update catalog records with new material and add items to existing collections
  • Provide information to staff about new collections
  • Participate in outreach (e.g. social media) about project 

Qualifications

Education and Experience

  • Enrolled in or recently completed undergraduate degree, preferably in a related field

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities

  • Professional curiosity of library theory, concepts, and methods
  • Strong organizational skills
  • Attention to detail
  • Ability to work independently and as part of a team
  • Effective communication skills with a willingness to ask questions and report updates or issues
  • Adaptability, flexibility, patience in methodically working through a large project
  • Technological competence, particularly with spreadsheets 

Preferred Qualifications

Education and Experience

  • Experience working in a library setting 

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities

  • Experience creating standardized metadata
  • Familiarity with proper handling of historical material 
  • Familiarity with working with an integrated library system (ILS) 

Working Conditions

  • Work must be completed on-site (14 Beacon St., Suite 200, Boston, 02108)
  • Work requires frequent exposure to dust and red rot (degraded leather)
  • Moderate physical activities, including ascending/descending stairs, moving average-weight boxes (up to 50 pounds), standing and walking
  • Work is normally performed in a typical interior/office work environment

To apply for this job email your details to mwright@14beacon.org