Recruit

The University of California, Berkeley, is seeking an experienced, collaborative, and service-oriented History & Social Sciences Instruction Librarian to join the Library’s Social Sciences Division. The division supports world-class teaching and research in the social sciences, providing innovative collection development and other user-focused services, including data and information literacy, course-based instruction, and research support.

The Environment
The UC Berkeley Library is an internationally renowned research and teaching facility at the nation's premier public university. A highly diverse and intellectually rich environment, Berkeley serves a campus community of 33,070 undergraduate students, 12,812 graduate students, and 1,525 faculty. The Library comprises 20 campus libraries, including the Doe Library, the Moffitt Library, The Bancroft Library, the C.V. Starr East Asian Library, and numerous subject specialty libraries. With a collection of more than 12 million volumes and a collections budget of over $15 million, the Library offers extensive resources in a wide variety of formats and robust services to connect users with the collections and build their research skills. Discover more about our collections and services at the UC Berkeley Library website.

The Library’s Social Sciences Division is comprised of librarians, library career staff, and student library employees who collectively support the teaching and research needs of students and faculty in twelve social science departments within the College of Letters & Science, six professional schools, three International and Area Studies programs, and an array of Organized Research Units. The division oversees three subject specialty libraries: the Business Library, the Environmental Design Library, and the Social Research Library.

UC Berkeley's Department of History is one of the top-ranked history departments in the United States and includes an undergraduate major and a Ph.D. program. Faculty research covers almost the entirety of recorded history and spans most of the globe, with distinction in Ancient, Medieval, Modern European, Latin American, Asian, and United States history. The Department has long-standing strengths in cultural, intellectual, and political history, as well as the history of science.

Responsibilities
The History & Social Sciences Instruction Librarian reports to the head of the Library’s Social Sciences Division. Librarians in the Social Sciences Division establish strong relationships with faculty and students; conduct analysis and assessment of user needs; create collections of digital, print, and data resources; provide virtual and in-person research consultations; offer customized in-person and remote instruction; develop instructional materials in a variety of formats; and promote library resources and services to support Berkeley’s teaching and research through outreach, exhibits, and programming.

The History & Social Sciences Instruction Librarian serves as liaison and selector for the Department of History, providing library instruction, collections, and reference support for a diverse group of History undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty, and staff. The successful candidate collaborates with Library colleagues—including area studies librarians covering global regions such as Asia, Latin America, Africa, Europe, and Eastern Europe—to support researchers throughout UC Berkeley as a Library expert in historical primary sources. Through instruction and consultations, the successful candidate supports the History Department's globally recognized undergraduate and graduate programs by helping faculty and students navigate specialized collections, archives, and digital resources. They also serve as a liaison to the Center for Science, Technology, Medicine & Society—which focuses on the histories of science, medicine, and technology—and the undergraduate Interdisciplinary Studies Field.

The History & Social Sciences Instruction Librarian works as a functional lead for instruction and outreach efforts in the Social Sciences Division. They collaborate with librarians and library staff to support the promotion of Library resources, programs, and services to the division’s constituencies. As an instructional lead, the successful candidate collaborates with colleagues in the Instructional Services Division and other Library units to create and implement instructional materials and lessons to assist division colleagues in their teaching efforts.

The History & Social Sciences Instruction Librarian, in collaboration with faculty and Library colleagues, actively builds, manages, and makes accessible collections that meet the research and learning needs of the campus community and align with the Library’s digitization priorities and the University of California Libraries’ shared print efforts. The collection primarily includes electronic resources, as well as monographs and serials acquired through approval plans and vendors. The successful candidate analyzes researcher needs and resource use to inform collection decisions, ensuring that history collections reflect diverse teaching and research needs across time periods and regions.

Working closely with colleagues in the Social Sciences Division, the Office of Scholarly Communication and Information Policy, and Library Data Services, the History & Social Sciences Instruction Librarian works to shape services, projects, policies, and collections to enhance research and learning at the University. All UC Berkeley librarians are expected to participate in library-wide planning and governance, and work effectively in a shared decision-making environment. Advancement is partially based upon professional contributions beyond the primary assignment; the successful candidate will show evidence or promise of such contributions to the Library, campus, UC System, and profession.

The UC Berkeley Library is committed to supporting and encouraging respect and empathy, and nurturing a culture where all employees thrive. The Library seeks candidates who recognize and appreciate one another’s contributions, expertise, and accomplishments, and who will strive to provide equitable access to a diverse set of collections and services. For more information, please see the UC Berkeley Library Statement of Values.

UC professional librarians are academic appointees and are represented by an exclusive bargaining agent, the University Council – American Federation of Teachers (UC-AFT). This position is in the bargaining unit. Librarians are entitled to appropriate professional development leave, vacation leave, sick leave, and all other benefits granted to non-faculty academic personnel. The University has an excellent retirement system and sponsors a variety of group health, dental, vision, and life insurance plans in addition to other benefits.

UC Berkeley is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in our public mission of research, teaching, and service, consistent with UC Regents Policy 4400 and University of California Academic Personnel policy (APM 210 1-d). These values are embedded in our Principles of Community, which reflect our passion for critical inquiry, debate, discovery and innovation, and our deep commitment to contributing to a better world. Every member of the UC Berkeley community has a role in sustaining a safe, caring and humane environment in which these values can thrive.

The University of California, Berkeley is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status.

For more information, please refer to the University of California’s Affirmative Action and Nondiscrimination in Employment Policy and the University of California’s Anti-Discrimination Policy.

In searches when letters of reference are required all letters will be treated as confidential per University of California policy and California state law. Please refer potential referees, including when letters are provided via a third party (i.e., dossier service or career center), to the UC Berkeley statement of confidentiality prior to submitting their letter.

As a University employee, you will be required to comply with all applicable University policies and/or collective bargaining agreements, as may be amended from time to time. Federal, state, or local government directives may impose additional requirements.

As a condition of employment, the finalist will be required to disclose if they are subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct.

• “Misconduct” means any violation of the policies or laws governing conduct at the applicant’s previous place of employment, including, but not limited to, violations of policies or laws prohibiting sexual harassment, sexual assault, or other forms of harassment or discrimination, as defined by the employer.
• UC Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment Policy
• UC Anti-Discrimination Policy
• APM - 035: Affirmative Action and Nondiscrimination in Employment