How to Apply
A cover letter (maximum two pages) is required for consideration for this position and should be attached as the first pages of your resume. The cover letter should address your specific interest in the position and outline skills and experience that directly relate to this position. Due to system limitations, submit both the cover letter and resume as one file.
Job Summary
The Data Curation Specialist for Humanities and Social Sciences advances the mission of the Library through working with faculty, students and staff to help manage, share and preserve their research data and other content of scholarly value, with a specialized focus on Humanities and Social Sciences. This is a highly collaborative position requiring coordination and negotiation of relationships and responsibilities across the Library and the University.
You will be an important member of the Deep Blue Repository & Research Data Services (DBRRDS) team and contribute to all aspects of its work. You will help develop data management and sharing plans, consult with faculty, staff, and students on their scholarly communication needs in collaboration with librarian experts and subject specialists, provide training to librarians and researchers on managing and sharing their scholarship and research data, and help researchers share their scholarship and research data with others through the library's Deep Blue Documents and Deep Blue Data repositories.
You will be the primary service contact for DBRRDS with Humanities and Social Sciences faculty, staff and students at U-M's Ann Arbor, Dearborn and Flint campuses. Other service activities and functions may be negotiated depending upon your knowledge, expertise, and interest.
You will report directly to the Director of Deep Blue Repository & Research Data Services under the Associate University Librarian for Publishing.
You may supervise student workers.
What You'll Do
While partnering with colleagues at the Library, U-M Office of Research, Information Technology Services, Advanced Research Computing, as well as selected academic programs, institutes, departments, schools, and colleges across U-M campuses, you will engage in:
Consultation (20%)
- You will use your knowledge of best practices in document and data curation and its potential application in different research settings to serve as a consultant for faculty and students in Humanities and Social Sciences fields. Consultation activities will range from single meetings to address a particular need to longer-term collaborations with researchers to explore or address larger issues. This may include participating in funded research projects as a named partner, depending on the interests, expertise and capacity of the person in this position.
Education and Community Development (25%)
You will identify and connect with faculty and students who are engaged or interested in curating data and scholarly content from Humanities and Social Sciences fields. You will offer workshops and other educational programming on introductory and specialized topics of interest to the U-M community. You will also coordinate or lead meetings, events, or projects designed to facilitate communication, connections, and engagement between faculty, staff, students, and research centers across the U-M campuses.
Development of Local Standards, Tools and Support (20%)
Using your knowledge of best practices in curation, as well as the needs of U-M researchers, you will design, develop and implement local standards of practice for the Library and the U M community to apply in support of advancing data curation and document deposit workflows. You will serve as the main liaison to the Rackham Graduate School and coordinate its dissertation deposit workflows. You will also design technical and policy tools that are practical and easy to use to facilitate and enhance the data and scholarly content produced by the research being done at U-M. This may include pursuing external funding depending on the expertise, interest and capacity of the person in this position.
Data and Digital Curation (15%)
You will review data sets submitted to Deep Blue Data, in conjunction with other experts as needed, to assess the condition of the data set and to make recommendations to enhance the value and accessibility of the data for others. You will communicate recommendations to the researcher to address gaps, improve the value of the data's findability, accessibility, interoperability and reusability (FAIR), and enhance the data's potential for reproducibility. You will serve as a data curator in the Data Curation Network (https://datacuration.network), a consortium of academic libraries offering data curation and repository services.
Service Response (10%)
- In conjunction with the other data curators, you will monitor and resolve service requests received for Deep Blue Documents and Deep Blue Data. These requests may range from supporting depositors to reaching out to authors to release their work upon request. You will also work with the developers of Deep Blue Documents to provide reports to collection administrators upon request.
Professional Development and Service (10%)
- You will pursue enrichment and professional development activities as appropriate to the position and individual interests. You will also engage and contribute to the library, disciplinary, and other relevant communities of practice.
Skills You Have
- An advanced degree (Masters or PhD level) in a relevant academic discipline or a Master's Degree in Library Science.
- One (1) year direct experience with the information technologies and best practices prevalent in research data management, sharing, and/or curation.
- One (1) year combined experience with and/or education with at least one type of data. This could include qualitative data, observational data, experimental data, code, etc.
- Demonstrated commitment to protecting the integrity of sensitive data (including balancing openness and protection) as well as compliance with relevant regulations and adherence to professional ethics.
- Familiarity with the FAIR and CARE principles and the necessity of making research accessible for the benefit of the global community.
- Demonstrated commitment to fostering a welcoming environment by recognizing and incorporating differing viewpoints, backgrounds, and ideas to enrich the organization.
- Motivation to provide excellent service and to collaboratively improve workflows and processes.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills and an ability to present and share ideas clearly and effectively to diverse audiences.
You May Also Have
- One (1) year combined experience and/or education with at least one type of Humanities and/or Social Sciences data. This could include qualitative data, observational data, experimental data, code, etc.
- Experience supporting researcher information needs and creating effective responses to meet those needs in a service.
- Experience working in an academic library.
- Experience working with data repositories.
- Experience working through the nuances of sensitive data, including ethical issues and compliance with journal and funding agency mandates.
(Note: desired qualifications above are not required to apply and be considered for the position).
Modes of Work
This position is expected to be hybrid. Candidates with exceptional qualifications may be considered for a fully remote work arrangement. Flexible work arrangements are made at the discretion of the hiring department, reviewed annually, and subject to change based on business needs.
Additional Information
The anticipated hire date is in January 2027.
This appointment is subject to the UM/LEO-GLAM collective bargaining agreement.
Appointment is anticipated as an Associate Librarian or Senior Associate Librarian. Salary and rank are dependent on the candidate's qualifications and experience. The target salary ranges for this position are $69,000 to $79,000 for the Associate Librarian rank, and $79,000 to $89,000 for the Senior Associate Librarian rank.
Librarian appointments carry with them increased expectations regarding professional development, professional engagement, research, and service, in keeping with the library's process for librarian promotion and advancement.
The University of Michigan offers a comprehensive benefits package including health, dental, and vision insurance, generous time off (24 vacation days per year, and 15 sick leave days a year), matched retirement contributions with immediate vesting, professional development opportunities, and more. TIAA and Fidelity Investments' retirement benefits are available.
For questions about this posting or to request accommodations, please contact [email protected].
Union Affiliation
This position is covered under the collective bargaining agreement between the U-M and the Lecturers Employee Organization, AFL-CIO, on behalf of their Librarian, Archivists, and Curator bargaining unit (LEO-GLAM), which contains and settles all matters with respect to wages, benefits, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment.
It is the policy of the University of Michigan to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and other applicable federal and state laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability. Pursuant to the 2025-2029 UM|LEO-GLAM agreement, each appointing unit will designate an administrative contact ("administrative designee") who is responsible for communicating with the necessary parties about accommodation requests made by Employees in that appointing unit on each campus. The Administrative Designees for Publishing Maria Gonzalez and Richard Schrader. They may be reached at (734) 764-7196 or [email protected].
Employees on the Ann Arbor, Flint or Dearborn Campuses[1.1][2.1] may also contact the Disability Equity Office by email at [email protected], by phone at (734) 763-0235, or by visiting their website.
Application Deadline
Job openings are posted for a minimum of seven calendar days. This job may be removed from posting boards and filled anytime after the minimum posting period has ended.
Applications will be reviewed as received throughout the posting period and continue until the position is filled.
U-M EEO Statement
The University of Michigan is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.