Job Details
Position Overview This position is in the Acquisitions & Resource Sharing department in Watson Library. We obtain resources/materials (books, journals, videos, PDFs, etc.) in any format (print & electronic) by purchasing, borrowing, or other means, which are needed by students, faculty, and staff to support informational and research needs. We also provide materials from KU’s collections to other libraries worldwide, as well as manage serials & electronic resources. Our student employees help…
open mail, locate books in the stacks, scan books and journals, and perform other office tasks.
This position requires a high level of accuracy and speed, as well as the ability to quickly learn and retain very detailed, time-sensitive, and complex procedures. The work performed must meet established quality and turnaround time standards.
Job Description
- 10% - Opening incoming mail (i.e. books, media items, journal issues, etc.).
- 10% - Checking-in library materials in various systems (ILLiad, Voyager).
- 10% - Processing library materials (including placing holds, checking out, labeling, & routing).
- 10% - Preparing borrowed material to be mailed back to lending libraries.
- 10% - Sorting and shelving journals in Watson periodicals location.
- 10% - Creating, editing and maintaining library records.
- 10% - Retrieving print books and journals from KU’s collection.
- 10% - Scanning items for electronic delivery.
- 10% - Searching KU’s electronic journal subscriptions for requested materials to provide to requester.
- 5% - Statistical projects & running/verifying usage report.
- 5% - Other duties as assigned.
Required Qualifications
- Availability and willingness to work a regular assigned schedule of at least 10 hours a week between 8 AM - 4:30 PM Monday - Friday, and work in blocks of at least 1 - 2 hours, as evidenced by application materials.
Preferred Qualifications
- Library work experience, as evidenced by application materials.
- Experience which required a commitment to public service, as evidenced by application materials.
- Experience with computers, library online catalog, scanners and software applications, e.g. word processing, adobe acrobat, databases, as evidenced by application materials.
- Experience working with one or more Western European languages, as evidenced by application materials.
- Work experience which required working independently on complex tasks with little direct supervision, as evidenced by application materials.
- Work experience that required accuracy and performance of extremely detailed work, as evidenced by application materials.
- Previous work experience requiring problem solving skills, as evidenced by application materials.
Position Requirements
During the semester term of the appointment, the student hourly must be enrolled in no fewer than 6 credit hours. For summer periods the student hourly must: (1) have been enrolled in no less than 6 hours in the past spring semester or (2) be pre-enrolled in the upcoming fall semester in no less than 6 hours or (3) be enrolled in summer session or (4) be admitted to study in the upcoming fall semester. Student Hourlies may be undergraduate or graduate students. (Exceptions granted for GRA/GTA/GA appointments DO NOT apply to Student Hourly appointments).
Employment Conditions
(1) Student employees are not eligible for remote work arrangements unless an exception is approved by the unit leadership and HR.
(2) This is a salaried/exempt position. A student employee cannot hold an hourly/non-exempt position and a salaried/exempt graduate or undergraduate position (GRA/GTA/GA/RUA/RGA) concurrently.
(3) Student employees must be willing to maintain an assigned work schedule.
Additional Candidate Instructions
Applicant Requirements:
- Applicants are required to attach either a cover letter or resume to your online application.
- Applicant must include hours you are available to work.
- Applicant must follow below directions on submitting available work times.
To ensure consideration, apply before the application review starts on Monday, 8/10/2026. A review of applications will continue and is ongoing until a pool of qualified candidates is identified.
Due to our department’s need for very specific hours, we have a separate (more specific) availability sheet we'd like you to fill out, instead of the system's pre-generated one. Please complete the following steps to ensure you fill this out correctly and accurately:
- Click and download the document from the following link: Fall 2026 Semester Work Availability Sheet
- Download (Go to ‘File’, then ‘Download as’) a copy of this document (title it LASTNAME\_Availability) and fill it in as instructed on the sheet, for your Fall semester availability.
- Upload your availability document to the "Other Documents" section on the application form, for us to view.
- Please email Nishon Hawkins at njhawkin@ku.edu if you have any questions on how to do this!
Contact Information to Applicants
Nishon Hawkins
785-864-8895
njhawkin@ku.edu
Advertised Salary Range
$11.00 per hour
Anticipated Start Date
Monday August 24, 2026