Metro State University, a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System, is seeking to hire a Reference and Instruction Librarian. This is a full-time, fixed term (3 years) 9-month position is within the Library and Information Services Department and will start August 17, 2026.

Metro State University empowers learners to transform their lives and communities through relevant, student-centered education in an inclusive, anti-racist, and supportive learning environment.

Metro State University provides an excellent, inclusive, and engaging education to eliminate opportunity gaps and empower our students to lead our communities to a prosperous and equitable future. The university offers programs leading to baccalaureate, masters, and applied doctoral degrees. We provide accessible, high quality liberal arts, professional, and graduate education with continued emphasis on marginalized groups, including adult learners. Metro State is a five-time recipient of the Insight into Diversity Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award, most recently in 2023. Federally recognized as a Minority Serving Institution, its employees serve more than 9,000 post-traditional learners, two-thirds of whom identify as belonging to communities of color or American Indian nations, are first in their family to attend college, and/or are eligible for Pell Grants. Since we do not operate residential facilities, Metro State University students all commute to class locations across the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area, or take their courses wherever they are through our many distance-learning and hybrid course offerings, allowing Metro State to truly be "where learning meets living." Metropolitan State is recognized by CollegeNet as a leading higher education promoter of social mobility for students (Ranked # 12 out of 1,398 in 2025). Recognized in 2008 and 2016 by the Carnegie Foundation for Community Engagement, the university is committed to academic excellence and community engagement through curriculum, teaching, scholarship, and services designed to support an urban mission. As a member of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System, Metro State University actively works to achieve the Equity 2030 goal of the system, with initiatives to close disparities among student groups that focus on academic programs, policies and procedures, and effective student support. In addition, equity and anti-racism strategies are focused on building an inclusive and welcoming campus climate, hiring and retaining a diverse workforce, and developing our capacity to serve students in a culturally responsive manner. The university is in the second year of its current Strategic Plan that emphasizes its legacy of student success by becoming the region's premier institution for high-quality, accessible, and equitable education, promoting social mobility and community engagement.

Visit the Metro State University website to learn more about the university, our programs, and our students. Learn more about Minnesota State Colleges and Universities at their website.

The School/Academic Department:

The Library at Metro State University serves the campus community, supporting teaching and learning in specific academic disciplines and promoting lifelong learning. We embrace our role in student success through instructional efforts such as teaching credit-bearing courses, course-integrated instruction in other departments, and one-on-one consultations on and off the Reference and Research Assistance Desk. We work with students, faculty, and members of the community to not only meet their information needs, but to also foster information literacy.

Responsibilities:

Library faculty members are expected to:

Provide information literacy instruction, which may include some evening and/or weekend work.
Serve as a liaison to select academic programs and departments and selection of print and electronic resources.
Provide reference and research assistance, which may include some evening and/or weekend work.
Engage in scholarly activity, creative achievement and/or research.
Provide evidence of continuing preparation and study.
Contribute to student growth and development through advising and assistance.
Engage in service to the university and community.
Demonstrate a commitment to serving a diverse student body by delivering a student-centered education and using approaches that support equitable outcomes for all students.
Provide excellent learning environments through in-person, online, and/or hybrid service modalities.

Minimum Qualifications:

ALA accredited master's degree in library and/or information science earned no later than August 17, 2026.
Knowledge of current methodologies in reference and research assistance and information literacy, and the ability to apply that knowledge in an academic setting.
Experience providing user-centered reference and research services.
A plan for scholarly activity, creative achievement, and/or research in library and information services or a related discipline.
Effective communication skills (written & verbal) to communicate with a variety of persons and groups.
Demonstrated experience working collaboratively with students and colleagues who are culturally, economically, and linguistically diverse.
Demonstrated interest or expertise in accessibility, usability, institutional repositories, artificial intelligence, Open Educational Resources, or another current or emerging technical area in academic libraries.

Preferred Qualifications:

Demonstrated ability to work independently and collaboratively.
Recent experience providing library services in an academic setting.
Experience delivering information literacy instruction and integrating information literacy concepts into teaching.
Online teaching experience including a demonstrated knowledge of, and competence in the use of, software and technology related to distance learning.
Experience developing online information literacy tutorials, modules, learning objects, etc.
Professional development and/or expertise in culturally responsive pedagogy, anti-racist pedagogy, and/or universal design.

Please note: Filling of this position is dependent upon budget.

Salary:

Salary is commensurate with education and experience and is determined by the salary placement process as outlined in the Inter Faculty Organization (IFO) Master Agreement.

Employment for this position is covered by the collective bargaining agreement for the Inter Faculty Organization (IFO) which can be found at on the Minnesota State Employee and Labor Relations website.

For the most current information on the Inter Faculty Organization, go to www.ifo.org

Application

To apply, go to https://www.metrostate.edu/about/employment

*To comply with privacy and data practices requirements, please refrain from including personal information or photographs in your application materials.

Open Until Filled. Applications for priority consideration must be received by 12:01 AM on May 16th, 2026.

Qualified applicants are required to attach the following documents to their online application:

Cover letter of interest addressing your qualifications for the position;
Current curriculum vita or resume;
Names of four (4) references with addresses, email addresses and telephone numbers; at least two (2) of the references must be able to address teaching effectiveness; and
Transcripts - Valid unofficial copies of your transcript showing conferred/awarded date of your highest attained degree, with your name and the academic institution's name/logo are required. If doctoral study is in progress at the time of application, submit the most recent transcript showing your course of study and progress to date. We are not able to accept copy/paste word documents with a list of courses/grades. If selected for hire, official original transcripts will be required.
Additional materials may be requested at a later date.

State University Faculty - Reference and Instruction Librarian

Metropolitan State University

St. Paul, Minneapolis, MN, USA