Archivist

Archivist

Department: Legislative Branch

Location(s): Washington, District of Columbia

Salary Range: $70623 - $91815 Per Year

Job Summary: This position is located in the American Folklife Center, Special Collections Directorate, Researcher and Collection Services in the Library Collections and Services Group. This is a non-supervisory, bargaining unit position. The position description number for this position is 446809. The salary range indicated reflects the locality pay adjustments for the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan area. The incumbent of this position will work a flextime work schedule.

Major Duties:

• The incumbent will join a team of archivists, technicians, and digital specialists in the American Folklife Center Archives who steward dynamic ethnographic collections documenting traditional culture from around the world, including the earliest field recordings made in the 1890s on wax cylinder through recordings made using digital technology. Analyzes and arranges bodies of records. Demonstrates knowledge of archival theory and practice in planning and carrying out their organization and description. Possesses understanding of scholarly research and documentation practices and uses basic knowledge of archival theory to process and describe archival collections. Examines the documentation systems and practices of the originating agency, organization, or individual whose materials are being processed. Evaluates the significance of archival material in its historical context and applies evaluation in helping create a plan of arrangement and description. Exercises initiative on special assignments requiring knowledge of archival procedures and academic subject matter. Surveys internal collections to identify and inventory groups of materials for preservation and physical security. Follows prescribed specifications and procedures in preserving original materials. Monitors and coordinates procedures for routing materials for preservation treatment and for preparation of new materials to be added to the collections. Maintains personal contacts and cooperative work relationships in order to provide or exchange information. Coordinates as necessary with collection curators and staff in other divisions relating to the transmission, handling, description, and storage of division material housed off-site or transferred elsewhere. Attends workshops, conferences, seminars, or meetings related to archives, libraries, and other relevant fields to apply new and revised methods to work and ensure work is performed to current standards. While attending or participating in scholarly and professional societies or meetings/conferences, the incumbent contributes to the field by providing insights or relevant connections between Library collections and archival management practices. Provides information in response to reference service requests that require research among several record groups to locate the information. Assists readers, scholars and researchers in finding significant records relating to the subject under consideration and advises them of relevant records in the division and Library. Relocation expenses will not be authorized for the person(s) selected under this vacancy announcement.

Qualifications: Applicants must have had progressively responsible experience and training sufficient in scope and quality to furnish them with an acceptable level of the following knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of the position without more than normal supervision. Knowledge of digital curation and descriptive tools, information technologies and integrated library systems to support archival functions.** Knowledge of the principles, concepts, and techniques of archival work, including analysis, organization, and description of archival material.** Knowledge of folklife, ethnomusicology, documentary studies, oral history and/or other related subject areas to process and describe archival collections.** Ability to build and maintain professional relationships and provide liaison services. Ability to perform preservation duties. Ability to communicate effectively other than in writing.

How to Apply: Please carefully follow all instructions under the How to Apply tab to ensure you are considered for the position. Please note, there is no page restriction to your resume, and you are allowed to upload a resume longer than two pages in the resume section within the application process. When the application system prompts, please proceed to the agency site to complete your application. You are required to apply online for this announcement. We are unable to accept mailed or emailed documents. You must complete the entire application process, including submission of all documents BEFORE this announcement closes. To do so, complete the following steps. Step 1: If you do not already have one, create a resume and upload it to your profile in the "Resume" section. Although you must enter your Social Security Number for USAJOBS, this information will not be provided to the Library of Congress. Step 2: Review the Job Announcement. We recommend you go to the end of the Qualification and Evaluation section of the job announcement to preview the online questions that you will answer in Step 4. You may wish to customize your resume to ensure that it supports your responses to these questions. Step 3: Click on the "APPLY ONLINE" button to the right of this announcement. Follow USAJOBS' instructions to access your account. You will be redirected to the Hiring Management website to complete the application process. If this is your first time in Hiring Management, you will be asked to answer questions related to your eligibility for Federal employment. You will be able to update this information and save it to our account for future announcements. Step 4: Once you have completed the eligibility questions, you will be taken directly to the vacancy application questions. Answer all questions honestly and thoroughly. Step 5: Hiring Management offers one option that will electronically attach your documentation to your online application once you finish answering the questions in the job announcement. You may electronically upload a document directly from your computer to your application. Be certain to review your complete application for confirmation of the document uploaded and click on "Finished" to be returned to USAJOBS. IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have multiple documents of the same kind, e.g. 2 undergraduate transcripts from different schools or 2 SF-50s, etc., be sure that they are all in the same file on your computer. If you try uploading them individually, only the last one sent will be visible in our system. If you have any questions about this information, please contact the person on this announcement BEFORE the closing date. Step 6: Click on "Finish" after you have completed your application. Once you have submitted your application, you can check your status online through your Hiring Management or MY USAJOBS account. Your complete online application and any required supplemental documentation (e.g., SF-50, etc.) must be received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on the closing date of the announcement. It is your responsibility to ensure that all documents are received on time and that the materials are readable. Failure to do so will result in your application being excluded from consideration for this announcement. If you are experiencing any technical difficulty with the online process, you MUST CONTACT THE POINT OF CONTACT FOR THIS ANNOUNCEMENT BEFORE THE CLOSING DATE. For all technical issues please contact jobhelp@loc.gov , no later than 4:00pm EST of the Closing Date. REQUESTS FOR EXTENSIONS WILL NOT BE GRANTED.

Application Deadline: 2026-05-18