Data Services Librarian, Z. Smith Reynolds Library

Application Instructions:

External Applicants: Please upload your resume on the Apply screen. Your application will automatically populate your resume details, and you may verify and update data on the My Information page.

Please add your cover letter and any other documents required for the position to the Resume/CV document upload section at the bottom of the My Experience application page. Use the Select Files button to add multiple documents including your cover letter and supporting documents. The My Experience page is the only opportunity to add your cover letter and supporting document attachments. .

Current Employees: Apply from your existing Workday account. Do not apply from the website. Log in to Workday. Click on the Jobs Hub and select Browse Jobs. Locate the position and click Apply. Update your Education and Job History. 

** Cover letter required for all positions and optional for facilities, campus services, and hospitality positions unless otherwise specified.

Job Description Summary

Job Description:

The Z. Smith Reynolds Library (ZSR) of Wake Forest University seeks a motivated and creative individual for the role of Data Services Librarian. The successful candidate will be someone who is familiar with data management practices and principles in teaching and research, and who is eager to work at an institution with a strong commitment to supporting instructional and scholarly data needs. In this new position, candidates will have an opportunity to develop and implement innovative data services outreach to support our students, faculty, and researchers.

As a member of the library's Digital Initiatives & Scholarly Communication department, the Data Services Librarian will shape the library's data services, including collaborating with faculty and subject librarians to integrate data literacy into the classroom and course projects. They will develop instructional resources and workshops on locating, analyzing, and visualizing data. In addition to classroom instruction and engagement, this position will offer individual and small group consultations for students. 

In support of research data needs, the Data Services Librarian will provide research data management consultations and workshops for faculty and researchers. They will support researchers who are developing data management plans and provide guidance on best practices, sharing, and preservation. They may also consult with researchers on project development and recommend tools and methods, and facilitate learning groups in practices such as cleaning data, qualitative analysis, and statistical data analysis.

The Data Services Librarian will act as the liaison with other campus units that support research data services. They may also have disciplinary liaison duties in related fields. It is not expected that the Data Services Librarian will already be an expert in all areas related to using data for teaching and research, and there will be support available for training and skill-building.

This is a full-time, twelve-month position, with library faculty status, and reports to the Director of Digital Initiatives & Scholarly Communication. ZSR Library faculty are governed by the policies established by the University's Faculty Handbook and are evaluated annually on Librarianship (70%), Scholarship and Professional Achievement (20%), and Service (10%). The Data Services Librarian will be based on-site in the ZSR Library with occasional flexible work options. 

The Z. Smith Reynolds Library is dedicated to improving diversity, equality, and respect among our staff, students, collections, and services. We strive to overcome historical and divisive biases in our society and embrace diverse points of view as assets to the fabric of our community. All positions will be called on to contribute to building this environment.

Minimum Qualifications:

Candidates must possess a Master's degree in Library Science or Information Science from an ALA-accredited program, or a Master's degree in a related field with experience in an academic or research setting. We seek candidates who demonstrate:

Understanding of common data services and data information literacy competencies.

Some experience providing consultations and instruction.

Fluency with one or more data science or digital scholarship tools and applications (e.g., DMPTool, OpenRefine, R, Python, SPSS, SAS, STATA, Jupyter Notebooks, Tableau, MAXQDA, GIS).

Knowledge of data management fundamentals, best practices, funder requirements, and research data management issues and trends.

Strong professional communication skills and the ability to work collaboratively in a team environment.

Preferred Qualifications:

We want to emphasize that these preferred qualifications are not required and that we are committed to helping our future colleague develop these preferred skills if needed.

Two or more years of experience working in research data management, digital scholarship, data services, or a related field.

Experience teaching data skills and/or developing data education initiatives.

Fluency with multiple data science or digital scholarship tools and applications. 

Awareness of the research processes used in a range of disciplines, best practices and funder requirements for data sharing and reuse, and tools and practices for measuring research impact.

Understanding of metadata schema, authority control, and relevant descriptive standards.

Success with project management, leading project groups/teams, and bringing diverse stakeholders together.

Demonstrated research interest and scholarly activity in the field.

Educational background in a data or computation intensive research field.

Salary and Rank:

Position will be open until July 31st, 2024. Review of applications will begin August 4, 2024.

About the Library and University:

The Z. Smith Reynolds Library, with a collection of over 1.9 million volumes, materials expenditures of over $6 million, and an operating budget of over $13 million, serves over 5,500 undergraduates and over 2,800 graduate and professional students within the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, School of Business, Divinity School, and the School of Professional Studies in Charlotte, NC. We collaborate with the Coy C. Carpenter Medical Library and the Law Library to supplement services for the School of Medicine and the Law School. Wake Forest is a private university where academic excellence is consistently recognized through rankings in the top tier of the country’s finest liberal arts institutions. Wake Forest offers a rare combination – the academic and technological resources, facilities and Division I athletic programs associated with a large university with the compact campus, small classes and individual attention only a smaller school can provide. The University has a deep institutional commitment to public service and engagement with the world, as indicated by the motto “Pro Humanitate.” The university is beautifully located between the western mountains and east coast beaches of North Carolina.

Additional Job Description

Time Type Requirement

In adherence with applicable laws and as provided by University policies, the University prohibits discrimination in its employment practices on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, genetic information, disability and veteran status and