2024–2025 Nadia Sophie Seiler Rare Materials Resident

The Nadia Sophie Seiler Rare Materials Residency is a twelve-month term-limited postgraduate position to provide recent graduates of library, archives management, or similar graduate studies programs with substantive exposure to and training in archival description and rare materials cataloging. The residency is made possible by the Nadia Sophie Seiler Memorial Fund and hosted at the Yale Center for British Art. The residency will begin between July and September 2024 and run through 2025.

The Resident will split time between the departments of Rare Books and Manuscripts and Archives. In each department, a primary project will consist of hands-on cataloging and description of special collections material. The Resident’s archival description and cataloging will apply appropriate standards, including Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (DCRM), Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS), and Resource Description and Access (RDA), in conjunction with subject and genre/form analysis and Library of Congress Classification (LCC). For both projects, the Resident will receive thorough training from the Chief Archivist and the Senior Catalogue Librarian, who will provide ongoing review of and feedback on the Resident’s work.

In Rare Books and Manuscripts, material for cataloging will be drawn from the J. R. Abbey collection of color-plate books illustrated in aquatint and lithography. Areas of possible focus include works on architecture, furniture, gardens, and interiors; works on costume, with a focus on dress customs of peoples and countries; and panoramas and related procession and festival books.

In the Archives, material for processing will primarily be drawn from personal papers and archival collections, which largely document nineteenth- and twentieth-century British families, travelers, writers, and artists and artist circles. The Resident will also have the opportunity to research and process institutional records, both analog and born digital, which document the museum’s history, past activities, and impact on the study of British art.

At the culmination of the residency, the Resident will present a public talk on a topic relevant to the experience gained during their tenure. The Resident will also receive funds to attend the 2024 Annual Meeting of the Society of American Archivists (SAA) and the 2025 Conference of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (RBMS) of the American Library Association (ALA), or similar professional development activities.

The Resident will:

  • Receive training on and gain practical experience using archival and library applications such as ArchivesSpace.
  • Create archival description for bound volumes and single-item collections according to national and departmental standards.
  • Apply descriptive standards (RDA, AACR2, DCRM, DACS, or VRC), structural standards (MARC, MODS, METS or EAD, etc.), and controlled vocabularies (LCNAF or LCSH).
  • Analyze bibliographic and metadata problems, recommend policies, develop processes and best practices, and create documentation.
  • Engage with cataloging and technical services staff, other archivists, librarians, curators, and collection managers in an effort to meet their needs and the needs of YCBA users.
  • Research, plan, and execute special projects.
  • Keep abreast of national and international developments including new metadata standards, technologies, trends, and techniques

 

Applications for the 2024–2025 cycle have now closed. 


Required Education:
Master’s degree in library science from an ALA-accredited library school, or related degree. The degree must be completed before July 1, 2024, but no earlier than December 1, 2022.


Qualifications:

  • Demonstrated knowledge of current national cataloging, metadata content, and archival description standards. Knowledge of subject analysis and classification systems.
  • Experience designing projects and bringing them to conclusion in a timely fashion.
  • Ability to work effectively both independently and collaboratively as part of a team comprising different people and roles.
  • Effective communication skills.
  • Accuracy and attention to detail.

 

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Experience or coursework in cataloging rare materials and archival description.
  • Record of involvement or desire to engage with special collections and other archival and cataloging communities.

 

If you are excited about this residency opportunity and you have the required degree, but you aren’t sure if your experience aligns perfectly with every other qualification in the description, we encourage you to apply. We invite applications from historically marginalized or disadvantaged groups (for example, applicants from groups historically underrepresented in the field, first-generation college graduates, or applicants from economically disadvantaged backgrounds). We encourage candidates to apply who embrace a multicultural, diverse, and inclusive workplace and who strive to incorporate those values into their work.


Residency Awards and Benefits: The Nadia Sophie Seiler Rare Materials Residency will take place at the Yale Center for British Art for twelve months. The salary is $56,652. Professional development/travel funding will be provided. Health insurance will also be provided.

Application Process: For immediate consideration, please submit a resume or CV, a cover letter, and the names and contact information of three professional references before the end of the day on April 30, 2024. The application form can be accessed here. For inquiries about the position, please contact Jessica Quagliaroli, Chief Archivist, at jessica.quagliaroli@yale.edu. 

We invite you to discover the excitement, diversity, rewards, and excellence of a career at Yale University. One of the country’s great workplaces, Yale University offers exciting opportunities for meaningful accomplishment and true growth. Our benefits package is among the best anywhere, with a wide variety of insurance choices, liberal paid time off, fantastic family and educational benefits, a variety of retirement benefits, extensive recreational facilities, and much more.

Yale University considers applicants for employment without regard to and does not discriminate on the basis of an individual’s sex, race, color, religion, age, disability, status as a veteran, or national or ethnic origin; nor does Yale discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.