Access Services Associate

Posted: 19-Apr-26

Location: Houston, TX, United States,

Type: Full-time

Internal Number: 5747

Special Instructions to Applicants: Applicants should attach a resume and cover letter in PDF format to the Supporting Documents section of the application.

About Rice

Boasting a 300-acre tree-lined campus in Houston, Texas, Rice University is ranked among the nation's top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has a 6-to-1 undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio and a residential college system, which supports students intellectually, emotionally, and culturally through social events, intramural sports, student plays, lecture series, courses, and student government. Developing close-knit, diverse college communities is a strong campus tradition, which is why Rice is highly ranked for best quality of life and best value among private universities.

Rice is also a wonderful place to work. Rice faculty, staff, and students share values that are essential to our success as a healthy community. Those values guide our decisions and behaviors and shape Rice's culture. They come through in how we treat each other and the welcome we extend to our visitors. These values can be recalled simply by our name -- RICE -- which stands for Responsibility, Integrity, Community, and Excellence.

Position Summary

Under general supervision, the Access Services Associate performs duties necessary to the day-to-day functioning of the Access Services department, which includes the Service Desk, assisting patrons, maintaining records, etc. The Access Service Associate will be in charge of library late-night operations during the hours of 10:00 pm through 2:00 am

• Ideal candidates should have excellent customer service skills, be able to work both independently and collaboratively in a team environment, and comfortable working in a fast-paced environment, and be comfortable working with a diverse patron base.

Workplace Requirements

Summer hours are from 12:30 pm to 9:00 pm Tuesday through Saturday, and regular semester hours are 5:30 pm to 2:00 am Sunday evening through early Thursday morning. This position is exclusively on-site, necessitating all duties to be performed in-person at Fondren Library. Per Rice policy 440, work arrangements may be subject to change.

Hiring Range

This is a full-time, benefits-eligible position with an hourly rate of $18.00. Non-Exempt (hourly) positions under FLSA are eligible for overtime.

Minimum Requirements

• High School diploma or equivalent
  In lieu of the education requirement, additional related experience, above and beyond what is required, may be substituted on an equivalent year-for-year basis.
• 0-1 year of related experience in customer service
  In lieu of the experience requirement, additional related education above and beyond what is required may be substituted on an equivalent year-for-year basis.

Skills:

• Demonstrated interpersonal, clerical, and basic organizational skills
• Ability to understand and communicate library policy
• Ability to develop a working knowledge of library services and practices
• Ability to use a variety of technical or business programs
• Excellent oral and written communications
• Excellent interpersonal communications, collaborative, and negotiating skills
• Exceptional problem-solving and analytical skills
• Ability to understand and communicate library policy
• Ability to develop a working knowledge of library services and practices
• Ability to use a variety of technical or business programs

Preferences

• Experience working in an institute of higher education
• 2+ years of experience working in a customer service-related position
• Associate's degree or higher

Essential Functions

• Checks in and out received materials using the online catalog system
• Processes books being profiled in New Books location
• Acts as a backup to all other positions in the department
• Completes special projects, as assigned
• Supervises student assistants
• Performs all other duties as assigned

Additional Functions

• Interprets and enforces library policies such as special borrowing status, blocked records, fines, lost books, etc.
• Operates laser readers, printers, book sensitizers, personal computers, and scanners
• Helps with book searches and inventory control
• Helps library patrons by answering questions and giving instructions or directions
• Collects money for fine accounts, monitors course reserve materials, and storage retrievals
• Enters bibliographic and patron information into the circulation database
• Reports building-related problems to the appropriate personnel