Archivist

Full Job Description

The Smithsonian Institution is the world's largest museum, education, and research complex, with 21 museums and the National Zoo.

This position is in the Archives Center, Digital Access and Archives, Division of Public History, National Museum of American History (NMAH), Smithsonian Institution (SI).

All applicants must meet these Basic Requirements: Education: Bachelor's degree in archival science or bachelor's degree with a major that includes 18 semester hours in archival science, history and/or in political science or government, and 12 semester hours in one or any combination of the following: archival science, history, American civilization, economics, political science, public administration, or government.

OR Combination of education and experience - at least 30 semester hours that included courses as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

In addition to meeting the basic requirements above applicants must also meet the following minimum qualifications: Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-09 level in the Federal Service.

For this position, specialized experience is defined as performing basic archival duties for an archive, museum or library including: appraisal and acquisition, collection processing, collection management, and onsite and remote reference duties.

OR Education: 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. Related degrees may include library and information science, archival studies, and archival science.

OR A combination of related Ph.D. level education and specialized experience as described above; For a full explanation of this option please see the Qualification Standards.

Special Instructions for Foreign Education: If you are qualifying by education and/or you have education completed in a foreign college/university described above, it is your responsibility to provide transcripts and proof of U.S.

accreditation for foreign study. For instructions on where to fax these documents, see the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

Your resume must be no more than two (2) pages and should clearly demonstrate how your experience aligns with the responsibilities and specialized experience required for this position.

Do not copy language directly from the vacancy announcement, as you will be deemed ineligible for consideration. Instead, provide detailed, descriptive information about your actual experience.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social).

Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience.

Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week.

In an effort to streamline our hiring process, SI employees whose current position of record is in the same job series (1420) and who are in a Federal competitive service appointment as this advertised position, are not required to submit a transcript with your application package.

However, if selected, you will be required to provide a copy of your transcript before your start date in the position.

Time-in-Grade Requirements: Under competitive merit promotion procedures, any individual who is currently holding, or who has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule position under a non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet "time-in-grade" requirements (have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade of the grade for which you are applying).

Major Duties:

The primary purpose of this position is to support the growth, preservation, and access of the Archives Center's collections, which include paper-based materials, photographic media, analog audiovisual formats, and born-digital records.

In this position, you will: Assist the Head of Archives and senior Archivists with new acquisitions, including conducting onsite appraisals; packing, shipping, shelving, and labeling materials; and assessing collections for physical condition, format types, research value, access requirements, and preservation needs.

Process archival collections in accordance with national archival standards, best practices, and institutional guidelines, including arrangement, minimal preservation, description, and the creation of finding aids using ArchivesSpace and related digital tools.

Identify and record descriptive information such as subjects, dates, and names; research the origin and content of records using primary and secondary sources.

Support collections storage by monitoring environmental, facility, and security conditions; perform routine systems maintenance; identify risks to collections and staff; and report significant issues to the Head of Archives.

Serve on a regular schedule in the Archives Center's Reading Room by assisting researchers, conducting orientations, maintaining researcher registration, scheduling use of materials, and ensuring proper retrieval and return of collections.

Collaborate with the Access and Outreach Archivist to carry out assigned tasks and ensure consistent application of Archives Center policies governing the use of collections.