Curator of Rare Books and Maps

Required Education:

• ALA-accredited Master’s degree in Library and Information Science, or a Master’s degree or PhD in the History of the Book or similar (i.e. Print History, Print Culture, etc.).

Required Qualifications:

• Experience: 
  • To be appointed at the Specialist Librarian classification (PLB2/4A): At least two years of professional experience working in a special collections environment, including the physical handling of rare books printed prior to 1900.
  • To be appointed at the Expert Librarian classification (PLB3/5A): At least four years of professional experience working in a special collections environment, including the physical handling of rare books printed prior to 1900.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a team-based setting where consultation, flexibility, collaboration and cooperation are essential.
• Demonstrated willingness to take on new challenges and opportunities with initiative and creativity.
• Ability to work independently and with others in an environment where flexibility, collaboration, consultation, and cooperation are essential.
• Demonstrated excellent interpersonal skills, evidence of strong written and oral communication skills.
• Demonstrated interest in professional development that will enhance the candidate’s value to the Libraries, the University, and the profession.
• Demonstrated ability to support a welcoming and respectful environment in a job-related experience, an academic setting, and/or the community.

Desired Qualifications:

• Classwork, certification(s), concentration(s), or additional degree(s) in special collections, the history of the book, or other relevant disciplines.
• Ability to build and sustain key relationships with donors, researchers, faculty, students, staff, community and/or professional colleagues.
• Basic understanding of metadata standards and schemas for describing rare books and/or archives.
• Bibliographic knowledge of one or more languages in addition to English.
• Demonstrated understanding of the mission of a research university and the mission and functions of a large research library.

The Libraries intends to hire for one position at either the Specialist Librarian classification (PLB2/4A), requisition #25002073, or the Expert Librarian classification (PLB3/5A), requisition #25002072, based on the qualifications of the successful candidate. See experience qualification above.

Application Details:

In order to be eligible for interview, applicants must upload the following and mark them as “relevant files” when you upload the documents:

1. Cover letter that clearly addresses how you meet each of the required and any desired qualifications of this position. To ensure strongest consideration, applicants are encouraged to review all required qualifications and state directly how they meet each of them.
2. Current resume

The University of Iowa Libraries will be hiring at one of two classification levels within this requisition. You must indicate in your cover letter the classification (Specialist or Expert Librarian) you wish to be considered for or indicate both. See qualifications above for additional information about experience required for the different classifications.

This job ad will be posted through April 7, 2025, and may be removed from posting and filled any time after that date. Please contact andrea-rost@uiowa.edu if you have any questions about the position.

The hiring salary range for this position at the Specialist Librarian classification is $55,000 - $74,000 and at the Expert Librarian classification is $65,000 - 90,000.­­­­

Successful candidates will be required to self-disclose any conviction history and will be subject to a criminal background check and credential/education verification. Up to 5 professional references will be requested at a later step in the recruitment process. 

This position is eligible for on-campus and/or hybrid remote work within Iowa, with the majority of work time being on campus, and will require a work arrangement form to be completed upon the start of your employment. Per policy, work arrangements will be reviewed annually, and must comply with the remote work program and related policies and employee travel policy when working at a remote location.