Engineering and Science Liaison

Description

The Engineering and Science Liaison will connect researchers with the services and
resources of the MIT Libraries in support of emerging research methods, open and
equitable scholarship, and knowledge creation and dissemination.
The position will support research and teaching in engineering and science
disciplines. The focus of this position is the Parsons Lab for Environmental Science and
Engineering in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, and the Institute
for Data, Systems, and Society. This position will have exciting opportunities to support
computing and data-intensive research at the College of Computing, and in other MIT
initiatives such as The Quest. Individually and in teams, the liaison will deliver valued
services across a highly interdisciplinary campus community.
MIT libraries actively support researchers who collaborate globally, use data-intensive
methods to create new knowledge, and advance paradigm shifts in research toward
open access and open science. Helping to forge the future of library services in
advancing the MIT Libraries mission is a core responsibility of library liaisons.
Job responsibilities
In support of open and computational research, teaching and learning, the liaison will:
• Support finding, using and disseminating information by students, faculty and
researchers who are engaged in local and global collaborations, interdisciplinary
teams, in-person and online courses, and funded research. This includes, but is
not limited to, locating or developing datasets, software and other information
sources, assisting with literature reviews, and assisting researchers with
managing and documenting their research outputs.
• Teach in the library program on information citizenship, in which students and
researchers critically evaluate current practice in the information ecosystem and
develop ways to promote openness and equity.
• Partner with faculty, students and researchers to evaluate tools, platforms, and
infrastructure that support research. Design and lead projects to gather and
analyze data about emerging research and teaching practices, such as machine
learning, in order to pilot or deploy new services and partnerships in support of
open research.
• Develop systematic and ongoing learning initiatives around emerging topics in
data-intensive and computational research for library colleagues and the MIT
community.
The Engineering Liaison reports to the Department Head for Liaison, Instruction & Reference Services, and collaborates across the MIT Libraries to advance the impact of research through effective management of data and other research outputs. They support the quality and impact of library services by leading or participating in library initiatives, serving on teams and task forces, and through leadership or service coordination roles.
Required qualifications include MLS/MLIS or a degree in engineering; minimum of 3 years relevant experience including solid experience working with data and scholarly information in engineering research.
Expertise and experience:
• Demonstrated ability to carry out a liaison program of support through outreach, building relationships, and a systematic approach for providing services.
• Ability to consult with and advise researchers about scholarly literature, reference materials, and resources in science, engineering and computing fields.
• Familiarity with a range of trends in science and engineering such as interdisciplinary and global collaborations, translating research into practice, open science, open access, and open data.
• Teaching experience, which might include designing online modules, working with project teams or research groups, co-designing student assignments, articulating learning outcomes and assessment, planning workshops or class sessions.
• Strong collaborative, organizational and communication skills across multiple contexts, such as reports and presentations, working with student teams, leading projects with multiple, diverse stakeholders, leading and participating in meetings.
A mix of technical research skills which may include:
• Experience working with data sets, statistical analysis software, R, python and other data analysis tools and programs.
• Familiarity with a variety of tools and platforms for collaborative research including GitHub, electronic lab notebooks, open source and open science tools, data repositories.
• Experience gathering data using API’s
• Familiarity with the application of machine learning to research problems.
Preferred experience and skills
• Familiarity with ethical, legal and policy issues in science and engineering.
• Project management skills, communicating with stakeholders, leading teams.
• Using business intelligence to make decisions.
SALARY AND BENEFITS: $63,232 minimum. Actual salary will depend on qualifications and experience. MIT offers excellent benefits including a choice of health and retirement plans, a dental plan, tuition assistance, and fully subsidized MBTA passes for local bus and subway service. Flexible work arrangements, including flex-time and telecommuting, are considered for positions that meet established criteria. The MIT Libraries is a collegial and supportive working environment and fosters professional growth of staff with management training and travel funding for professional meetings. APPLICATION PROCESS: Apply online at: https://careers.peopleclick.com/careerscp/client_mit/external/jobDetails/jobDetail.html?jobPostI d=17063&localeCode=en-us Applications must include cover letter and resume. Priority will be given to applications received by November 8th, 2019; position open until filled. MIT is strongly and actively committed to diversity within its community and particularly welcomes applications from qualified women and minority candidates. Professionals who enthusiastically embrace the empathy, courage, self-reflection and respect of a multi-cultural, diverse and inclusive workplace, and who strive to incorporate those values in their work and interactions are encouraged to apply.