Accessioning and Processing Archivist

Accessioning and Processing Archivist

Job no: 530219 Position Type: Faculty Full Time, Staff Full Time
Campus: UMass Boston
Department: Healey Library
Date opened: 02 Sep 2026 Eastern Daylight Time
Applications close: 02 Oct 2026 Eastern Daylight Time

Job Description

A. General Summary of Position:

Reporting to the Associate University Archivist for Collection Management, the Accessioning and Processing Archivist has primary responsibility for archival accessioning activities and, through the establishment and management of an archival accessioning program, contributes to the department’s efforts to provide holistic stewardship for all collections throughout their life cycle. Under the leadership of the Associate University Archivist for Collection Management, the Accessioning and Processing Archivist establishes baseline administrative, physical, and intellectual control over new and existing acquisitions, which include a wide range of formats, including (but not limited to) papers, photographic materials, audiovisual materials, and born-digital materials.

Following an accessioning-as-processing model, the Accessioning and Processing Archivist creates and oversees the creation of initial description for all departmental holdings, ensuring responsible administrative and physical control and basic intellectual access for all material at time of accession, and providing the infrastructure upon which any future archival work will be built. In collaboration with the Associate University Archivist for Collection Management, the Accessioning and Processing Archivist also supports the department’s dynamic, access-driven processing program, and collaborates with the Digital Initiatives Archivist to design, implement, and maintain workflows for sustainable born-digital accessioning and processing.

Guided by archival best practices and in consideration of departmental guidelines and needs, the Accessioning and Processing Archivist will be forward thinking and have a deep understanding and practical knowledge of the archival, scholarly, and community-centered cultural heritage practices that inform the mission and work of the UMass Boston Archives.

B. Examples of Duties:

• Contributes to both the Collection Management unit’s and the department’s policies and procedures, and the design of productive workflows.
• Designs and implements archival accessioning workflows and procedures for both newly acquired and backlogged collections through approaches that are user-focused, access-driven, and aligned with national professional standards and best practices.
• Engages in pre-custodial assessments and preparation of collections for physical and custodial transfer to the Archives, working closely with the University Archivist and Curator of Special Collections. In accordance with archival best practices and ethical standards, establishes physical, legal, and intellectual control of incoming and backlogged acquisitions, facilitating location management and physical storage of incoming and backlogged acquisitions.
• Leads the development and implementation of systematic accessioning strategies for departmental-stewarded collections and provides and implements recommendations to scale an evolving accessioning program.
• Prepares and presents statistical, narrative, and visual reports for internal and external stakeholders.
• Collaborates with the Digital Initiatives Archivist to develop and implement standards-driven policies and workflows for the transfer and accessioning of born-digital archival materials.
• Collaborates with the Associate University Archivist for Collection Management to ensure systematic preservation and conservation assessment practices and interventions, integrating these into departmental workflows.
• Monitors, oversees, and routinely reports on environmental conditions related to the health of archival collections, such as (but not limited to) lighting, temperature, and relative humidity, reporting problem areas as needed and appropriate.
• Assists in developing and implementing long-range plans for storage of physical collections through assessment of space, storage, and collections.
• Supervises and directs the work of…